Capernaum Campaigners: Jesus Calms the Storm

A few Capernaum leaders recently gathered to map out a 3-week series of Campaigner lessons from the passage of “Jesus calming the storm.” Below is what they came up with! What an awesome resource, complete with activities, questions, and scripture!

Jesus Calming the Storm

This account is found in three of the gospels:

• Matthew 8:23-27
• Mark 4: 35-41
• Luke 8:22-25

Week 1 – Who is this man? (Part 1) – Powerful Creator

Activity: “Finger/hand” painting

Supplies: white pieces of paper in gallon-sized ziplock bags, 10+ paint colors, paper towels, and wipes.

Have each friend choose 3 colors, put a piece of paper inside the ziplock bag and squirt some of each color on the paper, inside the bag, then seal tightly. They can paint using their hands without getting messy!

After painting, ask these questions to prepare for your discussion:

• What colors did you use?
• Why did you choose these colors?
• What would you name your piece of art?
• What do you love about it?

Scripture: Read version of scripture of your choice (Matthew/Mark/Luke in NIV, MSG, Jesus Storybook bible, etc)

Ask:

• Who is this man?
• What did Jesus do?
• Repeat this question: Where did the ___ come from? (water, wind, lightning, thunder, rain, people)
• Acknowledge everything is made by God.
• If God made all these things, what does this story tell us about Jesus? He is God/one with God, he is a creator, and he is powerful.
• What is the difference from when God made land/water and when he made people? (cared more, loved them).
• To create AND to calm, what kind of God would you have to be? Powerful.

Pray: End with a time of silent reflection and talking with God.

Week 2 – Who is this man? (Part 2) – Peace

Activity: Have kids close their eyes, and in great detail, paint the picture for them of Jesus calming the storm. Remind them not to actually answer your questions, but just to think about it, and picture it quietly in their mind!

Supplies: a way to make sound effects, control lights (if possible), small water gun, pots, and pans, etc…

Describe the story in great detail, make it come alive to them, use all their senses! Describe it so that they can imagine it! (Be sure to ask them to just close their eyes and think in their head, but to stay quiet until the end!

Discussion Questions:

• Tell me about what you saw and imagined?
• Where was Jesus? What did he say?
• What did you feel like when the storm came?
• What did you feel like when the storm stopped? (peace)

We see time and time again that Jesus is often in these situations, such as when he fed the 5,000, when the wedding ran out of wine, when his friend Lazarus died- but Jesus never became frazzled. He is peace and brings peace to situations. He is steady, dependable, and faithful. This week, if you find yourself in a place or situation that feels hard or scary, or when we see each other, let’s remind each other that Jesus is peace.

Activity: Oil & Water

Supplies: Small water bottles with labels removed, oil, blue food coloring, glitter, small fish and boat figures, hot glue, and a glue gun.

Empty about half of the bottles of water, add food coloring to the water and shake to mix, then add glitter, small fish, and boat figures. Add oil to the bottle, hot glue to the lid, and close tightly. Then you can shake the bottles and watch as the oil and water shake up, and then settle down- just like the storm.

Pray: End with a time of silent reflection and talking with God.

Week 3 – Faith

Introduction Questions

• What are things you know will happen every day when you get up? (the sun rises and sets)
• What are things you use every day that just work? (Light switch, fridge, microwave, TV)
• What or who are you trusting? What are you putting your faith in? (Parents, friends)
• Share a time when you trusted in something and it didn’t happen or work out.

Read Scripture:
What does Jesus promise them in the beginning?(In Mark and Luke, he says to the disciples- “let us go over to the other side.”)

• What were they doing together?
• What happened?
• Did they believe what Jesus told them? or ____?

They forgot what Jesus had told them/promised them and the wind/waves became more in their face. BUT STILL – they turned to Jesus. They had faith in him. In the end, the disciples still turned to Jesus. The storm rose up and they started to forget, but they turned to Jesus. We can never be too far from Jesus to turn to him. Jesus is and will be waiting for us. When Jesus and the disciples get to the other side of the lake, the promise comes true, and God uses them to do something amazing.

Ask:

• What does faith look like in different circumstances- when life is easy or when life feels like a storm?

Visual Example/Activity:

Supplies needed: cotton balls, chair, paper

• Wind illustration – Talk about how you can’t see the wind, but you can feel it. You know it is there because you can see it’s effect. Use the cotton balls to demonstrate. Place them on the table or ground and then blow on them to move them. As kids try themselves, talk about how it is like the storm clouds, you can’t see the wind, but you know it is the wind that is moving them- you have faith that wind exists.
• Chair – Look at a chair. You can believe the chair exists, but faith is sitting in the chair. Do you believe/have faith in a chair if you never sit down in it?
• Paper Airplane. Make a paper airplane. As you are making it, you trust that it will fly. But you only fully trust and believe that it will fly when you throw it. So throw the planes together and take them home.

Pray: End with a time of silent reflection and talking with God.