Ever wonder why it takes so much for preteens to allow themselves to truly worship or to open up in prayer time?

I love it when they finally feel comfortable to begin to allow themselves to be who God intended them to be.

So, how do we get them to realize how easy and wonderful it is to let themselves go?

The problem is preteens are easily worried about what others are doing and thinking.

They tie themselves to these ideas that they can only be a certain way.

That ‘way’ is usually just like everyone else, so it doesn’t feel right to be different.

Use this lesson and game to help preteens see that Jesus gives us freedom from things that leave us feeling tied up.

Then, once they do this they are free to worship and pray to God however they want to.

– Nick Diliberto, Preteen Ministry

PRETEEN MINISTRY LESSON ON FREEDOM

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Written by Rob Quinn

Bible: John 8:36; Ephesians 3:12

Bottom Line: Jesus gives us freedom from things that leave us feeling tied up.

SUPPLIES

  • Lots and lots of pieces of rope – varying lengths, from 4 to 12 inches
  • A role of tape
  • A bucket

OPENING GAME: UNTIE IT

GAME PREP

Take each piece of rope and tie 1-3 knots in each piece.

Longer pieces with more knots, smaller pieces less knots.

Place all the ropes in the bucket.

Tape off a starting line and a finish line.

Place the bucket of rope at the finish line.

HOW TO PLAY THE GAME

Divide your students into equal groups of 6-8 people.

On GO, a team member will run to the bucket and grab one piece of rope and take it back to their group.

As soon as they return they will begin un-tying the knots in the rope.

At the same time, the next team member will run to the bucket and get their piece of rope.

Once all team members have their rope untied, they need to lay them out end to end and try to reach the finish line. Ropes must be touching and have no space in between.

If they do not reach the finish line they need to gather up all their rope and send a teammate to get another piece of rope.

They keep sending and un-tying until they think they have enough.

Then, they can try laying out the rope again to reach the finish line.

The first team to lay out rope, from the starting line to the finish line, with all pieces touching, WINS.

TEACH

SAY: That was pretty awesome!

You all did great and congrats to the winning team.

Let me ask you a few questions.

ASK:

  • How many pieces of rope did it take to win?
  • Was it hard to untie the knots?
  • Which ropes did you choose? Longer or shorter?
  • Were you worried about how the rest of your team was doing?
  • What about what the other teams were doing?
  • Have you ever thought that way in church – What others are doing or thinking?
  • Have you ever felt the way during worship time or prayer time? WHY?

SAY: I want to talk about this a little bit today.

I want to talk about why we can be hesitant during worship time or prayer time.

I mean every week we sing songs together, we pray together, but we are constantly looking around to see what others are doing or listening to what others are saying.

Then, we make decisions based on what others are doing, instead of letting ourselves go.

We need to ‘untie’ ourselves from each other; allowing us to be who God intended each of us to be.

Think of yourself as the piece of rope we just untied.

It wasn’t until we untied the knots that we had enough to reach the finish line.

When we allow things to get in our way, we can never reach fully worshiping God or talking to Him.

So, what are some knots that we tie ourselves to that keep us from reaching who we are in Christ? Take a few answers.

Thanks for sharing.

Let’s see what the Bible has to say about this.

Read John 8:36.

“So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”

Wow! This is simple and sweet, isn’t it?

But what does this mean?

John is telling us that when we are all tied up in things, those things can keep us from Christ.

Yet, the only thing that can truly set us free from those things is Christ.

Once we do that we can be free in so many ways.

We can be free to worship or sing to Him how we want to, and pray or talk to Him the way we want to.

We don’t have to worry about what others are doing or saying.

If you want to raise your hand when singing, then do so because you are free to do so.

If you have something to say to Him because you are angry or worried you are free to do so.

You don’t have to be afraid to do these things because HE has set you free.

What does this do for us, why is this important?

Read Ephesians 3:12.

“In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.”

We see that when we do these things we are able to approach Him.

In the game, when you untied the knots you were able to let your team get closer to the finish line.

The more you untied, the closer you were.

Just like in your relationship with Christ.

When you start to untie those knots, start to let Him in, and stop worrying about what others think or do, you begin to approach Him.

And the closer you get, the easier it becomes to let yourself go in times of worship and prayer.

Here’s a question I want you to think about as we close this time together:

What do you have to untie yourself from to get closer to Christ?

Close in Prayer.

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About Rob Quinn, the Writer of this Lesson

Rob has nearly 10 years of experience in preteen ministry and is currently a junior high pastor. He is married to an amazing woman Jodi, who just so happens to be the Children’s Ministry Director at his church. They have one beautiful daughter Sydni, and an 8-pound attack dog named Lilly.