Put God First
Object Lesson: Make Room for God in Your LifeYou'll need: 2 baby food jars, white rice, two walnuts in their shells.
Years ago one of our mom's did a mini-sermon for the kids. She had a small-sized baby jar, a walnut and some rice. She talked about how we need to put God first in our lives and everything else will fall into place. She had enough for each child to take home and use as a teaching tool. I still have mine in my kitchen cupboard and it is always a good reminder to me when I need it.
Trusting Jesus,
Julie Richardson
Begin by placing one walnut into one of the empty jars. Tell the kids that the walnut represents God being put first in our lives. (add the rice) The rice represents all the other things in our life, important and not so important things. Notice when we place the walnut into the jar first, the rice fills in all around the walnut very nicely. (Take the second jar and pour the rice in first. Then try to put the walnut into the rice.) However, if you try to put the rice in first and then the walnut, the walnut will not go entirely into the jar. In the same way, if we put all our time and energy into other things first, rather than placing God first, we will not have room for God.
Let this walnut and rice jar be a reminder to each of us that we must always place God first in our lives!
Editor's Note: This object lesson would work well when teaching the Second Commandment, "Don't Worship Idols." Whenever we place someone or something to have more importance than God, we create an idol. We must put God first in our lives.
Return to the Children's Sermons page
You can make a difference!
Your purchases and donations to the site help to distribute our children's ministry resources to churches across the world.
Subscribe to our Newsletter - Learn More