Elementary Level, Block 3—Jacob and Joseph
Week 23
Jacob—Becoming Israel (Revised on 2/17/2021)
Point to Emphasize: We need to be one who is willing to be changed/molded in order to be useful to God.
Reference Reading: Genesis 32
Memory Verse: …He will be a vessel unto honor,…useful to the master… (2 Timothy 2:21b)
Story Sample
Last week we talked about how Jacob was chosen by God. God provided everything Jacob needed every step of the way. This sounds like a perfect life, doesn’t it? Well, although we have a perfect God who cares for us, we find out that Jacob was far from being perfect. He had many lessons to learn.
In the Bible, we can find different kinds of people, and we can learn from all of them. Jacob was someone who started out being someone who got himself into a LOT of trouble. Do you want to know why? Jacob got himself into a lot of trouble because he wanted to do things his way. Doing things his way caused him many problems.
Let’s see. You are all growing up, and you are learning to do many things. Who is learning how to read? Who is learning how to write? Who is learning how to use a pair of scissors? Who is learning how to brush their teeth? Who is learning how to pour the juice in a cup? Wow! You are all learning HOW to do many things! Now, it is very important that when you are learning how to do these things, you are NOT that someone who likes to do it “your way” but instead, you are someone who is willing to be taught and helped by others who are older than you. The older ones around you know how to help you because they know you and they know what kind of help you might need.
When I was about five-years-old, I was learning how to write. Every time I was practicing my letters, my older cousin who helped me with my homework would say, “Your letter ‘o’ looks too skinny, the letter ‘o’ should be nice and round”. Oh! I wanted to do it my way. And when I turned in my homework, my teacher said exactly the same thing that my cousin told me. So I learned not to do things my way but to follow the advice from my older cousin. Now, my letter ‘o’ is nice and rounded! [Storyteller, insert your own example of letting others teach you instead of doing things your way.]
I am happy to tell you that Jacob was not someone who got himself in trouble for the rest of his whole life! Something unusual happened to him. One night as he was journeying home, God came and spent with him a whole night! In the morning, Jacob was different! Jacob was walking differently, now he was limping. Jacob was also different in how he began to treat others. Even his name was changed! God changed his name from Jacob to Israel.
Jacob didn’t change right away altogether, but from that time on, he began to be a different person. By the time he was very old, he was very useful to God. I hope we can all be useful to God too! So, from now on, every day when you want to do things your way, I hope you remember the story of Jacob and you would be someone who is willing to receive help from others. Your parents, your uncles, and aunts, your grandparents, your teachers, even your serving ones in children’s meetings know how to help you so you grow to be someone useful to God!