Forgive And Let Go!

Optional music for this lesson:

• Game music for Engage 1 and 3
• Soft Instrumental music for Big Story

Host Welcome to the lab!

Co-Host turns from the Host, giving the cold shoulder.

Host Are you giving me the silent treatment?

Co-Host Yes. Ugh! I wasn’t supposed to talk. You are officially shunned.

Host Why would you shun me?

Co-Host Un-shun. Because you brought coffee for everyone else but me today. I shall hold this grudge forever! Re-shun!

 Host I’m sorry. I thought you didn’t want any because you didn’t text back.

Co-Host (Looks at phone) Oops, I forgot to hit send. You know what? I forgive you. Sorry I held that grudge for so long. It feels great to get that weight off my shoulders.

Host I’m glad you changed your mind so quickly. Today we’re discovering the power of forgiveness. But first, I want you to stand and tell someone which would be harder to forgive: if your sibling broke your tablet or your bike.

Co-Host I can’t believe Ethel and Hannah are so mad at each other.

Host They’re best friends. I don’t like seeing them fight like this. Have you ever gotten so mad at a best friend that you didn’t want to speak? What happened?

Co-Host That happened to me this morning because I was left out of the coffee party, oh wait, you were there for that.

Host At least you followed our Big Point. I think it will help you guys, too. Let’s choose an assistant to help us reveal it.

Co-Host After we count down from three we need you to read the Big Point.

Host Let’s all say it together, Forgive And Let Go!

Co-Host Sometimes it’s hard to let go when someone really hurts your feelings. Is it that big of a deal to hold on to those hurt feelings?

Host At first it may not seem like a problem, but it can really slow you down. Let me show you what I mean with a race. We’ve chosen two contestants to race.

Host Why don’t you run a little warm up lap from the start line to the finish line.

Co-Host I think they got this. It should be an easy race.

Host Not exactly. They are going to race, and we have chosen two adult volunteers who will race with them, well, not exactly with them. They will hold on to the ends of the harness. The kids will have to race as fast as they can while the adults try to hold them back. On your mark, get set, go!

Co-Host The race was much harder when they had to carry an actual adult with them.

 Host That’s what it’s like to hold on to grudges and refuse to forgive. That anger and bitterness slows you down and keeps you from living God’s big plan the way He wants you to live it. It’s a weight that drags you down. Forgiving and letting go frees you. Let’s see if Ethel and Hannah will choose to forgive.

Host Herman’s right. Holding a grudge is not helping them get unstuck any faster.

Co-Host The more they fight, the less they make progress. I wish they would just listen to our Big Point,

Co-Host Forgive And Let Go!

Host There may be times when you feel like you just can’t forgive, but let’s see what the Bible says by checking out the Big Verse.

Co-Host Help us count down from three, and then read the verse.

Co-Host Colossians 3:13 (NIrV) says, “Forgive, just as the Lord forgave you.” It sounds like forgiveness begins by recognizing what God has done for us.

 Host That’s true. Let’s look at some scenarios and discuss if it would be hard or easy to forgive that person.

• A friend pretended they didn’t know you around other kids.

• Someone spread terrible lies about you.

• People made fun of you on TV.

• You were in charge, but people just ignored you and did what they wanted to do.

• Someone beat up your friends.

• A group of people made fun of your family.

• Your friend decided to ignore you and spend time with other friends.

• A group of people put you in jail, even though you did nothing wrong.

Co-Host Wow, it would be hard to imagine having to forgive all of those things.

Host When you think about it, that’s exactly what Jesus did. Every single one of those things are sins we or other people have done. If Jesus, who is perfect, could forgive us for doing such awful things, then we can make that same choice.

Co-Host When you put it like that, it makes me thankful Jesus forgave us. He’s the ultimate example of how to forgive.

Host When you think of all the ways Jesus has forgiven you, it makes you want to praise Him. Let’s stand and worship God.

Let’s bow our heads and close our eyes. I don’t know the kinds of things that have happened in your life. I can bet some of it has been really rotten. I imagine a lot of things haven’t been fair either. I’m going to ask you to do something big today. I want you to think of someone who has hurt you. My challenge is that you forgive them. You might even say it out loud, “I forgive you.” Take a moment, quietly at your seat, to talk to God about forgiving that person. (Pause) Now let’s stand and praise God because He has forgiven us.

Co-Host I’m glad Ethel and Hannah patched things up.

Host Yep, the only thing sticking is their friendship. It wouldn’t have happened if they hadn’t followed the Big Point,

Host Forgive And Let Go!

Co-Host Joseph’s family probably wouldn’t have survived if he hadn’t forgiven his brothers. Jesus is a descendant of Joseph, so it’s a good thing he stuck to God’s big plan.

Host You can talk about what you’ve learned today when you do this week’s Big Do.

Host Talk with your family and have each person share a time when someone forgave them. Discuss how it felt and talk about some people you might need to forgive, too.

Co-Host Let’s practice letting go by playing a game. We have two teams of kids. The goal of this game is to “let go” of as many beach balls as you can and land them through the hula hoop. One teammate will throw and one will move the hula hoop. You can move the hula hoop to try to catch the beach balls. Go!

Host Great job! Let’s turn and connect with our small groups and talk about what we’ve learned.

• How would you have felt if you were Joseph, and you met your brothers again?

• How did Joseph choosing to forgive help God’s big plan? (Because he chose to forgive his family, they survived the famine and were well fed, Joseph’s brother was a relative of Jesus!)

• Who is someone who has forgiven you? How did it make you feel?

• What did Herman tell us to do with our families in the Big Do? Share a time when someone forgave you.

Choose two kids from the audience to come on stage and answer the question.

• Our Big Point says Forgive And _______!

  • Let Go
  • Hold On

• What happened to Ethel and Hannah during the experiment?

• Joseph was the leader in charge when his brothers visited.

  • True
  • False

• Joseph could have thrown his brothers in jail.

  • True
  • False

• What did Joseph do when he revealed himself to his brothers?

  • Hugged them
  • Hit them

• Colossians 3:13 (NIrV), “Forgive, just as the Lord ______ you.”

  • Rejected
  • Forgave

• What did Joseph do for his family?

  • Sent them away
  • Moved them to Egypt

• God’s big plan for Joseph came true.

  • True
  • False

• Why is it important to forgive others?

• What challenge did Herman give us as this week’s Big Do? Share a time when someone forgave you.