Back to the corral…closing

Day 1 The Good Shepherd Knows me.

1)      Welcome back

As the students come back into the Corral welcome the back class by class. 

Announcer:           Welcome Back to the Corral everyone…did you have a fun? (allow for response)

Are you all Sheep experts now? (allow for response.)

I Hope you are had an awesome time tonight, and that you tell all your friends where all the excitement is this week. Make sure to invite them to come tomorrow!

2)      Closing Song(optional)

Pick one or two of the songs from the worship time ..

3)      Offering and Attendance report

Okay its time for our Offering and attendance report!

Tell the kids how many boys vs girls attended vbs and report on the offering totals(if you are having a boy vs girl contest with this you can discuss this as well)

4)      Bible Memory review

Have the kids review their memory verse one more time.

I am the good shepherd I know my sheep and my sheep know me

Invite the children to repeat after you and add actions!

I am the Good Shepherd

 (kids make a shepherd staff with their hands)

I 

(point at self)

Know my sheep

(point at each other)

And my sheep 

(point at each other)

Know me

(point at self)

John 10:14

5)      Closing Prayer

Before we all head home lets close this VBS in prayer!

Good Shepherd,

Thank you for knowing us. Thank you for all the awesome things we learned to day at VBS and please help us to be able to come back tomorrow to learn more about you!

In Jesus Name

Amen

Day 1 Devotional

ALL WE LIKE SHEEP

Today’s Overview:

Day	Theme	Bible Memory	Bible Story
1	The Good Shepherd knows us!	John 10:14 I am the Good Shepherd. I know my sheep and my sheep know me.	John 10 Jesus teaches us that he is the Good Shepherd and he knows each one of us by name!

As I sit at my desk, and ponder what to tell you on the first day of VBS, I am amazed at the greatness and intimacy of the Good Shepherd that we serve. When one stops and thinks of simply the fact that God knows them, it is overwhelming far beyond human comprehension.

God—who created the universe by his very words, who can speak galaxies into existence of such finite and detailed complexity, that our human science can only scratch the surface of the wonderment.

God—who keeps the earth spinning on it’s axis, in perfectly aligned rhythm, who knows the exact distance needed between every star and planet, and keeps the universe from imploding into one cosmic explosion

God—who was there when every gem was hidden beneath the earth’s surface, who remembers when every great sequoia tree growing today was only a seed you could hold in your hand, who was present when the first drop of waters of water touched the ocean bed.

This God of greatness and wonder. This God who is the one true God—He knows YOU

He knows you with a detail that at thousand years of careful study could not match. He knows the number of hair’s on your head. He knows the number of thought in your mind in this very instant.

Scripture tells us that before he formed us in our mother’s womb he knew us. (Psalm 139) Our scripture today tells us that as the Good Shepherd he knows us(John 10:14). In a time when the world parades it’s definition of greatness before us on a daily basis, it is easy to feel insignificant, and unimportant. But the Creator of the universe knows YOU! You are his design, and his masterpiece. You are not a mass produced factory turn out. You are and individually knit together creation that is known by the creator.

 I encourage you to take a moment and let the personalness of God overwhelm you with excitement Let the realization of this truth settle deep into your spirit, as you go about teaching the children today. For the best way to show those around us the intimacy of God, it to have experienced Him in that way ourselves. Take the time to read this Psalm and let God speak to your heart.

Psalm 139:1-18

 O Lord, you have ^(A)searched me and known me!
² You ^(B)know when I sit down and when I rise up;
    you ^(C)discern my thoughts from afar.
³ You search out my path and my lying down
    and are acquainted with all my ways.
⁴ Even before a word is on my tongue,
    behold, O Lord, ^(D)you know it altogether.
⁵ You ^(E)hem me in, behind and before,
    and ^(F)lay your hand upon me.
^6 (G)Such knowledge is ^(H)too wonderful for me;
    it is high; I cannot attain it.

^7 (I)Where shall I go from your Spirit?
    Or where ^(J)shall I flee from your presence?
^8 (K)If I ascend to heaven, you are there!
    ^(L)If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!
⁹ If I take the wings of the morning
    and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
¹⁰ even there your hand shall ^(M)lead me,
    and your right hand shall hold me.
¹¹ If I say, ^(N)“Surely the darkness shall cover me,
    and the light about me be night,”
^12 (O)even the darkness is not dark to you;
    the night is bright as the day,
    for darkness is as light with you.

