APA107-Bible Bites-txt-ART 26/07/10 11:41 AM Page 9
DAY 1
DAY 1 MEMORY VERSE s Genesis 1:1
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. ave you ever made anything? What did you make it from? Could you have made it from scratch? There’s a joy that comes from creating something new! Did you feel a sense of achievement? Were you so excited that you wanted to show it to others?
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Read Genesis 1:1–2 Talk it Over
Talk it over
Activity Close your eyes and think about a time when you made something that you felt good about. Now, take it in turns to tell each other about those times. Why do you think you felt good? Did you show or tell anyone about your creation? What did they say or do?
Learn the memory verse Play ‘Pictionary’ together! Choose key words from the verse: beginning, God, created, heavens, earth. Use either playdough to make sculptures, or pencil and paper to draw pictures, that represent these words. Can the rest of the family guess which keyword it is that you are creating?
Talk with God
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Dear God, the Bible tells us that you have always existed and that you created the heavens and the earth. Please help us to understand how big you really are! Please help us to spend time together each day, reading your Word so that we might know you more and more. Amen.
BIBLE B ITES
The Bible tells us that, In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. It is a simple statement that starts the whole Bible and yet there is so much meaning wrapped up in those few words! In the beginning God … God was there in ‘the beginning’. God already existed before anything else. God is not restricted, he is infinite. He is eternal! He goes on forever! What does this mean for you and me? This eternal God created the heavens and the earth! We often glance over that part; we concentrate on the creation of the earth and miss the magnitude of this statement. God didn’t just make the earth; he made everything else in the universe, even the things we can’t see. What do you think about this? I’d like to invite you and your family to spend a little time together each day, exploring what the Bible teaches us about God. Let’s get to know him. Let’s take little ‘Bible Bites’ each day so that we better understand the God who created the heavens and the earth!
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APA107-Bible Bites-txt-ART 26/07/10 11:41 AM Page 11
DAY 3
DAY 3 MEMORY VERSE s Genesis 1:1
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Read Genesis 1:3–31 Talk it Over
Talk it over
What do these passages tell us? Read through them slowly and carefully. What do they teach us about God and about Creation? Discuss your ideas together.
Activity Choose words from these passages and use them to make up a find-a-word puzzle. There are free internet websites to help you do this quickly and easily. Who in your family is able to find all the hidden words?
Learn the memory verse Write each word of the memory verse onto a separate card. Shuffle the cards up. Who can put them in the right order and recite the verse correctly in the fastest time?
Talk with God Thank you, God, for all that you made. Thank you for the light and dark, for the sky and land, for the seas, the animals and for making people, too. Thank you that you are in control. Amen.
BIBLE B ITES
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APA107-Bible Bites-txt-ART 26/07/10 12:49 PM Page 10
DAY 2
DAY 2 MEMORY VERSE s Genesis 1:1
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Read Genesis 1:1–2 Talk it Over
Talk it over
These verses set the scene for Creation: The earth was barren, with no form of life. Look up ‘barren’ in a dictionary to explore its full meaning. The earth was empty, covered with darkness. Yet the Spirit of God was there, moving over the water. This reveals an image of God encompassing the earth and bringing forth life and light out of emptiness. God is actively involved in Creation. God himself was not created, he already existed. He is in control of Creation.
Activity Have you visited a remote location and felt the enormity of nothingness? Out of barrenness God created all life – plants, animals and people. What does this tell us about the greatness of God?
B IBLE BITES
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Learn the memory verse Blow up 10 balloons. Write each word of the memory verse onto a balloon. Place the balloons in the right order, so that the verse may be read correctly. Recite the verse aloud. Now choose one person to pop a balloon. Can you still recite the verse correctly? Repeat this process until all the balloons have been popped. Who is still able to recite the verse correctly?
Talk with God God, you have always existed. Your Spirit hovered over the empty darkness of the earth before you brought forth light and life. Thank you that you are, and have always been, actively involved in Creation. Thank you that you are in control. Amen.