Lesson 2: Jesus calms the storm.
Passage: Matthew 8:23-27 - In the passage, Jesus is on a boat with his disciples when a violent storm begins to rage. The disciples are terrified, but Jesus is just sleeping. They cry out to him to save them, he wakes up and tells the storm to be still, and the wind and the waves die down. The disciples are amazed by this display of power and wonder, “What kind of man is this? Even the wind and waves obey him!”
Big Idea: Jesus has power over nature.
For Teachers:
Lesson plan.
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Welcome — Activity Leader
Have the children sit in a circle on the circle time rug. Introduce yourself welcome them to class.
Warm Up Activity: Storm in a Bottle — Activity Leader
Show the children your storm in a bottle. Holding the Voss bottle that contains baby oil and water mixture add 2 alka-seltzer tablets provided to demonstrate how to start a storm.
Preliminary Discussion — Bible Story Leader
Today we’ll be talking about another one of Jesus’ miracles.
Does anyone remember what a miracle is?
Has anyone seen a thunderstorm before? What was it like? Were you scared?
Today’s story has something to do with the disciples and Jesus being caught in a big thunderstorm when they were crossing the sea on a boat.
How do you think Jesus’ friends might have felt sitting on a boat in the middle of a big thunderstorm?
Do you think someone can stop a thunderstorm just by saying “stop”?
Let’s watch our video to find out more about the story…
Video Lesson — Bible Story Leader
Follow Up Discussion — Bible Story Leader
Can you think of a time when you were really scared?
Who do you usually go to when you’re scared?
Have you ever tried praying to God to help you not feel so scared?
Do you think prayer can help?
Prayer — Activity Leader
“Dear God, thank you for the story we listened to today about how Jesus made the thunderstorm calm down. We know that Jesus is your Son and has the power to make miracles happen. Thank you that whenever we’re scared or sad we can pray to you and you can help us and protect us from the things we’re afraid of. Thank you for loving and caring for us. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
Activity: Water Table Play — Activity Leader
If a child is not interested in the activity, allow them to move to free play.
Dismissal: Collect tags and make sure child leaves with their caregiver.
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Welcome — Activity Leader
Have the children sit in a circle on the circle time rug. Introduce yourself welcome them to class.
Warm Up Activity: Storm in a Bottle — Activity Leader
Show the children your storm in a bottle. Holding the Voss bottle that contains baby oil and water mixture add 2 alka-seltzer tablets provided to demonstrate how to start a storm.
Preliminary Discussion — Bible Story Leader
Today we’ll be talking about another one of Jesus’ miracles.
Does anyone remember what a miracle is?
Has anyone seen a thunderstorm before? What was it like? Were you scared?
Today’s story has something to do with the disciples and Jesus being caught in a big thunderstorm when they were crossing the sea on a boat.
How do you think Jesus’ friends might have felt sitting on a boat in the middle of a big thunderstorm?
Do you think someone can stop a thunderstorm just by saying “stop”?
Let’s watch our video to find out more about the story…
Video Lesson — Bible Story Leader
Follow Up Discussion — Bible Story Leader
Can you think of a time when you were really scared?
Who do you usually go to when you’re scared?
Have you ever tried praying to God to help you not feel so scared?
Do you think prayer can help?
Prayer — Activity Leader
“Dear God, thank you for the story we listened to today about how Jesus made the thunderstorm calm down. We know that Jesus is your Son and has the power to make miracles happen. Thank you that whenever we’re scared or sad we can pray to you and you can help us and protect us from the things we’re afraid of. Thank you for loving and caring for us. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
Activity: Origami Boats — Activity Leader
Kids will be given instructions on how to fold a piece of paper into an origami boat. They can then decorate their boat with markers.
Dismissal: Collect tags and make sure child leaves with their caregiver.
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Welcome — Activity Leader
Introduce yourself and welcome the kids to class.
Warm Up Activity: Would You Rather? — Activity Leader
Ask “Would You Rather?” questions and tell the kids to move to one side of the room for the first option or to the other side of the room for the other option
Preliminary Discussion — Bible Story Leader
Today we’re going to be continuing our new series about the miracles of Jesus.
Does anyone remember the miracle that we read about last week? (Jesus turning water into wine)
This time we’ll be talking about a time when Jesus controlled the weather. In the story, Jesus and his friends were on a boat crossing the sea when suddenly they got stuck in the middle of huge thunderstorm.
How do you think you would feel if you were one of the disciples on the boat?
What do you think Jesus was doing when all this was happening?
Let’s watch our video to find out more…
Video Lesson — Bible Story Leader
Follow Up Discussion — Bible Story Leader
Can you think of some other stories in the Bible where someone controls the waters in some way? (In the Creation story, God separates the waters and makes land and skies; in the story of Noah, God sends rain that creates a giant flood and later makes the flood stop; and in the story of Moses, God helps Moses to part the Red Sea)
With that in mind, what do you think it means about Jesus that he has the power to stop a thunderstorm and tell the water and the wind to calm down?
Have you ever had an experience where God helped you to get through a really difficult time, kind of like how Jesus helped the disciples in the thunderstorm?
Sometimes, things like anxiety can also feel like a storm inside of us - what are some ways that we can find peace when we’re feeling anxious?
Prayer — Bible Story Leader
“Dear God, thank you for the story we listened to today about how Jesus has authority over nature and even has the power to tell a thunderstorm to calm down. We pray that in our own life, you will help us to get through our various storms and difficult times. We pray that you will help us find peace even in the midst of anxiety or worry or stress. Thank you for your love, and that you are always close to us. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
Activity: Origami Boats — Activity Leader
Hand out origami paper and play origami instructional video on YouTube for the kids to follow. They can also decorate their boats with markers.
Once the kids finish their boats, encourage them to test them out in the bin containing water on the table.
Dismissal: Collect tags and make sure child leaves with their caregiver.
For Parents:
Follow-up questions.
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What was the story you learned about in class today?
How do you think the disciples felt when they were in a boat with a big storm around them?
How do you think they felt after they saw Jesus to tell the storm to stop and it actually stopped?
What can you do when you’re feeling scared, like Jesus’ friends in the boat?
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What was the story you learned about in class today?
Have you ever seen a big thunderstorm before? How do you think it would feel to be on a boat in the middle of a thunderstorm?
What do you think about Jesus’ miracle of telling the storm to stop and it actually stopped?
What can you do when you’re feeling scared, like Jesus’ friends in the boat?
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What was the story you learned about in class today?
How do you think it felt for the disciples to be on a boat in the middle of a thunderstorm?
What do you think was going through their minds when Jesus told the storm to calm down and it actually did? What would you be thinking if you were there to see it?
Have you ever tried turning to God when you’re feeling stressed or anxious, like the disciples on the boat?