¹³ For you ^(P)formed my inward parts;
    you ^(Q)knitted me together in my mother's womb.
¹⁴ I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.^[a]
(R)Wonderful are your works;
    my soul knows it very well.
^15 (S)My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
    intricately woven in ^(T)the depths of the earth.
¹⁶ Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
in your ^(U)book were written, every one of them,
    the days that were formed for me,
    when as yet there was none of them.

¹⁷ How precious to me are your ^(V)thoughts, O God!
    How vast is the sum of them!
^18 (W)If I would count them, they are more than ^(X)the sand.
    I awake, and I am still with you.

Sheep Corral(Joint Assembly)

Day 3

The Good Shepherd Provides for us!

1)      Welcome and call to worship

ANNOUNCER SITTING AT THE FRONT WORKING ON A LONG LIST. (you could have a  long roll of paper, or a bunch of sheets with crumpled paper on the floor everywhere.

Friend-  Um (announcers name), hey (announcers name) are you going to welcome the kids today?

Announcer- What?  Oh, yeah …oh well  um sorry(puts down roll of paper and pen and turns to kids)  Hi Kids! Um….WELCOME to VBS…uhhh…umm…(looks at papers) yeah well Today  we are uh…learning about sheep!

Friend—(announcer’s name) What in all the world where you working on that has you sooo oo distracted anyways?

Announcer—That? (pointing at papers) OH that is my list.

Friend—Your list?

Announcer—Yah my list! You see today we are going to be learning about how God provides for us, and gives us what we want. So I am making a loooooong list of ALL the stuff I want so I can give it to God. I mean if he wants to provide for me then I might start by giving him a list of everything. 

Friend—Um

Announcer—You want to see my list? I am trying to make it pretty detailed, I don’t want to leave anything out you know. Do you think it’s long enough?

Friend—Um

Announcer—Oh wait I forgot,(goes to write some more things on his list and reads what he is writing) new tractor, oh and a new car, and hmm…oh I have ALWAYS wanted one of those big boats, and maybe a Caribbean cruise, let’s see…anything else….hmmm

Friend—whoa….wait a second there….That is NOT what God is trying to tell us. God isn’t Santa Clause. God DOES provide for us the things that we NEED, but that doesn’t mean he is a genie in the sky pouring down everything that we could ever WANT.  God knows what we need. He knows what we need even better than we do, and if we go to Him for everything, we might even discover that he will give us things we didn’t even know we wanted but are so thankful that he gave to us. How about you have a seat and take a break, and let me explain it a bit.

Announcer—Oh.. Okay , guess I NEED a break!

Friend—Yeah. Welcome to VBS boys and girls!  Today we are going to be learning about a shepherd named Jacob.  God provided for Jacob in some pretty neat ways.  A good shepherd provides for his sheep, he makes sure they have enough food and water. He makes sure they are getting enough exercise, and that they don’t get sick. He makes sure that they have what they need.   God is our Good Shepherd, and he provides for us too.

Now let’s call up the worship leader and worship together.

2)      Worship time:

Suggested songs:

I Just Want to Be a Sheep

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpYgYoNGM38

The Lord is my Shepherd

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZW7k1alMCsE

My Father’s House

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrzG0qyp_rI

3)      Memory verse

Jake jumps up….ARF  I just LOVE your songs! 

Today is day 3! I want everyone that has memorized any of the extra verses on your take home papers to stand up!(Comment accordingly and encourage the kids that  it’s not to late to do some of the extra bible memory.  Have a copy of the take home paper for today, and show them where the extra verse are. Tell the kids about the special rewards that you have for extra verses.)

Sheep need SOOO much stuff. Like our announcer was saying, sheep need food, water, they need protection—we learned about that yesterday, they need exercise, they need to be sheared when their wool is too long.  Being a shepherd is HARD work, because sheep are needy animals.

Aren’t you glad that God is our Good Shepherd and he provides for us?

Today’s bible verse is  from Ps 23 but remember what our announcer learned today, when it says we won’t want it means that he will provide our needs okay?

Ps 23:1 The Lord is my Shepherd I shall not want.

Invite the children to repeat after you and add actions!

The Lord(point up)

Is my shepherd(point to self)

I shall not (shake finger no)

Want(rub tummy like hungry)

4)      Drama intro

(Announcer is back) So God Provides for us. I think I got it. Today’s bible story is about Jacob. No matter what Jacobs Father in law did…God still provided for Jacob, let’s listen

. 

5)      Drama

Coming soon

6)      Response and Closing

Wow…I can see how God used some pretty neat ways to provide for Jacob..God is our Good Shepherd  he Provides for Us too!

7)       Offering Project 

Our offering project is one way that God is going to provide for some people in need.

http://www.samaritanspurse.org/donation-items/sheep-2/

8)      Prayer

Thank you God our Good Shepherd that you provide for our needs! Thank you for everything you are going to teach us tonight. Help us to listen and learn what you want us to learn!

