19 The heavens tell about the glory of God.
    The skies announce what his hands have made.
² Each new day tells more of the story,
    and each night reveals more and more about God’s power.^[a]
3 You cannot hear them say anything.
    They don’t make any sound we can hear.
⁴ But their message goes throughout the world.
    Their teaching reaches the ends of the earth.

The sun’s tent is set up in the heavens.
⁵     It comes out like a happy bridegroom from his bedroom.
It begins its path across the sky
    like an athlete eager to run a race.
⁶ It starts at one end of the sky
    and runs all the way to the other end.
    Nothing can hide from its heat.

⁷ The Lord’s teachings are perfect.
    They give strength to his people.
The Lord’s rules can be trusted.
    They help even the foolish become wise.
⁸ The Lord’s laws are right.
    They make people happy.
The Lord’s commands are good.
    They show people the right way to live.

⁹ Learning respect for the Lord is good.
    It will last forever.
The Lord’s judgments are right.
    They are completely fair.
¹⁰ His teachings are worth more than pure gold.
    They are sweeter than the best honey dripping from the honeycomb.
¹¹ His teachings warn his servants,
    and good things come to those who obey them.

¹² People cannot see their own mistakes,
    so don’t let me commit secret sins.
¹³ Don’t let me do what I know is wrong.
    Don’t let sin control me.
If you help me, I can be pure
    and free from sin.
¹⁴ May my words and thoughts please you.
    Lord, you are my Rock—the one who rescues me.

Can you name some characters in God's Big Story? Think of rhe Bible stories you know...then dont forget to add you and your family as Characters in the story.

Can you name some of the places God's big story takes place? By the sea? In a house, on a mountain....where else?

Can you think of the plot of God's story? How did God's story begin? What has happened in the middle? God's story keeps continuing. What do you think will happen next in God's story?

What are some of the conflicts or challenges in God's story? Maybe you can think of Bible people that had big challenges...Abraham leaving the land he knew, Daniel in the Lion's den, Jesus on the cross. Can you think of others? Is your family facing any challenges or conflicts right now? They are a part of God's story too!

What is the theme to God's Big Story? God's love for us is one theme. What are some others?

How might we love God with all of ourselves? With our heart? with our soul? With our mind?

How could we love God with our hands, our feet? Our words? Our eyes?

Once the people settled , what did they begin to do?( Build a great tower )

Did they build the tower to honor God or themselves ? ( themselves , they said they wanted to make a name for themselves. )

In what other way were the people disobeying God?( They disregarded God’s command to fill the whole earth. They wanted to all stay in one town .)

What did God do to make the people follow his rules and continue to fill the entire earth?

( God mixed up their language so they couldn’t communicate and then spread them all over the world.)

First try and build a tower together without speaking at all. Then try again communicating with the other people who are building with you.

Which way was harder? That’s how the people felt building the Tower of Babel and why they couldn’t do it without communicating .

It is important to learn about and respect people that are different from us !

Thank you for making us all different and for loving us all the same . Help me to better understand those who are different from me and to learn from them and love them .

Amen

18The Lord appeared to Abraham by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the entrance of his tent in the heat of the day. ²He looked up and saw three men standing near him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent entrance to meet them, and bowed down to the ground. ³He said, ‘My lord, if I find favour with you, do not pass by your servant. ⁴Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree. ⁵Let me bring a little bread, that you may refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on—since you have come to your servant.’ So they said, ‘Do as you have said.’ ⁶And Abraham hastened into the tent to Sarah, and said, ‘Make ready quickly three measures of choice flour, knead it, and make cakes.’ ⁷Abraham ran to the herd, and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to the servant, who hastened to prepare it. ⁸Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree while they ate.

9 They said to him, ‘Where is your wife Sarah?’ And he said, ‘There, in the tent.’ ¹⁰Then one said, ‘I will surely return to you in due season, and your wife Sarah shall have a son.’ And Sarah was listening at the tent entrance behind him. ¹¹Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in age; it had ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women. ¹²So Sarah laughed to herself, saying, ‘After I have grown old, and my husband is old, shall I have pleasure?’ ¹³The Lord said to Abraham, ‘Why did Sarah laugh, and say, “Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?” ¹⁴Is anything too wonderful for the Lord? At the set time I will return to you, in due season, and Sarah shall have a son.’ ¹⁵But Sarah denied, saying, ‘I did not laugh’; for she was afraid. He said, ‘Oh yes, you did laugh.’

The Birth of Isaac

21The Lord dealt with Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah as he had promised. ²Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the time of which God had spoken to him. ³Abraham gave the name Isaac to his son whom Sarah bore him. ⁴And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him. ⁵Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. ⁶Now Sarah said, ‘God has brought laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh with me.’ ⁷And she said, ‘Who would ever have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.’

