Earlier we learned that Jesus should be the foundation of our lives. When we build our lives around Him, even when the storms of life come, He promises we will have His peace. Building our lives on Him means learning what His Word, the Bible says. When we read the Bible and get to know God through His Word, He begins to speak to our hearts and changes us in the process. When our hearts begin to change, we want to follow Jesus and do whatever He asks of us. Jesus told us it means nothing to just hear His Word, we MUST be doers of His Word.

• What are some of the commands God gives us in the Bible? (Answers may include: Love God with all of our heart and love our neighbors as ourselves; pray for our enemies; take care of the poor; be kindhearted; etc.) 
• What ways can we obey those commands in our everyday lives? (Answers will vary but may include:  To show love I can help my mom load the dishwasher and let her rest; to help the orphans and the poor, my family can sponsor a child or donate to the homeless shelter in our town; to love my enemy, I can pray for that person every day and look for ways in school to show them kindness, etc.)

There are so many ways we can obey God’s commands and be doers of His Word! And each way is different depending on where God leads us during the day. God might show one of you a friend who needs extra kindness because she’s having a rough time at home, while He might lead someone else to offer to tutor someone after school. Someone else He might nudge to give their little sister the extra attention she’s been craving and spend a few hours playing Barbies with her after school. We are the hands and feet of God!  There are so many jobs He has for us to do, to show others His love for them.

Pass out a plain sheet of paper to each student as well as writing utensils. Have your students fold the paper four times lengthwise and then fold that folded strip in half and in half again to create 16 small boxes in the paper.

In each box, you should write one way you plan to be a doer of God’s Word. Before starting, give your preteens some time to pray over this activity and then sit quietly and let God bring to mind people He might want them to reach out to, or things He would like them to do to show His love. Once they’ve had time to pray and think, have them fill in their boxes.

As students work quietly, play the following song [3:56]:
Jesus Firm Foundation

• What are some ideas you’ve written in your charts? (Answers will vary. Be prepared to share your own ideas too.)

Let’s not be like the foolish man who built his house (or bridge!) on the sand. When the winds came along, his house collapsed. He heard the Word of God but chose not to live it out in his own life. Let’s be like the wise man, who built His life on the rock—on Jesus. Read God’s Word and get to know Him in a very real and personal way. He will guide and direct your paths and make you doers of His Word.

Take your charts home and place them somewhere you can easily pull them out. As you start each day, look over your chart, pray, and be reminded of all the ways you want to be a doer of God’s Word for that day. At night, put a check in each box you accomplished and pray and thank God for the opportunities He gave you that day to be His hands and His feet. Try to see how many checks you can collect throughout the next few weeks and thank God each time He opens that door for you to obey Him.

Once your students have filled in all of the boxes with checks, encourage them to sit down and make a new chart and begin again. Obeying God is a lifetime commitment. The more we read His Word and obey it, the stronger our foundation in Him becomes and the more we desire to follow Him, wherever He may lead.

Pray to close.