Lesson 1
We Should Be Thankful
Matthew 6:9 (HCSB) (1)
“Therefore, you should pray like this: Our Father in heaven, Your Name be honored as Holy.”
At the start of the Lord’s Prayer—the giving of reverence, or respect and honor; we honor and respect God when we praise Him. Praise is a way to be thankful. Did you know God loves praise? He loves a thankful heart and He wants to hear our praises to Him—when we pray; when we sing; and when we work and play.
When we pray, and give God praise, we are praying to Our Father in Heaven, who is God. God likes it when we call Him “Our Father”. He listens to us because He loves us, and children are very special to Him; He is interested in us, especially, when we show Him when we are thankful and giving praise to God, each day.
Psalm 22:3 Basic Bible in English
“But you are holy, O you who are seated among the praises of Israel”.
God loves to be seated among those praising Him.
Something else happens when we praise God. PS 22:3 says: God sits among the praises we give to Him. HE IS WITH US! God loves to be among us when we praise Him—where-ever you are, singing praises to God at church, or at home, at school, and at play.
- Activity: What are we thankful for? I thank God for:_________________
- Suggestion: Shouldn’t we be thankful for our home?—Note to teacher: Introducing thankfulness for our home is a good way of introducing the concept of the concept of the heart. See Part I in “Hebrew Meaning of the Word Heart”.
Here are some other examples:
- 1. (for) loving me and calling me “special”.
- 2. (for) my family (or loved ones).
- 3. (for) Giving me a house (a place to live) with my family.
- 4. (for) Giving me some friends; most of all, for Jesus, Who wants to be my Friend—Who loves me.
Song: Praise Him! Praise Him!
Praise Him, Praise Him, all ye little children,
God is love, God is love.
Praise Him, Praise Him, all ye little children,
God is love, God is love.
Reflection Questions:
Why is teaching children to be thankful important?
How does teaching about thankfulness help children to understand that we honor God when we praise and thank Him?
Did you personally know that God sits among us when we praise Him?
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The Lessons on the Children and Prayer Course are now in Podcast format which can be viewed in the Windows Media Player. The link to the podcast is listed in the lesson listing of the course syllabus.