Scripture: Matthew 28:16-20, Mark 16:15-20, Luke 24:45-53, Acts 1:1-26
Learning Objectives:
- Students will learn from a modern person’s real testimony how that person found Jesus from someone sharing their faith with them.
- Students will learn how to communicate with others about Jesus.
- Students will decorate small testimony quilts to be finished and donated to shelters or Agape for foster children.
Guiding Questions:
- How can we share the message of Jesus with other people?
- How does Jesus’ message still impact people today in modern times?
Materials: muslin, polyester batting, scissors, fabric markers, safety pins, needle, string/yarn
Procedure: Review the story of Jesus’ ascension to heaven focusing on his command to go out into the world and share the gospel. Arrange for a person to share their actual testimony. After sharing, the students should be encouraged to share their faith with others. They will share by making tops for testimony quilts. Using fabric markers on large muslin squares, the students will work with their leader and peers to design, draw, and decorate a quilt that will teach someone hurting about God and his love for them.
Directions:
• Each quilt requires a muslin square of about 48” X 48”, a coordinating background fabric slightly large, polyester batting, coordinating yarn to tack it with and fabric markers.
• Students should plot out their quilt on paper before starting.
• All designs should be drawn lightly in pencil and then colored with the fabric markers.
• Adults can later sew on the background fabric with the batting in between the layers.
• Children can help tack the quilt at a later time with the coordinating yarn.
Detailed instructions can be found on eHow “How to Make an Easy Tie-Tack Quilt”
Additional Questions:
- How has Jesus made a difference in your personal life?
- What does it mean to be a foster child? (Emphasize that foster children are no different at heart than any other children. Their circumstances are just unique. Discuss some of the challenges and emotional needs of such children. You do not want students to look down on them.)
Supplemental Activities:
- Arrange for students to visit a local foster home and do service work to help the family. This could be simple work such as weeding the yard, taking their pets for a walk, etc.
- Students can write personalized cards to go with their quilt.