B-8 For Such a Time as This

OPTION 1

Theme: Spreading the Good News Quickly

Background:
In Esther’s day, they didn’t have TVs, radios, the internet, or cell phones. News was carried by relay messengers. A rider would travel on horseback to a station and give the message to the next rider. That rider would hurry to the next station and pass it on. In this way, important messages spread quickly across the kingdom.

Instructions:

• Choose children to be Esther, Mordecai, and a scribe.
• Choose one child to stand at the classroom door (this child represents the first relay station).
• Have all the remaining messengers stand together in the hallway at one location (the "hub").
• Assign each messenger a different Sabbath School classroom door where they will eventually deliver the message. Give each messenger a pen and paper.
• Have the scribe write this message: “Happy Sabbath! We are so glad you are at church today.”
• The scribe gives the message to the child at the classroom door.
• That child carries the message to the messenger "hub" in the hallway.

At the hub:

• Each messenger must copy (transcribe) the message onto their own paper.
• After copying, they run to their assigned classroom door and attach the message.

Challenge: See if the whole process can be completed in 5 minutes or less!

Discussion Questions:

• Why was it important for the message to spread quickly?
• How do you think the Jews felt when they received the new law?
• What good news does God want us to spread today? (Three Angels' Messages)
• Why is it important to work together to spread this message as quickly as possible?
• How can you participate in spreading the message?

OPTION 2: 

Theme: Identified

Instructions:

• Give each person in the room (children and adults) a sticky note. Ask them to write one of the following (without their name):
• A favorite food
• A hidden talent
• A favorite Bible verse
• Etc.
• Collect all the sticky notes.
• Read them aloud one at a time, and have the group guess who wrote each one.

Connection:
When Esther told the king about the plot to destroy her people, he didn’t know who was responsible. Imagine his shock when he discovered it was his own most trusted advisor, Haman. 

Discussion questions:

• Why do you think Esther didn’t speak up right away?
• Why was timing important?
• How do you know when it is the right time to speak?
• How do you think the king felt when he learned the truth?