Advent Kids

BIBLE QUESTIONS
**After the storm hit them, what was Paul's message to everyone on the ship? That an angel visited him and said no one would be lost, but the ship would be destroyed.
**As everyone on the ship was waiting to run aground on the island, what did Paul urge them to do? He told them to eat so they could keep their strength.
**What were the soldiers on board planning to do when the ship was wrecked and they had to swim to shore? They were going to kill all the prisoners on board, but Paul stopped them.

Read Matthew 28:19. What mission did Jesus give his disciples? How did he promise to help them? To go and tell everyone about Jesus. Jesus promised to always be with them.

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
What is the good news of Jesus?
What might stop you from sharing the good news?
How can you share the good news of Jesus with someone today?

INSTRUCTIONS: "Swim" to one side or the other based on your indicated answer choices. To extend the activity, after each question, ask why they chose their answer.

SAY THIS: Let's pretend we were all part of a shipwreck. Thankfully, everyone is safe. But now we have some tough choices to make. So we are going to vote!

Would you rather...
Face one great white shark or 100 piranhas as you swim to shore?
Eat only bananas or coconuts for a year?
Have a talking parrot or a monkey that doesn't talk for company?
Sleep on the beach by the shore or inside a cave on the island?
Be stranded alone with all the supplies you need or with friends but no supplies?
Discover a treasure chest filled with gold or a refrigerator filled with food?
Be stuck with ten different books or one favorite book?
Build a boat or a plane to escape?
Be rescued by pirates or mermaids?

These aren't easy choices, but they help us imagine the hard decisions in this week's story. In the story, the people on a sinking ship hade a choice: they can try to save themselves or listen to Paul, and God will rescue them. Fortunately, everyone decided to believe Paul and were rescued...some even spiritually saved as Paul still shared the good news of Jesus with them.

SAY THIS: Jesus gave the power of the Holy Spirit to spread his message to the world. Paul was on a mission to spread Jesus' message far and wide, including that Jesus is the ruler of all; but in Rome, people believed that Caesar was lord. They arrested Paul and sent him on a prisoner ship.

Read Acts 27:13–20 - Pop up! Sway side-to-side like you’re being tossed back and forth by a wild storm at sea. Paul's ship sailed into a terrible storm. The waves slammed against it, and everyone panicked! They threw cargo overboard to keep the ship afloat. What cargo do you think they threw? Still, the chances of survival looked slim.

Read Acts 27:21–26 - Pop up! Stand on your chair or as tall as you can. Cup your mouth with your hands... Paul gave a speech to the people on board. Paul said, "Don't be afraid." He told them an angel of God visited him and promised they would all survive. But the ship might not make it. Do you think they believed Paul? Why might they doubt him?

Read Acts 27:27–32 - Pop up! Pretend to saw thick rope, like the soldiers cut the lifeboats free to escape. The sailors were so scared that they tried to escape in the lifeboat. But Paul told them that everyone needed to stay together to survive. They listened to Paul, even though he was a prisoner. They cut the lifeboat loose, though it might be their last chance of survival.

Read Acts 27:33–38 - Pop up! Rub your stomach... the people on the ship haven't eaten for days! Paul encouraged everyone to eat so they would have strength. After they ate, they threw the rest of the grain into the sea. They hoped to lighten the ship, trusting that God would help them.

Read Acts 27:39–44 - Pop up! Pretend to swim to shore after the shipwreck, moving your arms like you’re paddling through the waves. The ship hit the rocks and broke apart. Everyone made it to shore safely, just as God had promised. Not one life was lost!

We may never experience a shipwreck like Paul did, but we will face problems. They might come while we’re trying to share Jesus’ love with others. But God helps us. So we can share the good news at every turn of the page in our adventure story with God!

If you have kids, you should check these out!

INSTRUCTIONS: For this activity, use painter's tape to outline a large area as a "boat." Scatter 40 to 50 books in the area to create a shipwreck. Mark zones (see below) with tape every three to five feet from the shipwreck to the starting line. Divide kids into teams at the starting line. One player from each team must cross the zones, retrieve a book, and return it to their team. The next teammate repeats the process. Continue until all the books have been collected. The team with the most books wins! Assign each zone a theme and an action kids must complete to pass:

**Stormy Seas (lightning bolt): Roll sideways across this zone.
**Rocky Waters (jagged circles): Tiptoe across.
**Deadly Whirlpool (spiral swirl): Spin around three times before leaving this zone.
**Sea Turtle Crossing (turtle): Crawl on hands and knees.
**Ice Shelf (snowflake): Freeze for five seconds before leaving this zone.

Okay adventurers, you were deckhands on the captain's ship. A storm hit and shipwrecked your vessel! The good news is that you're safe and there's a nearby island for refuge. The bad news is that the Captain's library is scattered in the sea.

The captain's orders are to save as many library books as possible. Travel through dangerous waters, grab one book at a time, and bring it safely to the island. The crew that saves the most books from the Captain's Lost Library wins!

This week we learned how Paul didn't even let a shipwreck stop him from telling as many people as possible about what Jesus did for us. He continues to tell people as he wrote many books of the New Testament. True story - God helps us tell the good news!

INSTRUCTIONS: For this activity, provide a small paint tarp or a blanket for each team. Have one team stand on one side of the room (sea). The goal is to get to the other side of the room (shore) by moving together on their tarp (raft). Nobody can step off the tarp. So be creative and strategic to move forward together without falling off!

SAY THIS: Phew—you made it to shore, adventurers! You could have easily given up on such a challenging task, but you moved your team across the sea. You kept moving forward to complete your mission. This week we heard a story about how Paul didn't even let a shipwreck stop him from telling as many people as possible about what Jesus did for us. Remember, God is always with us and helps us complete every mission - whether big or small - especially when it's telling others the Good News of Jesus!

God, thank you for giving us such an amazing story to share with others. Thank you for sending Jesus to save us. Help us have the courage to share that good news with as many people as we can. If we get scared or nervous, help us to remember that you are always right there guiding us through. Amen.