Discover: There are other stories in the Bible of women having babies when no one thought they could. Can you remember or find any of their stories? (Hint: look in 1 Samuel 1 and Luke 1.)

Do: Try tomake each other laught with hokes or silly faces. Whoever causes the biggest laugh wins!

Discover: What disagreements or changes are happening in your community right now? How can you learn more about the issues involved and take action to care for people?

Do: Create a big family photo collage. Talk together about who is in your family, both near and far, and people who feel like family even if they aren't related to you.

16 Sarai, Abram’s wife, had not been able to have children. Since she had an Egyptian servant named Hagar, ² Sarai said to Abram, “The Lord has kept me from giving birth, so go to my servant. Maybe she will provide me with children.” Abram did just as Sarai said. ³ After Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Abram’s wife Sarai took her Egyptian servant Hagar and gave her to her husband Abram as his wife. ⁴ He slept with Hagar, and she became pregnant. But when she realized that she was pregnant, she no longer respected her mistress. ⁵ Sarai said to Abram, “This harassment is your fault. I allowed you to embrace my servant, but when she realized she was pregnant, I lost her respect. Let the Lord decide who is right, you or me.”

⁶ Abram said to Sarai, “Since she’s your servant, do whatever you wish to her.” So Sarai treated her harshly, and she ran away from Sarai.

⁷ The Lord’s messenger found Hagar at a spring in the desert, the spring on the road to Shur, ⁸ and said, “Hagar! Sarai’s servant! Where did you come from and where are you going?”

She said, “From Sarai my mistress. I’m running away.”

⁹ The Lord’s messenger said to her, “Go back to your mistress. Put up with her harsh treatment of you.” ¹⁰ The Lord’s messenger also said to her,

“I will give you many children,
        so many they can’t be counted!”

¹¹¹ The Lord’s messenger said to her,

“You are now pregnant and will give birth to a son.
        You will name him Ishmael^[a]
        because the Lord has heard about your harsh treatment.
¹² He will be a wild mule of a man;
        he will fight everyone, and they will fight him.
        He will live at odds with all his relatives.”^[b]

¹³ Hagar named the Lord who spoke to her, “You are El Roi”^[c] because she said, “Can I still see after he saw me?”^{[d] 14} Therefore, that well is called Beer-lahai-roi;^[e] it’s the well between Kadesh and Bered. ¹⁵ Hagar gave birth to a son for Abram, and Abram named him Ishmael. ¹⁶ Abram was 86 years old when Hagar gave birth to Ishmael for Abram.

Hagar and Ishmael evicted

⁸ The boy grew and stopped nursing. On the day he stopped nursing, Abraham prepared a huge banquet. ⁹ Sarah saw Hagar’s son laughing, the one Hagar the Egyptian had borne to Abraham. ¹⁰ So she said to Abraham, “Send this servant away with her son! This servant’s son won’t share the inheritance with my son Isaac.”

¹¹ This upset Abraham terribly because the boy was his son. ¹² God said to Abraham, “Don’t be upset about the boy and your servant. Do everything Sarah tells you to do because your descendants will be traced through Isaac. ¹³ But I will make of your servant’s son a great nation too, because he is also your descendant.” ¹⁴ Abraham got up early in the morning, took some bread and a flask of water, and gave it to Hagar. He put the boy in her shoulder sling and sent her away. She left and wandered through the desert near Beer-sheba. ¹⁵ Finally the water in the flask ran out, and she put the boy down under one of the desert shrubs. ¹⁶ She walked away from him about as far as a bow shot and sat down, telling herself, I can’t bear to see the boy die. She sat at a distance, cried out in grief, and wept.

¹⁷ God heard the boy’s cries, and God’s messenger called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “Hagar! What’s wrong? Don’t be afraid. God has heard the boy’s cries over there. ¹⁸ Get up, pick up the boy, and take him by the hand because I will make of him a great nation.” ¹⁹ Then God opened her eyes, and she saw a well. She went over, filled the water flask, and gave the boy a drink. ²⁰ God remained with the boy; he grew up, lived in the desert, and became an expert archer. ²¹ He lived in the Paran desert, and his mother found him an Egyptian wife.

Thank You for loving me and always seeing me, just like You saw Hagar in the desert. When I feel lonely, sad, scared, or forgotten, help me remember that You are always with me. You know my name, You hear my prayers, and You care about me.

Thank You for being El Roi, the God who sees me. Help me trust You every day and remember that I am never alone.

In Jesus’ name, Amen! ❤️

How do you think Jacob looked when he dressed up like Esau?

Discuss: Who do you think was right or wrong in Jacob and Esau's story? How might they have solved their conflict instead?

Discover: What strategies can you find for working through conflict with family members or friends? One example is to take turns listening really carefully to understand why the other person feels the way they do.

