Pandemic Praise

Helping Children Not to Fear | by Sarah Keith

The following lesson and activities presented below are a great way for families to learn to praise God and alleviate fears during the Covid-19 pandemic. I encourage you to send this link to the parents of children in your ministry.
Praising God in the Midst of Fear, Pandemic Praise

Read and discuss with your children:

We are in the midst of a pandemic virus, meaning a disease that is widespread across the whole world. Everyone on earth is concerned about it and taking careful action to rid the world of this terrible infection. I can’t think of another time in our lives where the people of the world are worried about the same problem, at the same time, and are working together to solve it.

It is in times like these when people realize how little control we have over our lives. In the twinkling of an eye, everything can change! People are scared, anxieties are running high, and rightly so, but wouldn’t it be great if God's people would respond like Jesus taught us to pray by calling out to him, acknowledging our dependence on him, and then break out in a praise pandemic?

God made a promise in 2 Chronicles 7:14, declaring, “If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land” (ESV).

This verse is specifically aimed at God’s children. We are told to humble ourselves, which is to admit our dependence on him. We are to pray and seek God’s face—we must read his Word, learn what he says, and obey him. We must also repent, that is turn from our sinful behaviors, and turn to God to be forgiven. Only then, as the verse states, will God fulfill his promise to heal our land (1).

When Jesus taught his disciples to pray, he ended his prayer with a mighty praise offering to God: ”For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.”

This part of the Lord’s Prayer* tells us that God owns all the kingdoms of creation. He is the King of Kings. He is the all-powerful, mighty God. He alone deserves glory and praise, and worship forever and ever. (2) When we offer praise to God, we admit that he has the power to solve our problems; we need him involved! This helps us live without fear, because we can trust that God is in control; he will work all things for the good of his children, he will accomplish his purposes, even in the midst of this chaos!

As you teach this lesson to the children in your lives, the following ideas may help them understand how to praise God during these scary and uncertain times. Let us not lose sight that God is in control. Let us call on Him in the day of trouble; He will deliver us, as David reminds us in Psalm 50:15.

ASK:
What does the word, “praise," mean? (Praise is showing respect, honor, glory, and worship to God.) (3)

How might we praise and worship God? (Singing songs with thankful hearts, and by our actions when we serve others. See Colossians 3:17, Romans 12, Psalm 149:1-5, Philippians 2:1-4.) (3)

The book of Psalms is a collection of 150 prayer and praise songs that help us praise God with our words and in song.

Try these praise activities:

1) Act Out Psalm 150
(Give everyone in the family a part or parts to act out using make-believe or homemade instruments. Make up instrument sounds before beginning.

Read Psalm 150, pausing at each "bolded" instrument/action part, so they can be "played," and acted upon dramatically. Read it through one time, so everyone knows where he or she comes in, and then act it out. When you say “everything,” all instruments play.) (3)

“Praise the LORD...Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet, praise him with the harp and lyre, praise him with tambourine and dancing, praise him with the strings and flute, praise him with the clash of cymbals, praise him with resounding cymbals. Let everything that has breath praise the LORD” Psalm 150.

2) Write a P.R.A.I.S.E. Acrostic
Describe God’s nature—his character—using the letters in the word PRAISE. For example, P is for perfect; R is for righteous; A is for almighty, etc. The person who thinks up the most relevant characteristics wins!

3) Praise Poses Game
Played similarly to charades, but players make body poses or hand signals of individual letters to spell out praise words or characteristics of God.

Write words on index cards, one word per card, such as: praise, honor, admire, respect, glory, worship, love, kind, good, etc. Encourage players to get creative using body poses or hand signals, without speaking, to spell out their praise word. Players may say how many letters are in their word before posing.

Playing in teams makes it more fun. Points are scored when teams guess the word being posed by their teammate. Give each player a card. Players must form body poses to spell out the word on their card. For example, a “P” can be posed by standing straight up and holding your arms in a circle shape next to your left shoulder.

4) Download and print out the Psalm 150 Word Find Praise Puzzle.

The Bible also has something to say about things changing in the twinkling of an eye. (4) Jesus has promised to return one day for his children. We will live with him forever and ever in his eternal Kingdom. In the meantime, Jesus told us that we would have trouble in this world, but to take heart, because he has overcome the world. Today, when fears arise, let us replace them with praise to God!

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1. The Return, a national and global day of prayer set for September 26, 2020.
2. There are beautiful reports of communities finding ways to praise God in the midst of this pandemic. In Italy, for example, people are singing from their balconies, "How Great is Our God." Watch now.
3. These ideas are included in the Prayer of Jesus Bible lessons.
4. 1 Corinthians 15:51ff

Return to the Bible Lessons page.

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