Fire and fear
You are never alone.
This week we are looking at when Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego (Daniel’s friends) get thrown into a fiery furnace because of how much they love God. We see what God then does next…
The service starts at 9:30am on stwderby.online.church
But this button will go live just after 10am on Sunday 14th February for you to watch the service again if you missed it live! You won’t want to miss out!
Hope you enjoyed our Werb’s Kids Service this morning!!
Remember as Amy said this morning you can we love having as many people as involved as possible so if you’d like to play a game or tell the story or say the prayer please get in contact! Email: amy.farrar@stwderby.org
We are continuing with our new series all about Daniel and now we’re on to Chapter 3 like everyone else at church meaning we should all as a family be able to talk about the same thing and learn together!
do you remember what happened in the story?
Let’s quickly recap!
First King Nebuchadnezzar made a huge statue and told everyone in the land “when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes, and other musical instruments bow to the ground to worship my gold statue. Anyone who refuses to obey this will immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace.”
But what happens next? Does everyone bow down?
NO! Daniel’s friends: Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, they don’t.
They chose God and his laws above the King and his laws!
What did the King think about this?
HE WAS FURIOUS! SUPER ANGRY! But he does give Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego another chance to bow down at the statue.
But again they say no and they say “We will never bow down to anyone but the Lord God. He is the only true God. If you throw us into the fiery furnace then our God will save us. But even if he doesn’t, we want to make it clear to you, Your Majesty, that we will never serve your gods or worship the gold statue you have set up.” That’s how important God is to them! But this thenm eans they get thrown into the fiery furnace.
Do you remember how hot it was though? 7 times hotter than normal!
So hot that the soldiers died when they threw the men into the furnace.
But what is the amazing thing happened next??
King Nebuchadnezzar looked into the fire and saw four men inside the furnace! Even though they only threw in 3 men AND they were walking around!
The fourth man looked different. King Nebuchadnezzar wrongly thought that he was a god. Maybe the man was an angel or maybe it was the presence of the true Lord God.
When they get called out the fire do you remember why it was such a miracle?
Because not only were they unhurt, even their clothes were not burned and everyone noticed that the men didn’t even smell like smoke!! How crazy is that!!
King Nebuchadnezzar said, “Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego! No other god can save men in this way.”
The King ordered that no one in the kingdom ever say anything bad about the Lord God. Then he gave Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego even better jobs in the Kingdom of Babylon.
It’s such a cool story isn’t it!
GO DEEPER!
SPARKS (Preschool)
Let’s start by playing a game! In our story the King was in charge and he told everyone what to do so play a game of Simon Says but instead say King Nebuchadnezzar says!
In our story Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego get into trouble because they choose God over the King. Such a brave thing to do!
Do you think you could be that brave?
But this means they get thrown into a fiery furnace. A super hot room full of dangerous flames. But they don’t get hurt as God protects them and looks after them!
Is there anything that scares you?
Talk about things that make you jump or make you scared. But once you’ve named them talk about how God will always help you and be with you even when you are afraid.
God helped Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego when they were scared in the fire. He stood with them when they were afraid and God will stand with you too.
God is always with you and he will never ever leave you!
“Dear God,
Thank you that you saved Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego.
Thank you that you were with them when they were scared.
When I get scared God, help me to remember that you are with me and I’m not alone.
Amen.”
FLAMES (KS1)
Can you draw a large outline of a person?
If you have a roll of paper why not lie down and draw round yourself?!
Now decorate it and make it look beautiful.
Write 'Golden Statue' around it!
Why not cut pictures out of magazines or newspapers of things they think are important or draw on the statue things that are really important to you that you think you could not live without.
This might be anything from food, tv or maybe your favourite game, pop star or football player inside the statue.
Once you’ve made your statue think about these questions:
What does worship mean? How would you describe the word worship?
(Loving God and telling Him how much we love Him because He loved us first and keeps on loving us)How do we worship God?
(In lots of different ways: singing, dancing, reading the bible and trying to live the right way, wanting to be like Him. We think about God and we do what God thinks is important)Why did Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego refuse to worship the statue?
(God said don't worship any other Gods except for me in his ten commandments. They loved God so much and didn't want to hurt His feelings by doing something they thought was wrong)How did Nebuchadnezzar change when he saw they weren't burnt in the furnace?
