The Lord's Prayer

Cooking Workshop

Summary of Lesson Activities:

Children will make a paper salad using colors to represent parts of the Lord’s Prayer. Children will try some real ingredients for salads.

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Scripture Reference: 

Matthew 6:5-15

Memory Verse:  

Matthew 6:9-13 NIV  "This, then, is how you should pray: 

" 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. 
Give us today our daily bread. 
Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 
  And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.'

Lesson Objectives:

At the end of the Rotation, the students will

• remember the Lord’s Prayer.
• deepen their understanding of the Lord’s Prayer through the definitions provided with the different colors.
• understand that prayer nourishes our relationship with God just as food nourishes our bodies.

Teacher preparation in advance:

• Read background notes
• Cut up food for salad
• (Optional: have paper already cut and in separate baggies.)
• Have tissue in order listed
• Copies of the Lord’s Prayer with color definitions

Supply List:

• White napkin, small paper plate, or paper bowl - one per child
• Tissue (or construction) paper in the following colors:
  Blue
  Green
  Purple
  Brown
  Yellow
  Silver
  Pink
  Black (I used construction paper for this)
  Red
  Gold
  Orange (I used construction paper for this)
• Large bowl the kids can see in
• Scissors
• Small Zippee Bags
• Food - items for a salad
  Lettuce
  Tomatoes
  Onions
  Nuts
  Sunflower seeds
  Cheese
  Carrots
  Blueberries
• Bowls
• Forks

Presentation

Opening-Welcome and Introductions:

Welcome kids.

Ask: Who likes to eat? What do you like to eat? Do you ever eat fruits or vegetables? What kind of fruits or vegetables do you like to eat. Do you know one reason I like vegetables so much? Because they are all different colors. There are so many different colors that they remind me of the Lord’s Prayer when I see them.

Read the scripture:

Have the kids turn to Matthew 6:5-15. Read up to verse 9.

Dig-Main Content and Reflection:

Application:

Say: This is called “The Lord’s Prayer”. God used Matthew to write it down so that we can remember the way Jesus taught us to pray and to include the things that are important when we pray.

Read the rest of the verses. You may want to read a more traditional version (KJV or NKJV) and compare the wording.

Activity:

Gather the kids around the table with items for salad. Have ‘white’ item out. Point out the different colors. Let them taste whichever items they would like. Tell them how foods like these are helpful to our bodies, keeping us strong and healthy.

Say: Just as fruits and vegetables help our physical bodies, praying helps keep our spirit healthy by staying close to God through spending time with him.

Say: All these colors remind me of the Lord’s Prayer. Let’s look at them in a different way. This will help us remember the Lord’s Prayer.
(Go through the meaning of each color.)

Pass out the handout with the following information: (this is the NIV)

1. Our Father - (white, means God who is light)
2. In Heaven - (Blue, blue heavens)
3. Hallowed be thy Name - (green, enduring, everlasting color like pine trees)
4. Your kingdom come - (purple, royal color)
5. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven - (brown, color of the earth)
6. Give us today our daily bread - (yellow, color of grain)
7. Forgive us our debts - (silver, we pay for debts with silver coins)
8. As we also have forgiven our debtors - (pink, love – pink. Forgiveness is key in showing love to our neighbor.
9. And lead us not into temptation - (black, represents sin)
10. But deliver us from evil - (red, blood of Jesus)
    Matthew - (gold, God’s word is the most valuable thing to know)
    6:9-13 - (orange, remembering scripture makes an impact on our memories like a beautiful sunset)

As you go through the list on the handout have the kids point to items that represent the color you are talking about.

Move over to where the paper is if it isn’t cut up have the kids help cut the color paper into the bowl as you talk about it. If it is cut up have the kids put the color paper in at the correct time.

Start with mentioning the napkin, or bowl, whatever is white; then move down the list. When you finish, give the kids a baggie and let them put some paper salad in. Add a paper with the descriptions on it and send it home with them. You may offer some of the real food if you choose.

Discussion Focus:

Explain to the kids how important it is to have a prayer routine. They need to have a set time of day to pray and a special place where they won’t be interrupted. Discuss the different parts of prayer (A.C.T.S. - Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication) Explain that when we pray to help someone else, when we step in to tell God about another person’s need, that is a prayer called intercessory prayer. Like when we pray for our mommy to have a good day or for our daddy to be safe at work, that is an intercessory prayer.

Say the Lord’s Prayer as a group.

Clean Up:
Have the kids help clean up.

Journal Time:
Have kids reflect on where and when they can take time to pray and talk to God. Let them write it or draw them praying in their special place.

Optional: use an activity page.

Resources:

• Lisa Martin,Trinity UCC, Pottstown, PA 
  
• Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright© 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.

A lesson  posted by LisaPa for Life Community Church,

Shippensburg, PA

A representative of Rotation.org reformatted this post to improve readability.