9)      Send Kids out to the their classes

The Sheep Fold(Bible Lesson)

Day 4 The Good Shepherd Loves Us.

Supplies needed:

Big bucket of legos(or some type of toy with many many pieces….the bigger the better)

Party hats and noise makers(one per child)

Hand out papers

Advance preparation: 
read through the lesson, and decide on what legos you will need.
Hide a lego piece in the room.

Introduction:

Welcome the children and invite them to join in discussion.

We hear the word love LOTS. I might tell you that I love ice cream or I might tell you I love my children. What are ways that you hear people use the word love?  Do you feel the same way about ice cream as you do about your parents?

Now I want you to use your imagination with me.  I know that we don’t LOVE toys they way we love people, but I want you to pretend with me that all these lego’s in this box represent a person. (Stick big box of legos in the middle of the room) Each of us is a little bit different and there are LOTS and LOTS of people in the world.    (Pull out a tiny piece) Now I have a problem, you see I was going through my legos earlier today and counting them, and playing with them and stuff, and I discovered that one of my pieces was missing!  It’s a piece that looks just like this(show really small piece). I REALLY REALLY REALLY like that piece. Why just yesterday I was using that piece to build this super cool structure and it was holding these other two pieces together just so perfectly, and it was doing such a good job! I am just so upset that this piece is missing, and my life just won’t be the same until I have that piece back!

Now what would you kids do if these were your toys?  Would you care that much about a tiny little piece?   Sometimes it is easy for us to think that we are just an insignificant person in the world. It’s easy to feel like we don’t matter, and that God can’t possibly love us because there are so many people who seem bigger and more important.  They might be like this piece(grab piece) or this one(grab another one) these pieces seem really important. If I compare this piece(show the one that you grabbed to begin with)  to the others, it seem pretty small and unimportant, but that is not how God feels at all. God loves you, and if you walk away from God it makes him sad. He will go out looking for you and will NOT stop until he finds you.

Lets read our Bible story.

 Bible Time:

Luke 15:1-7

 Then all the tax collectors and the sinners drew near to Him to hear Him.² And the Pharisees and scribes complained, saying, “This Man receives sinners and eats with them.”

Now the Pharisees and scribes where like the big and important people.  The tax collectors and sinners, where the people that where considered really small and not important. In fact,people hated tax collectors and sinners so much, that they didn’t think they were even worth being alive. Now lets listen to what Jesus tells the big important people.

 ³ So He spoke this parable to them, saying:

⁴ “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?

Does that sound kinda familiar to you?  Remember our big bin of legos?  Remember how concerned I was because I was missing one lego?  You know what?  God things you are sooooooooo much more important that a lego piece. You are like his sheep and he is the Good Shepherd, so if you wander off he is going to search and search until he finds you, now lets read about what happens when the Good Shepherd finds his sheep.

 ⁵ And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.⁶ And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!’ 

So what did the Good Shepherd do?  Did he get really mad and beat that sheep?  Did he yell at the sheep and make it walk home all by itself?  NO the bible says he REJOICED! There is another place where Jesus tells this story and it says that he called his friends and family together and had a great big party, just because he found his sheep. Isn’t that awesome? Let’s read the rest of the story okay?

⁷ I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance.

So you see. God was telling the people that thought that they were big, important, and the best, that they were not any more important. He was saying that each one of us sheep is important to God and God will do whatever he can to reach each one of us!

Hey wait…look there is my piece!  (get very excited) Oh am soooo excited I could just jump up and dance! Wow, this is so cool! I think it’s time for a PARTY! What do you think?  Pull out a bunch of birthday hats and noise makers and hand them out to the kids and have  a quick impromptu ‘party’.

Bible Memory :

Let’s review our bible verse again….think about how this verse shows us the love of the Good Shepherd.

Review memory verse

He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart

Invite the children to repeat after you and add actions!

He tends his flock

(Put hands like you are patting sheep on the head)

Like a shepherd

(Make shepherd staff with hand)

He gathers the lambs in his arms

(Motion like you are gathering a lamb into your arm)

And carries them close to his heart

(Put both hands on your heart)

Isaiah 40:11

Hand outs:

Make sure the kids get their take home sheets and point out anything you want to focus on! There probably won’t be time in this class to work on them.

Closing:

Before we go I want each one of you to know that GOD the Good Shepherd LOVES  you! Go around and say to each child God loves (their name)!

Pray and thank God for being a Good Shepherd that LOVES us!