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God's Rules
Are Best

Parents, use the following ideas to increase the impact of these stories:

• Discuss rules you have for your family and why those rules are in place.

• Encourage your child to name some of the rules God gave to Moses to share with the people. Discuss why those are important rules to follow.

• Look for ways to encourage your child and commend them for making choices that follow God’s rules.

• Ask your child to point out the word God every time they see it printed in red.

• Encourage your child to find and count the hidden candles throughout the story.

• As a family, work on memorizing John 15:12 (ICB).


October 5-11, 2024

WEEK 1


The Golden Calf
1The people saw that a long time had passed and Moses had not come down from the mountain. So they gathered around Aaron. They said to him, “Look, Moses led us out of the land of Egypt. But we don’t know what has happened to him. So make us gods who will lead us.” 2Aaron said to the people, “Take off the gold earrings that your wives, sons, and daughters are wearing. Bring them to me.” 3So all the people took their gold earrings and brought them to Aaron. 4He took the gold from the people and formed it with a tool. He made a statue of a calf. Then the people said, “Israel, these are your gods who brought you out of the land of Egypt!” 5When Aaron saw all this, he built an altar before the calf. Then Aaron made an announcement. He said, “Tomorrow there will be a special feast to honor the Lord.” 6The people got up early the next morning. They offered whole burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. They sat down to eat and drink. Then they got up and sinned sexually. 7Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go down from this mountain. Your people, the people you brought out of the land of Egypt, have done a terrible sin. 8They have quickly turned away from the things I commanded them to do. They have made for themselves a calf covered with gold. And they have worshiped that calf and offered sacrifices to it. The people have said, ‘Israel, these are your gods who brought you out of Egypt.’” 9The Lord said to Moses, “I have seen these people. I know that they are very stubborn. 10So now do not stop me. I am so angry with them that I am going to destroy them. Then I will make you and your descendants a great nation.” 11But Moses begged the Lord his God. Moses said, “Lord, don’t let your anger destroy your people. You brought them out of Egypt with your great power and strength. 12Don’t let the people of Egypt say, ‘The Lord brought the Israelites out of Egypt. But he planned to kill them in the mountains and destroy them from the earth.’ So stop being angry. Don’t destroy your people. 13Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel. You promised to them with an oath. You said, ‘I will make your descendants as many as the stars in the sky. I will give your descendants all this land I have promised them. It will be theirs forever.’” 14So the Lord changed his mind. He did not destroy the people as he had said he might. 15Then Moses went down the mountain. He had the two stone tablets with the agreement on them. The commands were written on both sides of the stone, front and back. 16God himself had made the tablets. And God himself had written the commands on the tablets. 17Joshua heard the sound of the people shouting. So he said to Moses, “It sounds like war down in the camp.” 18Moses answered:
“It is not a shout of victory.
It is not a cry of defeat.
It is the sound of singing that I hear.”
19When Moses came near the camp, he saw the calf and the dancing. Moses became very angry. He threw down the stone tablets that he was carrying. He broke them at the bottom of the mountain. 20Then he took the calf that the people had made. He melted it in the fire. Then he ground the gold until it became powder. He threw the powder into the water. And he forced the Israelites to drink it. 21Moses said to Aaron, “What did these people do to you? Why did you cause them to do such a terrible sin?” 22Aaron answered, “Don’t be angry, master. You know that these people are always ready to do wrong. 23The people said to me, ‘Moses led us out of Egypt. But we don’t know what has happened to him. So make us gods who will lead us.’ 24So I told the people, ‘Take off your gold jewelry.’ When they gave me the gold, I threw it into the fire. And out came this calf!” 25Moses saw that the people were acting wildly. Aaron had let them get out of control. The people had become fools in front of their enemies. 26So Moses stood at the entrance to the camp. He said, “Let anyone who wants to follow the Lord come to me.” And all the people from the family of Levi ran to Moses. 27Then Moses said to them, “The Lord, the God of Israel, says this: ‘Every man must put on his sword. You must go through the camp. Go from one end of the camp to the other. Each man must kill his brother, friend, and neighbor.’” 28The people from the family of Levi obeyed Moses. That day about 3,000 of the Israelites died.