(He ordered everyone tor worship the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego instead!)Do you think that people worship the pictures of things that we have put in the statue? How do you think God feel about that?
(God wants to come first in the lives of his people. So if we think anything is more important than God then he will feel sad about this.)
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego had to choose between God and an statue.
But today there aren’t any statues but other things that can try to take our attention away from God. Some people worship things like their football team or money and things they can buy or get.
It’s important to be true to God and worship just him.
Is there anything at the moment that you might think is better than God?
Do you need to say sorry to God for that?
this week!
DON’T FORGET!!!!
BLAZE (KS2)
In our story today we see how Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were in a very scary situation.
They were thrown into fire and everyone was sure they would get seriously hurt and die.
BUT this isn’t what happened!
God protected them and kept them safe. He stood right next to them when they were scared most and helped them through that time.
So what scares you most?
Have a little conversation now about what makes you scared? What causes you to fear?
Chat with your family about it and then think about how you could ask for God’s help next time you’re in that situation or feel afraid.
Have a look at Psalm 121v3-8
“He won’t let you stumble,
your Guardian God won’t fall asleep.
Not on your life! Israel’s
Guardian will never doze or sleep.
God’s your Guardian,
right at your side to protect you—
The sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon by night.
God guards you from every evil,
he guards your very life.
The Lord will watch over your
coming and going
both now and forevermore”
What does this Psalm say that God never does?
What will God protect you from?
How does this passage help you to trust God to protect you?
Now take a look at Psalm 91v14-16
“If you’ll hold on to me for dear life,” says God,
“I’ll get you out of any trouble.
I’ll give you the best of care
if you’ll only get to know and trust me.
Call me and I’ll answer, be at your side in bad times;
I’ll rescue you, then throw you a party.
I’ll give you a long life,
give you my salvation!”
Who does God say he will protect?
If we love God what must we do when we are in trouble?
Why do you think God only promises to protect people who love Him?
Do these bible verses encourage you?
Both these passages as well as the story today tell us that God will be with us when we are scared.
But they also remind us that we need to trust God. So is there anything you need to trust him with this week?
And is God your top priority is he the most important thing in your life? If not why not? And do you think this needs to change?
FUN ACTIVITIES + CRAFTS!
For those who LOVE colouring and activity sheets check these out:
Fun experiment!
Put a 2-pence piece into a glass of coke, and a 2 pence piece into a glass of vinegar and a 2-pence piece into a glass of water.
You’ll need to wait a couple of hours for things to change. So might want to do another craft in the mean time!Then compare the condition of the 3 coins – the ones in the cola and vinegar should now be nice and shiny and the one in the water unchanged. Do you know why this has happened?
It’s the acid in the cola and vinegar which causes the transformation.Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego faced a similar situation, well slightly similar, to that of your 2 pence coins. They could either play it nice and safe – like the 2 pence piece in the water or they had to be prepared for the possibility of being thrown into a fiery furnace which would bring about dramatic changes for them!
FLAME ON!
Cut out some flames or use one of the flame templates on THIS WEBSITE.
Now decorate your flame. Remember that in our story today Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were walking in the middle of flames.
It is hard to stand up for God sometimes.
Parents/Carers: Can you share a time when it has been difficult to follow God? Or a time when you were scared and God helped you?Memory Verse Craft
”No other God can save in this way.”Use THIS WEBSITE to make this cool craft!
Fiery Jar
If you have a glass jar you could either paint or stick on tissue paper or coloured paper flames on the outside. Then once you’ve finished stick a tealight inside and watch the flames flicker!
WORSHIP + PRAYER
Take a look at this song! The lyrics are amazing and talk about how God is with us through everything.
As you listen to the song give your worries and fears to God. Talk together about what at the moment scares you the most and think about how you can support each other as a family but also ask God to be with you through it all.
Then thank God that he will always be with us and keep us safe from harm.
“There was another in the fire
Standing next to me
There was another in the waters
Holding back the seas
And should I ever need reminding
Of how I’ve been set free
There is a cross that bears the burden
Where another died for me
There is another in the fire”
Created using several sources including energize.uk.net
