Fruits of the Spirit: LESSON 5 PART 1 – Patience (Hebrews 6:15)

Fruits of the Spirit: LESSON 5 PART 1 – Patience (Hebrews 6:15)

LESSON: PATIENCE is not easy, but we need to be patient and trust God.

Memory Verse:  “And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised.” – Hebrews 6:15

BIBLE STORY:

The biblical account of Abraham, Sarah, and their son Isaac is found in Genesis 17, 18, and 21 .  Read the story from your Bible OR tell it in this condensed version .

God appeared to Abram and promised him 3 things:

1. That he would become the father of many nations
2. That God would give him and his descendants a new land to call their own
3. That through him, all nations of the world would be blessed by God.

Abram was puzzled, especially with the first promise. This was because he and his wife, Sarai, were very old and had no children.  How could he have many descendants when he had no children of his own? Abram was already 75 years old and Sarai was 65 – they were already supposed to be grandparents at their age!

But, God keeps His promises. When Abram was already 99 years old, God changed Abram and Sarai’s names to Abraham and Sarah and promised that He would bless them with a son the following year.  Abraham fell face down and laughed when God told him that he would be a father.  Sarah laughed, too, when she overheard the news that she would become a mother.  They were just too old to become parents!  It seemed impossible! But is anything really impossible with God?

True enough, Abraham was 100 years old and Sarah was 90 when their baby boy, Isaac, was born… just as God promised! Abraham and Sarah needed patience when they were waiting for their promised son.

OPTIONAL ACTIVITY:

• Direct the children to stand in a circle. Since Abraham was 100 years old when his son, Isaac, was born, tell the children that you are going to count to 100, with each of the children giving a number in numerical order.  When someone reaches the number 5 or a multiple of 5, he says “Be Patient!”

Example:  The leader says 1, the next player says 2, next is 3, then 4, and then the next player says “Be Patient!” Play continues with 6, 7, 8, 9, and then “Be Patient!” After the number 99, EVERYONE shouts:  “Be Patient!”  The quicker the count, the more difficult the game.  If a person misses his number or forgets the count, he sits down at his place in the circle.

•  Younger children will enjoy singing the familiar song “Father Abraham.”

DISCUSSION:

Encourage the children to give examples of times when they have needed patience.  Promote conversation and discussion with these questions:

●   What are some things that require patience?   (Learning to play a musical instrument, waiting for a seed to grow, waiting until you’re old enough to do something, etc.)

●   Name a situation that you are waiting for or  something that you want to happen in your life. Why is God’s timing more important than your timing?

(Answers will vary.)

Lesson resource: http://www.veggietales.com/downloads/1-Abe%20and%20the%20amazing%20promise.pdf