Following The Leader

Bobby: Thank you! Thank you! Hello, Pittsburgh! YEAAAAAAH!!!

Leader: Hey everybody it’s Bobby Rockit, the lead singer of – (Bobby interrupts)

Bobby: EXSCREAAAAAAM! YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!! You gotta HELP me, bayyyyyy-buh!

Leader: I’d love to help you, Bobby! What seems to be the problem?

Bobby: Knucklehead!!

Leader: Bobby, that’s not a very nice thing to call somebody.

Bobby: No! I wasn’t calling YOU “Knucklehead”! Even if I were, that wouldn’t be an insult! I’m talking about PICKLES Knucklehead! He’s my hero!

Leader: Your hero is a pickle?

Bobby: NO, bayyyyy-buh! Pickles Knucklehead! Lead singer of the greatest EXTREME band of all time, SUCKERPUNCH! They’re the inspiration for my band, EXSCREAM, and Knucklehead is retiring!

Leader: Wow, I’m sorry to hear that, Bobby, I can understand why that’s a little sad.

Bobby: That’s not what I’m worried about! He’s old and needs his rest, but he’s asked ME to be the new lead singer of Suckerpunch!

Leader: WOW! Are you serious?? Bobby that sounds so cool! You get to be the lead singer of your favorite band? (to the audience) Kids, how many of you would love to get to do something like that?

Bobby: It’s cool and everything, but that means I’d have to leave my band, EXSCREAM, and we haven’t even gotten to start our tour yet!

Leader: Oh wow, that’s tough.

Bobby: I know! And I’d be following in the footsteps of THE Pickles Knucklehead! The greatest lead singer who’s ever lived! The man that created the Pickles Punch! (punches wildly into the air) The Knucklehead Kick! (Does a high kick into the air) Not to mention, the Pickles Perfect Pitch screaming technique! (takes a deep breathe and lets out a long high note) YEAAAHHHHH!!!!!

Leader: That’s….um..(a little confused at what they just saw) wow…that’s a LOT to live up to!

Bobby: Tell me about it, bayyyyy-buh! I can’t be the lead singer of SUCKERPUNCH after Pickles!

Leader: Why can’t you?

Bobby: He’s got all the right moves! He knows all of his songs by heart! My band hasn’t even had a world tour yet! I’m not ready!

Leader: Says who?

Bobby: Whaddaya mean, WHO? ME!!! That’s Who!

Leader: What about God? If this is what God has called you to do, I think you should go for it. It’s scary to follow in somebody else’s footsteps. Think about Joshua! He had to lead after MOSES, one of the most awesome Leaders to have ever lived! He was scared, but He trusted God and grew into a great Leader himself! Maybe this is a chance for you to be the next “Pickles Whats-his-face…”

Bobby: Maybe you’re right. I better go pray about this right now!

Leader: That’s a great idea, Bobby. We’ll see you later!

Bobby: Bye kids! YEAAAH! I’M PICKLES…um.. I mean Bobby ROCKIT! THANK YOU, GOODNIGHT!!!

(pick up the paintbrush) Have you ever heard of the famous artist Michelangelo? He lived in the 1500s and painted many wonderful paintings. But, his greatest work ever is thought to be the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. (show pic if you so choose—observe it does contain paintings of partially clothed individuals) It was an amazing thing to accomplish. It took him over four years to paint the entire ceiling—over 5,000 sq ft of ceiling. He did most of it while lying on his back on top of a huge scaffold.

Now, can you imagine being the painter that had to do the NEXT painting at the Sistine Chapel? I can imagine that guy was like, “No way! How could I ever do anything that compares to what Michelangelo did?” Well, you can take THAT and multiply it by 100 and that is probably what our EXTREME Hero, Joshua, was feeling in today’s Bible Lesson.

Moses had died. God’s people, the nation of Israel had no leader. So, the Lord spoke to Joshua and told him, “Now that my servant Moses is dead, YOU must lead my people across the Jordan River into the land I am giving them.” Remember, this is the SAME Moses who parted the Red Sea so that the Israelites could cross on dry land. This was the same Moses who hit a rock with his staff and water came shooting out for them to drink. This is the same Moses who God met with face to face and gave him the Ten Commandments. Joshua must have thought there was NO WAY he could follow this kind of leader.

Many times we feel like there is NO WAY we can do what God is calling us to do. We fear that we might fail or mess up. Joshua probably felt those same feelings. But, God gave Joshua several promises that He also gives to us today. By trusting these promises, we can conquer our fears and become the leader that God wants us to be.

Joshua must have felt that he was just not good enough to be the leader after Moses. He must He must have thought this because God speaks to him in response to this kind of thought by giving Him the first promise:

God tells Joshua in Joshua 1:3, “I promise you what I promised Moses: Everywhere you go, you will be on land I have given you…” God says that we don’t have to worry about not being good enough. He will provide everything we need. God tells Joshua that HE will give him the land he needs to possess in order to lead the children of Israel.

Many times we compare ourselves to others and think, “I am not as good as they are. I am not as smart as they are. I am not as cool as they are. I can’t do this big thing God wants me to do.” God tells us not to worry about all of that. He promises to provide for us just as He provided for Joshua.

Joshua must have thought to himself, “Moses was such a strong leader. He stood up to Pharoah and told him to let God’s people go! I am just not that strong!” Many times we think the same thing. We think, “I am just a kid. I am not as strong as other people are.” God promised Joshua the same thing He promises us…

God promises Joshua in Joshua 1:5, “No one will be able to stand their ground against you as long as you live.” WOW! What a promise! God says, “Stick with me and you can’t lose! I will protect you!” He tells us the same thing. He will protect us from everything that comes against us. He is stronger than anything we could ever face!

Joshua must have thought to himself, “I can’t do this, Lord! Not by myself! I am just not that good of a leader!” Many times we also think this way. But, God promises Joshua what He also promises us…

God tells Joshua in verse 5, “For I will be with you as I was with Moses. I will not fail you or abandon you.” What an incredible promise! And, that is what God says to each of us. He promises to be with us no matter what! In fact, the last words Jesus told His disciples was, “I will be with you ALWAYS, even to the end of Earth!” How amazing that God promises to always be with us! So, when you begin to doubt whether or not you “have what it takes” to do EXTREME things for God, you just remember the promises that God promised Joshua in our Bible Lesson. “I will provide for you! I will protect you! I will be with you!” These are the same promises He gives to us!

1. What was today’s Big Idea? Answer: “God Has Promises For Me – From My Fear He’ll Set Me Free!”

2. What was Ban Daid afraid of in today’s video? Answer: the waterslide

3. What was the name of Bobby Rockit’s hero? Answer: Pickles Knucklhead

4. Who did God ask to take over for Moses after he died? Answer: Joshua

5. The first promise God made to Joshua was “I will _______________ for you.” Answer: provide

6. The second promise God made to Joshua was “I will _______________ you.” Answer: protect

7. The third promise God made to Joshua was “I will be ________ you.” Answer: with

8. True or False: God promises us the same promises He gave Joshua. Answer: True

9. What is the name of Bobby Rockit’s EXTREME band? Answer: EX-SCREAM

10. Where was our Power Verse found? Answer: Isaiah 43:5