Stories of Jesus planted in our hearts.  

Jesus often used parables to teach the crowds. His favorite topics for these parables were agriculture, growing, and tending – basically barnyard stories. In this series, kids will look at a few of these barnyard Bible stories and see what Jesus still has to teach us today.

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Barnyard Bible Stories Children's Ministry Curriculum Lesson Overview

Memory Verse:

Lessons:

Farmer Plants His Seed
Scripture: Mark 4:1-20, The Parable of the Sower
Seeds can grow into a great crop, but only if they lands on the right soil. The word of God is like a seed; it has the power to transform lives, but only if the heart that hears the word is open to receive it. 
Objective: Kids will say “I want to be open to let God's word change me.”  

Farmer Harvests His Crop
Scripture: Matthew 13:24-30; 13:36-43, The Parable of the Weeds
Weeds can destroy a crop. Sometimes if you pull them out of the ground, the crop comes with it. In this world those are those who belong to Jesus (the crop) and those who do not (the weeds). While we are still growing, we should strive to belong to Jesus. 
Objective: Kids will say “I want to grow with Jesus.”

Farmer Plans Ahead
Scripture: Luke 12:16-21, The Parable of the Foolish Farmer
A rich, foolish farmer thought if he built bigger barns, he could relax and never have to work again. But none of us know what tomorrow will hold. We should plan for the future, but always remember that the future is in God's hands. 
Objective: Kids will say “I want to trust God with my future.”

Farmhand Finds His Way Home
Scripture: Luke 15:11-32, The Parable of the Lost Son
In this story, we meet a man who went from being a son to a farmhand and back to a son. Sometimes in life, we lose are way, but if we return to God, he will throw his arms around us and celebrate us as a child come home.  
Objective: Kids will say “I want to know God as my father and me as his beloved child.”

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Each Lesson Includes:

• Make It Stick! Parent Sheet - so you can let mom and dad know what kids are learning each week and look like a rockstar teacher who's thought of everything.
• Memory Verse - so that you can make sure kids are getting Scripture in their minds and hearts every single week and you can feel like each lesson was a success even when it seems like 90% of your lesson time is spent saying things like "calm down", "let's be quiet", "hands to yourself!"
• Skit or Puppet Show - so you have a way to easily connect the lesson with your hands-on and visual learners. No drama team? No problem! Just hand the script to the kids. They'll have a blast and think you're the coolest.
• Craft Activity - so you can give kids a physical reminder of the Bible lesson (and give yourself an activity to keep them busy until mom and dad come back!)
• Game - so kids don't leave and say church was BORING! Games are so important to help keep kids engaged. Our large group games always include a "What's The Point" section to help you connect the game to the lesson.
• Large Group Lesson - so you can present the Bible story in a clear and fun way, which means now you can enjoy Saturday nights instead of stressing over putting a lesson together!
• Small-Group Discussion - so you can find out who was paying attention and who was talking to their neighbor.  Just kidding, this is a great way for you to build deeper relationships with your kiddos after each lesson, which means you're going to care about them so much you'll cry like a baby when they graduate and go to middle school :(
• More! - Yes, there is even more than all of that so that you can easily put together the perfect lesson for your ministry each weekend, which means no more agonizing over how to adjust complicated lesson plans. 

About This Curriculum:

• Perfect for kids ages 6-12
• 4-weeks
• Includes large group and small group resources
• This curriculum is an instant download
• Includes NIRV, NIV, NLT, and KJV Memory Verse Graphics
• Includes Editable Text Files

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