Do: Are there any rules in your home, school, or country that you think are unfair? Write a letter to those who make the rules, explaining your position and noting what you would like to see changed.

27When Isaac was old and ^zhis eyes were dim so that he could not see, he called Esau his older son and said to him, “My son”; and he answered, “Here I am.” ²He said, “Behold, I am old; I do not know the day of my death. ^3aNow then, take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt game for me, ⁴and prepare for me delicious food, such as I love, and bring it to me so that I may eat, that my soul ^bmay bless you before I die.”

⁵Now Rebekah was listening when Isaac spoke to his son Esau. So when Esau went to the field to hunt for game and bring it, ⁶Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “I heard your father speak to your brother Esau, ⁷‘Bring me game and prepare for me delicious food, that I may eat it and bless you before the Lord before I die.’ ⁸Now therefore, my son, ^cobey my voice as I command you. ⁹Go to the flock and bring me two good young goats, so that I may prepare from them delicious food for your father, such as he loves. ¹⁰And you shall bring it to your father to eat, ^dso that he may bless you before he dies.” ¹¹But Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, “Behold, ^emy brother Esau is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man. ¹²Perhaps my father ^fwill feel me, and I shall seem to be mocking him and bring ^ga curse upon myself and not a blessing.” ¹³His mother said to him, ^h“Let your curse be on me, my son; only obey my voice, and go, bring them to me.”

¹⁴So he went and took them and brought them to his mother, and his mother prepared delicious food, such as his father loved. ¹⁵Then Rebekah took the ⁱbest garments of Esau her older son, which were with her in the house, and put them on Jacob her younger son. ¹⁶And the skins of the young goats she put on his hands and on the smooth part of his neck. ¹⁷And she put the delicious food and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob.

¹⁸So he went in to his father and said, “My father.” And he said, “Here I am. Who are you, my son?” ¹⁹Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn. I have done as you told me; now sit up and eat of my game, that your soul may bless me.” ²⁰But Isaac said to his son, “How is it that you have found it so quickly, my son?” He answered, “Because the Lord your God granted me success.” ²¹Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come near, that I ^jmay feel you, my son, to know whether you are really my son Esau or not.” ²²So Jacob went near to Isaac his father, who felt him and said, “The voice is Jacob’s voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau.” ²³And he did not recognize him, because ^khis hands were hairy like his brother Esau’s hands. ^lSo he blessed him. ²⁴He said, “Are you really my son Esau?” He answered, “I am.” ²⁵Then he said, “Bring it near to me, ^mthat I may eat of my son’s game and bless you.” So he brought it near to him, and he ate; and he brought him wine, and he drank.

²⁶Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come near and kiss me, my son.” ²⁷So he came near and kissed him. And Isaac smelled the smell of his garments ^land blessed him and said,

“See, ⁿthe smell of my son

is as the smell of a field that the Lord has blessed!

²⁸May God give you of ^othe dew of heaven

and of the fatness of the earth

and ^pplenty of grain and wine.

²⁹Let peoples serve you,

and nations ^qbow down to you.

^rBe lord over your brothers,

and may your mother’s sons bow down to you.

^sCursed be everyone who curses you,

and blessed be everyone who blesses you!”

³⁰As soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, when Jacob had scarcely gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, Esau his brother came in from his hunting. ³¹He also prepared delicious food and brought it to his father. And he said to his father, “Let my father arise and eat of his son’s game, that you may bless me.” ³²His father Isaac said to him, “Who are you?” He answered, “I am your son, your firstborn, Esau.” ³³Then Isaac trembled very violently and said, “Who was it then that hunted game and brought it to me, and I ate it all before you came, and I have blessed him? Yes, and he shall be blessed.” ³⁴As soon as Esau heard the words of his father, ^the cried out with an exceedingly great and bitter cry and said to his father, “Bless me, even me also, O my father!” ³⁵But he said, “Your brother came deceitfully, and he has taken away your blessing.” ³⁶Esau said, ^u“Is he not rightly named Jacob?¹ For he has cheated me these two times. ^vHe took away my birthright, and behold, now he has taken away my blessing.” Then he said, “Have you not reserved a blessing for me?” ³⁷Isaac answered and said to Esau, “Behold, ^wI have made him lord over you, and all his brothers I have given to him for servants, and ^xwith grain and wine I have sustained him. What then can I do for you, my son?” ³⁸Esau said to his father, “Have you but one blessing, my father? Bless me, even me also, O my father.” And ^tEsau lifted up his voice and wept.

Help us learn to share and get along with our brothers, sisters, and friends. When we get angry or upset, teach us to forgive each other and make peace. Help us make good choices every day and remember that Your love and promises are the most valuable things of all.

Amen