Allow family members to use Play-Doh to create some of their favorite things. Allow each person time to share what they created. Relate the Play-Doh creations to the golden calf that Aaron made with the jewelry from the Israelites. Why was God mad about the golden calf? Point out that calves themselves aren’t bad, but worshiping something other than God is. Remind your child that it is okay to enjoy things, but they should not be more important than God. We should not worship anything other than the one, true God.


Discuss the different ways that you spend your time and the things you do. Emphasize to your child that those things are not bad, and some of them are in fact good. Talk to your child about how none of those things should be more important than God. We should be careful to spend time with God before we fill up our day with other things. You may want to list some activities (both good and bad) and allow your child to give you a thumbs-up or thumbs-down. Pray together as a family, asking for help to put God first. Throughout the week, say the Heartprint: God’s Rules Are Best with your child.


October 12-18, 2024

WEEK 2


The Ten Commandments
1Then God spoke all these words:
2“I am the Lord your God. I brought you out of the land of Egypt where you were slaves. 3You must not have any other gods except me. 4You must not make for yourselves an idol that looks like anything in the sky above or on the earth below or in the water below the land. 5You must not worship or serve any idol. This is because I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God. I will punish the children, their grandchildren, and even their great-grandchildren for the sins of their parents who hate me. 6But I will be very kind for thousands of years to those who love me and obey my commands. 7You must not use the name of the Lord your God thoughtlessly. The Lord will punish anyone who misuses his name. 8Remember to keep the Sabbath as a holy day. 9You may work and get everything done during six days each week. 10But the seventh day is a day of rest to honor the Lord your God. On that day no one may do any work: not you, your son or daughter, or your men and women slaves. Neither your animals nor the foreigners living in your cities may work. 11The reason is that in six days the Lord made everything. He made the sky, earth, sea and everything in them. On the seventh day he rested. So the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy."



Play several rounds of Simon Says. After several rounds, ask your child to tell you one or two rules you have at home. Discuss how it is hard to listen or obey rules sometimes. Share a time you remember from your childhood when you broke a rule. Talk to your child about the lesson you learned and about how house rules and God’s rules are for our safety.




Read Psalm 119:10 (ICB). Talk to your child about the verse emphasizing how we can pray and ask for help to obey God’s commandments with all our hearts. You may want to memorize this verse together as a family and come up with some motions to make memorization easier. Throughout the week, say the Heartprint: God’s Rules Are Best with your child.


October 19-25, 2024

WEEK 3


12“Honor your father and your mother. Then you will live a long time in the land that the Lord your God is going to give you. 13“You must not murder anyone. 14“You must not be guilty of adultery. 15“You must not steal. 16“You must not tell lies about your neighbor. 17“You must not want to take your neighbor’s house. You must not want his wife or his men and women servants. You must not want his ox or his donkey. You must not want to take anything that belongs to your neighbor.” 18When the people heard the thunder and the trumpet and saw the lightning and the smoke rising from the mountain, they shook with fear. They stood far away from the mountain. 19Then they said to Moses, “Speak to us yourself. Then we will listen. But don’t let God speak to us, or we will die.” 20Then Moses said to the people, “Don’t be afraid. God has come to test you. He wants you to respect him so that you will not sin.” 21The people stood far away from the mountain while Moses went near the dark cloud where God was. 22Then the Lord told Moses to say these things to the Israelites: “You yourselves have seen that I talked with you from heaven. 23You must not use gold or silver to make idols for yourselves. You must not worship these gods in addition to me. 24“Make an altar of dirt for me. Offer your whole burnt offerings and fellowship offerings on this altar. Offer your sheep and your cattle. Worship me in every place that I choose. I will come and bless you in every place I choose. 25If you use stones to make an altar for me, don’t use stones that you have shaped with tools. If you use any tools on them, you make them unsuitable for use in worship. 26And you must not go up to my altar on steps. If you do, people will be able to see under your clothes.”




