Acts 16:9-15
That
night Paul had a vision. In the vision, a man from Macedonia came to him. The
man stood there and begged, “Come over to Macedonia. Help us!”
After Paul had seen the vision, we immediately
prepared to leave for Macedonia. We understood that God had called us to tell
the Good News to those people.
We left Troas in a ship, and we sailed to
Neapolis. Then we went by land to Philippi, the leading city in that part of
Macedonia. It is also a Roman colony. We stayed there for several days.
On the Sabbath day, we went outside the city
gate to the river. There we thought we would find a special place for prayer.
Some women had gathered there, so we sat down and talked with them.
There was a woman named Lydia from the city of
Thyatira. Her job was selling purple cloth. She worshiped the true God. The Lord opened her mind to pay attention to
what Paul was saying.
She and all the people in her house were
baptized. Then Lydia invited us to her home. She said, “If you think I am truly
a believer in the Lord, then come stay in my house.”
And she persuaded us to stay with her.
Discussion Questions
- Where did Paul and the other disciples go? Macedonia
- Who did they meet in Macedonia? Lydia
- What happened to Lydia and all the people in her household? They were baptized.
- Then what did Lydia do? She invited Paul and the other disciples to stay with her.
Prayer
Dear
God,
Thank
you for the story of Paul telling others about you. Thank you for Lydia
believing in you and for being a good friend to Paul. Amen.
Bible Verse for April
“Tell
everyone what God has done.” Psalm
105:1
Action Rhymes: Ten Little Friends
Materials:
- A pen or felt-tip marker
Guide Your Child
To:
- Draw smiley faces on each of your child’s fingers
- Have him hold up all his fingers as you sing this song:
One little, two
little, three little friends,
Four little, five
little, six little friends,
Seven little,
eight little, nine little friends,
Ten little very
kind friends.
Talk About:
- Who was a friend in this story?
- What happened?
Cooking: Chicken Noodle Soup
Ingredients:
- Canned chicken noodle soup
- Oyster or fish-shaped crackers
Kitchen Tools:
- Small bowls
- Spoons
- Ladle or serving spoon
- Bowl for crackers
Prepare Ahead of
Time:
- Prepare enough soup for each person to have a small serving.
- Place crackers in a container which will be easy for your child to handle.
Guide Your Child
To:
- Take a bowl and spoon.
- Wait for you to pour soup into his bowl.
- Wait a few minutes for the soup to cool a bit.
- Take a few crackers from the cracker bowl and pass it to another family member.
Talk About:
- We’re sharing soup and crackers. What else can you share?
- How do you feel when someone shares with you?
- Who shared in our story?
- Why does God want us to share?
Art
Center: Purple Collages
Materials:
- Bible
- Purple collage materials (scrap paper, yarn, fabric scraps, etc.)
- Magazines
- Scissors
- Glue
- Construction paper
- Purple markers
- Optional: purple yarn or ribbon & a hole punch
Guide Your Child
to:
- Cut out purple items from the magazines.
- Using the magazine pieces and the purple collage materials, glue onto the construction paper in any design your child desires.
- When the glue has dried, use purple markers to outline the collage shapes and add other designs.
Optional:
- Along the edges of each sheet of white construction paper, use a hole punch to make holes.
- For each family member, cut three 18-inch lengths of purple yarn.
- To make a needle, wrap a piece of transparent tape around one end of each yarn length.
- Let your child weave purple yarn through the holes to create a border for her collage.
Talk About:
- Paul told Lydia the good news about Jesus. What do you think is the good news?
- The good news is that Jesus loves you. You can tell others the good news, too! You can say, “Jesus loves you.”
- Who is someone you love? Jesus loves him/her too! Jesus loves you and me and everyone!
- Jesus wants us to tell others about His love. To whom can you tell the good news?
