Baskets play a roll in several interesting Bible stories. You can have a fun family devotional using things you probably have around your house. The devotional is flexible, because you choose which Bible story and application principles you want to teach your kids.
So, let’s get started!
Materials: Bible, any baskets you have around the house, paper, pot holder looms or other materials which could be used to make and experiment with baskets, petroleum jelly or other items to attempt waterproofing (if you choose Moses)
Procedure: Choose one of the following Bible stories and its application principles to teach your kids.
- Baby Moses. Exodus 2:1-10. Pharaoh was concerned about the growing population of the Jewish slaves. At one point, he ordered all of the male babies that had been born to be killed. Moses’ mother didn’t want her son to die. So she waterproofed a basket, put Moses in the basket and placed it in the reeds on the bank of the Nile River. Pharaoh’s daughter saw the baby and rescued it. When she decided to adopt Moses, his sister Mariam offered to run and get someone to nurse the child. The person she ran to get was Moses’ birth mother. The baby grew up to be the leader who led the Israelites out of their Egyptian captivity. God had a plan for Moses and He has a plan for us. Pharaoh tried to stop God’s plan by killing all of the baby boys. Yet, God protected Moses. God keeps His promises and His plans will succeed – even if people try to stop them.
- Paul Saved by a Basket. Acts 9:19-25. Paul had recently been converted to Christianity. He went from pursuing Christians and having them thrown in jail to preaching sermons to convince people to follow Christ. As Paul began preaching in Damascus, the Jews were confused at first in this drastic change in Paul. When Paul began convincing more and more Jews to become Christians, the leaders plotted to kill him. They had people positioned outside of the city gates. They were to kill Paul when he walked through the gates. Paul’s supporters knew of the plot, so they lowered Paul over the wall in a basket. Paul escaped unharmed and continued to preach about Jesus. Sometimes when we do what God wants us to do, it makes people angry. We have to be brave like Paul and keep obeying God. (Although, hopefully our stories won’t involved being lowered in baskets!)
- Jeremiah’s Vision. Jeremiah 24. Jeremiah was a prophet when the king of Judah and other leaders and people had been taken into captivity to Babylon. Everyone was probably extremely upset as they saw their city, their country and their way of life being destroyed and people carried off to the country of Babylon. God showed Jeremiah two baskets of figs. One basket had figs that were not only good, but evidently favorite figs that were harvested early. The other basket contained figs so bad they couldn’t be eaten at all. God told Jeremiah the baskets represented two groups of people. The good figs represented the people of Judah. God promised He would look after them and care for them. He told Jeremiah He would work with them so they would once again be His people and He would be their God. The bad figs represented the king and other leaders and survivors from Jerusalem. God said He would punish those people even if they stayed in Jerusalem or escaped to Egypt. Their punishment would include all sorts of negative consequences for disobeying God. Even though the Jewish people had sinned against God in many ways, He still loved them. They would still suffer earthly consequences, but those who repented could once again become one of God’s people. God loves us and will forgive Christians when they repent of their sins.
Share the Bible story and application principles you have chosen with your kids. Pull out any baskets you have around the house. Talk about how well your baskets would or would not have been able to be used in the story you chose. If, your baskets wouldn’t work, what kind of basket was probably used?
Explain that baskets are woven. You can cut paper and let your kids experiment with weaving or use a simple loom like those used to make pot holders. If you studied the story of Moses, you may want to get a basket from the dollar store and experiment with different substances to see if you can make it waterproof.
After you have finished working with weaving and baskets, talk about what you can do to remember the principles you learned in the Bible story you taught. You may even want to challenge each other to memorize a Bible verse that will help you remember something God wanted you to learn from the story you taught.