Play a game of Follow the Leader with your family. After playing a few rounds, remind your child that when we love Jesus, we want to obey Him and live as He lived. Read 1 John 2:5-6 (ICB) with your child. Talk to your child about the verse emphasizing that we are to do what Jesus did, and live how Jesus lived. Close your time together with prayer. Thank God for the commandments and for the fun you can have together as a family.


Discuss some of the rules you have regarding bike riding. Why do we wear a helmet? Why don’t we ride our bikes on busy streets? Emphasize that those rules are for your child’s safety. Tell your child that the rules God gives us in the Bible are for our safety as well. Tell your child that just like parents often know what’s best for them, God always knows what’s best for us. Throughout the week, say the Heartprint: God’s Rules Are Best with your child.



Oct 26-Nov 1, 2024

WEEK 4


The Ten Commandments
1Then God spoke all these words:
2“I am the Lord your God. I brought you out of the land of Egypt where you were slaves. 3You must not have any other gods except me. 4You must not make for yourselves an idol that looks like anything in the sky above or on the earth below or in the water below the land. 5You must not worship or serve any idol. This is because I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God. I will punish the children, their grandchildren, and even their great-grandchildren for the sins of their parents who hate me. 6But I will be very kind for thousands of years to those who love me and obey my commands. 7You must not use the name of the Lord your God thoughtlessly. The Lord will punish anyone who misuses his name. 8Remember to keep the Sabbath as a holy day. 9You may work and get everything done during six days each week. 10But the seventh day is a day of rest to honor the Lord your God. On that day no one may do any work: not you, your son or daughter, or your men and women slaves. Neither your animals nor the foreigners living in your cities may work. 11The reason is that in six days the Lord made everything. He made the sky, earth, sea and everything in them. On the seventh day he rested. So the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy." 12“Honor your father and your mother. Then you will live a long time in the land that the Lord your God is going to give you. 13“You must not murder anyone. 14“You must not be guilty of adultery. 15“You must not steal. 16“You must not tell lies about your neighbor. 17“You must not want to take your neighbor’s house. You must not want his wife or his men and women servants. You must not want his ox or his donkey. You must not want to take anything that belongs to your neighbor.” 18When the people heard the thunder and the trumpet and saw the lightning and the smoke rising from the mountain, they shook with fear. They stood far away from the mountain. 19Then they said to Moses, “Speak to us yourself. Then we will listen. But don’t let God speak to us, or we will die.” 20Then Moses said to the people, “Don’t be afraid. God has come to test you. He wants you to respect him so that you will not sin.” 21The people stood far away from the mountain while Moses went near the dark cloud where God was. 22Then the Lord told Moses to say these things to the Israelites: “You yourselves have seen that I talked with you from heaven. 23You must not use gold or silver to make idols for yourselves. You must not worship these gods in addition to me. 24“Make an altar of dirt for me. Offer your whole burnt offerings and fellowship offerings on this altar. Offer your sheep and your cattle. Worship me in every place that I choose. I will come and bless you in every place I choose. 25If you use stones to make an altar for me, don’t use stones that you have shaped with tools. If you use any tools on them, you make them unsuitable for use in worship. 26And you must not go up to my altar on steps. If you do, people will be able to see under your clothes.”




God gave Moses Ten Commandments on Mt. Sinai. Commandments are rules. The first four help us with our relationship with God. The remaining six commandments help us get along with other people. Read Exodus 20:12-17 (ICB). God told Moses to tell the Israelite parents to teach them to their children because the rules were so important. Those children were to teach them to their children. Do you think God wants parents today to teach them to their children? Yes! Read Deuteronomy 6:4-9 (ICB). We can learn God’s Word not only in church, but also in our homes, in our cars, and everywhere in between!


Let each person in the family take a turn teaching the others how to do something (a song, a hand clap, etc.). God wanted Moses to teach the Israelites the commandments. God then wanted the Israelites to teach them to their children. Those children would teach the commandments to their children. God wants parents today to teach their children what the Bible says. Throughout the week, say the Heartprint: God’s Rules Are Best with your child.


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APPLICATION VERSE

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October Song

Sing this song to the tune of “Mary Had a Little Lamb”


God's rules are best for you and me,
You and me,
You and me.
God's rules are best for you and me.
The rules are in God's Book.