Adventist Adventurer Awards and Answers/Listening

Listening
Multi-Level

Memorize and explain 2 of the following listening Bible verses

a. James 1:19

Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry.

b. Jeremiah 29:11-12

11 For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. 12 In those days when you pray, I will listen.

c. Jeremiah 13:15

Listen and pay attention! Do not be arrogant, for the Lord has spoken.

d. Proverbs 1:8

My child, listen when your father corrects you. Don’t neglect your mother’s instruction.

e. Isaiah 59:1

Listen! The Lord’s arm is not too weak to save you, nor is his ear too deaf to hear you call.

Tell one of the following listening Bible Stories.

a. Samuel listening – 1 Samuel 3

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7TDvJrjjz0

You may remember that Samuel's mother was a woman named Hannah. She wanted a son more than anything, so she prayed and asked God to give her a son. She promised God that if he would give her a son, she would give him back to the LORD to serve him all the days of his life. God gave Hannah the son she asked for and she kept her promise to God. When the boy was old enough, she took him to the temple and presented him to Eli the priest. So Samuel served in the temple under Eli.

One night Samuel was sleeping when he heard someone call his name. He got up and ran to Eli. "Here I am; you called me," he said to Eli.

"I didn't call you," Eli answered, "go back to bed." So Samuel went back to bed.

Again the LORD called, "Samuel!" Samuel jumped out of bed and and went to Eli. "Here I am; you called me."

"I didn't call you, go back to bed," Eli answered a second time.

A third time God called Samuel and Samuel got up and went to Eli. "Here I am; you called me," he said.

Finally, Eli realized that it was God who was calling Samuel. He told Samuel, "Go and lie down, and if he calls you again, say, 'Speak LORD, for your servant is listening."

Samuel went back to bed and sure enough, again he heard the voice of God calling, "Samuel! Samuel!" This time Samuel answered as Eli had told him, "Speak, for your servant is listening."

Some people think that God only calls grown-ups. That is why I like the story of Samuel. Samuel was just a young boy when God called him. God knows your name just as he knew the name of Samuel and God still calls boys and girls today saying, "Come, follow me." So, listen for God's call and answer just as Samuel did, "Here I am!"

b. Jesus listening – Luke 2:41-49

Every year, Mary, Joseph and Jesus traveled to Jerusalem for a celebration. They went with a big group of friends and family. The party was so much fun. They had lots of good food and told God how much they loved Him.

When the party was over, Mary and Joseph and the group traveled back to their home. (March with your feet) After a while, Mary and Joseph realized that Jesus was not anywhere to be found. They asked all their friends and family, but no one had seen Jesus. (Put your hand by your brow like you are searching for Jesus.)

Mary and Joseph rushed back to Jerusalem. They looked everywhere for Jesus. (Put your hand across your brow as if you were looking for Jesus; then call Jesus’ name like you were looking for Him)

Finally, they found him. Do you know where Jesus was? He was in the temple church, talking to the leaders. They had been there talking together the whole time! The leaders were amazed at what Jesus knew.

When Mary found him she said, “Son, why did you do this to us? Your father and I were very worried about you!”

Jesus asked, “Why did you have to look for me? You should have known that I would be where my Father’s work is.” But they did not understand what He meant.

Jesus went with them to their home in Nazareth and He obeyed them. He listened and did what His parents asked Him to do. Jesus continued to grow up. People liked him and he pleased God too.

Learn the following principles of listening

• Listen to God.
• Be always ready to listen. “My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.” James 1:19
• Be patient. Listening takes time, but the reward far exceeds the investment.
• Be obedient. Listen and respond the first time instruction is given.
• Be kind. Listening is a gift, so be the first one to lead out in listening. Be a listening role model.
• Be respectful. Listen to others and let them finish their story, before you talk.
• Be attentive. Pay attention while others are speaking.

Teaching Idea: Tin Can Telephone

For an example, use two tin cans and a string. A tin can telephone is a type of voice-transmitting device made up of two tin cans attached together on the closed end with a taut string or wire. Practice speaking and listening in a way the reinforces the rules listed OR shows the problems when we don't use those rules? MUCH more fun with tin cans than with a simple traditional discussion! (Yes, tin cans are another type of role play)

Make a craft that relates to listening.

String Telephone

You will need:

• 2 plastic or paper cups – a tin can works great too
• String (you can experiment with different lengths)
• A friend to hold the other end of the string telephone:)

Instructions:

• Make a small hole in the bottom of both cups. Thread your string through the cup and tie a knot to keep the string from pulling back through. That’s it! You are all ready to start playing.
• You take one cup and your friend takes the other. Walk far enough apart to make the string tight. Depending on how long you cut your string will depend on how far you need to stand apart. Also, make sure that the string is not touching anything else.
• One friend holds the cup to their mouth and talks, while the other friend holds it to their ear and listens.

Play a listening game.

Follow the Leader 1:

Facilitate an old-fashioned game of Simon Says as a way to emphasize the importance of focus and following directions. Try saying, "Simon says touch your toes and then say sit on the floor." If your child follows the second direction without hearing Simon says, they lose. This game reinforces how effective listening relates to following directions. For older children, use a picture that includes geometrical shapes. Give the child a blank piece of paper and then describe the picture and ask them to draw what they hear. Compare the two pictures and discuss how listening to directions played a role in replicating the picture.

Follow the Leader 2:

Form groups of three. Have one person in each group close his or her eyes. Have the other two take the person at least 20 feet away from their group.

Say: You have one minute to get back to your seat with your eyes closed. Your friends in your group will guide you, but listen well.

The "blind" people can't be led by the hand; they must follow only their group members' instructions. Play three times to let each group member have a turn being the blind one. Then ask: How easy or difficult was it to listen to your group members' voices? How did other people's instructions affect you? What techniques did you use to listen well?

Say: Listen to this story about a little boy who learned to listen well—and heard God's voice.

Read aloud 1 Samuel 3:1-11.

Ask: Think of the techniques we used in our game to listen well. How can we use some of those same techniques to listen well to God?

Telephone Game:

Have everyone sit in a circle. The instructor will start a message by whispering it into the ear of the child to his/her left. The message will continue around the circle, from child to child, by whispering the message in the ear of the next child. (Be careful not to whisper loud enough for others to hear.)

When the message has gone around the whole circle, have the last child say the message out loud so everyone can hear. Discuss how the message has changed as it moved around the circle.

Divide the kids into four groups. Whisper instructions to each group so the other groups don't know what you told them. Tell the first group to sing twinkle twinkle little star as loudly as possible. Tell the second group to shout out their favourite foods. Tell the third group to do jumping jacks and count them as they do them. Tell the last group to use their normal voice level and say "God loves you". On "go", have each group begin. Allow the kids to do this for about 60 seconds. Then call them all together and ask the first three groups if they can identify what each group was doing. They will probably be able to tell you what the first three groups were doing, but will have no idea what the last group was doing. The parallel you want to draw here is that we can't listen when we are talking or being loud or distracted. If we want to know what God wants to tell us then we need to be still and listen.