Bible Exploration - Workshop:        Drama           

 

Month:      Sept     Bible Theme:              Stewardship                         

 

Year (B):      1          Scripture:         Proverbs 30:24-28                           

 

Bible Memory Verse:           “Four things on earth are small, yet they    

are exceedingly wise:  the ants…the badgers…the locusts…the          

lizard.”  (Proverbs 30:24-28 <abbreviated>)        

 

Workshop

Concept

Teacher

1.      Temple

 

The ants that plan ahead.

 

2.      Video

 

The persistent lizard found in the king’s palace.

 

3.      Computer

 

The badger who makes his home in the rock (in Christ).

 

4.      Drama

 

The locusts who work together.

 

 

LEARNING OUTCOMES: 

·         Each center will ask, “Why are these small things wise?”

·         Explorers will understand that stewardship involves pooling our resources together voluntarily in order to accomplish bigger things.

 

MATERIALS:

·         Play:  A Story of Two Churches  (see attached sheet)

·         Props of all kinds

·         Cardboard, scissors, markers, etc., to make quick props.

 

PLAN:

1.      Welcome explorers and go over memory verse.

2.      Discuss kings and locust (see attached sheet)

3.      Work on play

o        Put together for use in worship

o        Use or make simple props as time allows

4.      Close in prayer.  As for wisdom to pool our resources and work together.  Ask God’s blessing on the play as you work together to worship God.

 

ADAPTATIONS:

Children

Youth

·          

 

 

·          

 

 

Discussion on King’s and Locust

 

Discuss Kings and how they achieve greatness.  List ways that they accomplish their goals:

1.      Kings force people to pay tribute (taxes),

2.      They force people to work for them (conscript labor, slaves, the draft),

3.      They pass laws, etc. and have an army to enforce them.

 

Locust also accomplish great (if terrible) things.  They formed great masses that would sweep down on farmers and destroy their crops.

1.      Locust accomplish greatness without a king.  How?

2.      What makes locust wise?  (They work together voluntarily)

3.      What does working together have to do with church stewardship?

·         Stewardship in the church is all about pooling our resources together in order to accomplish God’s work that can not be done on our own.

·         How do we march in rank, though, without an earthly king to force us to:

·         Pay taxes

·         Draft us to work

·         Enforce laws with an army

 

Introduce the play.  It’s objective is to challenge church members to work together voluntarily and pool our talents and resources together in the church.  This play is based on several assumptions:

 

 

A Story of Two Churches

 

This play is designed to be used with as many people as you have available.  If you only have two or three persons, one person can play multiple roles.  If you have 30 people, you may want to divide them into small groups and have each group assume the role of one person.  To begin:

 

1.      Identify talents/gifts that people in the world are blessed with.

a.      Write ideas on a blackboard or flip chart.

b.      Discuss

2.      For each talent/gift, identify two things:

a.      Identify one way the talent/gift can be used in the world

b.      Identify one way the talent/gift can be used in the church

3.      Chose several talents/gifts from the list to use in the play.  Choose at least three but not too many.

a.      Assign each talent or gift to a person or small group of people.

b.      Each person or group must decide how to “act out” their talent (use or make props it time allows)

4.      Chose one person or small group to be the representative(s) from the stewardship committee on the church.

5.      The play follows the following course:

a.      The first church’s story

                                                  i.      Each person or group with a talent acts out their talent (or uses their gift.).

                                                ii.      The Stewardship representative(s) sees them and goes over, identifies who they are, and asks them to share their talent with the church.  State a way in which their gift/talent could help.

                                              iii.      The talented/gifted give an excuse and refuse.

                                               iv.      This is repeated with each talented/gifted person or group

                                                 v.      The stewardship rep(s) laments that their church will not have a very strong witness to their faith in the near future.

b.      The second church’s story

                                                  i.      Repeat pattern of first church’s story.

                                                ii.      The only difference is that the talented/gifted all agree to share their talents/gifts with the church.

                                              iii.      The stewardship rep(s) rejoice that their church will have a very strong witness of their faith for the foreseeable future.

c.      One stewardship rep. then talks to the congregation with words to this effect:

                                                  i.      What about you?  Will you share your talents and gifts with us?

                                                ii.      Will we hear excuses from you?  Or will you willingly share your gifts with the church?

                                              iii.      What of the church’s stories that we heard today will we claim as our own story?