Big Idea: Jesus helps us follow Him when we fix our eyes on Him.

Parent Prep: Facing temptation can be isolating for children. The shame they feel may cause them to think that because they have feelings of temptation, that they 'bad' followers of Jesus. The truth is, we all face temptation. And we have to fight to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus and follow His ways.There is much to discourage and distract us in this world. And we will all be distracted and fall sometimes. It's not be easy, but following Jesus is always worth it. Your own testimonial stories will be powerful ways to help children see that they are not alone, and that they can face temptation with confidence. Take some time to think of a story you can share with your kids for this lesson. We are promised the help of the Holy Spirit – so this week, when temptation comes for us, we can remember that we can trust Jesus to help us when we pray this prayer.

Read: Matthew 6:5-13, (focus on: verse 13.)

Talk

Say to children, when we trust in Jesus as our King and Rescuer, he calls us to follow Him every day. He says that to follow Him means to listen to His words and obey His commands to us. Read together John 10:11-13. Jesus calls Himself the Good Shepherd, and us the sheep. We are to follow after Jesus, like sheep follow a shepherd, because He takes good care of us. His commands to us are always to keep us safe with Him, and to help us see how much He loves us. 

Ask

Sometimes it's hard to follow Jesus and trust Him. Just like sheep, we are pretty silly most of the time. Sheep have a tendency to get distracted by something they see and wander off by themselves, away from the safety of the shepherd. There are lots of things that distract us, too, or that we think may seem like more fun, or better than following Jesus. 

What are some things that seem like more fun than following Jesus to you? What do you think distracts you from following the ways of Jesus? What do you see other people doing that you think you wish you could do instead of following Jesus? 

Remind children that it is okay to be tempted by these things: that every single human being is tempted to follow the world's ways. Even Jesus was tempted by the evil one.

  • Read together this verse from the Easy-to-Read translation in Romans 8:5 "People who live following their sinful selves think only about what they want. But those who live following the Spirit are thinking about what the Spirit wants them to do."

Say: God gives us His Holy Spirit to help us follow Jesus and keep on track by not getting distracted. We can pray this verse from the Lord's Prayer, and know that He will answer it. The Holy Spirit helps us understand why following Jesus is better than all the things we get distracted by. He shows us how great it is to keep our eyes on Jesus and follow Him.That's His job!

Do

Follow the leader
Set up a basic pathway in your house from one point to another. Place objects in the way of the path, as obstacles. Make it as difficult as you like for your kids. Explain to children that the pathway is like our life as we follow Jesus.The objects are things that distract us from following Jesus, or tempt us away from His ways. Have child stand at the starting line and explain they must walk to the end of the path.
 

1) The first time you lead children through the pathway, place a blindfold on them, or have them cover their eyes so that they cannot see. Read the words of Jesus together from Luke 4:18 "The Spirit of the Lord is on me. He has chosen me to tell good news to the poor. He sent me to tell prisoners that they are free and to tell the blind that they can see again. He sent me to free those who have been treated badly." Then, allow children to walk through the path with their eyes closed and try not to hit any obstacles. It will be difficult. Say to children, when we trust in Jesus, He helps us see the things that will distract us for what they really are: things that may harm us, or get in our way to a full and good life with Him.

2)  This time, turn the lights off so that children cannot see. (It might be best to try this down a hallway at night time.) Then, read this verse aloud. John 8:12 "Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” Have children try to walk the path in the dark. Again, it will be difficult. Remind children that life with Jesus is life in the light. We can see where the distractions and hurtful choices are because Jesus shows us in His word.

3) This time, as your child walks the pathway, stand at the other end of the pathway, and direct children to step either 'left' or 'right' in order to make it to the end. Have other children try and speak to distract them away from the path. Have them make lots of noise, talking over each other and banging loud objects if they can. Read to them John 10:27 "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me." Explain to children that there are lots of voices, people and opinions that they can listen to in life- but that the only way to true life is to listen to the words of Jesus and be closest to Him so we can hear Him above the other tempting voices in our lives.

4) This last time, explain that you will walk beside them, holding their hand, as God's Holy Spirit does for us. Lead children through the path holding their hand and directing them where to place their feet. If they slip or falter, hold on tight and pull them close, as God promises to do for us. Then, read Hebrews 12:1-2  "We have all these great people around us as examples. Their lives tell us what faith means. So we, too, should run the race that is before us and never quit. We should remove from our lives anything that would slow us down and the sin that so often makes us fall. We must never stop looking to Jesus. He is the leader of our faith, and he is the one who makes our faith complete." 

Together as a family, collect all the 'obstacles' and 'throw' them out of the way, and hold hands and walk together through the path. Remind children that Jesus calls us to follow 'after' him, but really, He is with us each step of the way. His Holy Spirit does the work of reminding us why following Jesus is best. It's okay if they find it tough. He is always with us, and will never leave us, and promises to always, always help us to fight temptation. He is strong. 

Pray at the pile of obstacles, and name the temptations your children listed earlier. Surrender these to Jesus and acknowledge that you are each powerless to fight their temptations alone, and ask for the Holy Spirit's help. "Jesus, help us to follow you only, and deliver us from the distractions and temptations of the evil one. We trust you Jesus, help us trust you more."

Have a great week encouraging each other as you fight temptation together, and keep your eyes fixed on Jesus!