A Family Devotional Lesson on Faith over Fear

1^st Samuel 15:24-28

Big Idea: Samuel’s fear of the people caused him to sin and lose his place as King over Israel. Our fear of people also can cause us to sin. 

Play Acting:  Simulate the school lunch room at your dining room table. Have each child take a turn playing himself or herself at school in each scenario. Everyone else in the family plays the lunch crowd of kids. Set up a different temptation/intimidation for each child. 

•  Temptation scenario 1: open your lunch bags and get ready to eat; stare right at the first volunteer (the family member who is playing self at school). Attempt to simply use your stares to frighten him/her from praying before eating. 
•  Temptation Scenario 2: Have one from the crowd tell a “potty joke.” Everyone enjoys the compromising humor – but how does the family member playing self respond? 
•  Temptation Scenario 3: All begin to gossip about one of the kids who is not sitting at the table. 
• Temptation Scenario 4: All begin to grumble and complain about the unfairness of your teacher. 

After you’ve completed a scenario for each child, discuss how fear of people became a real temptation to compromise our beliefs and even sin against God. Then discuss how they can remember to choose faith over fear each time they face a crowd.

Read the Text: 1^st Samuel 15:24-28

Questions from the Passage:

• Why does Saul sin?
• Is it good that he recognizes why he sins?
• Whose voice did Saul obey?
• What would Saul have done if he were faced with your lunchroom crowd?
• Why is it dangerous to reject the Word of God?
• How would the story be different if Saul obeyed God instead of letting the people intimidate him? How would your lunchroom story also be different?

Memory Verse:  

Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned. I violated the Lord’s command and your instructions. I was afraid of the people and so I gave in to them.”  1^st Samuel 15:24