Elementary + Preteen Message: Having a Hard Heart

Use this elementary + preteen message: Having a Hard Heart with kids from age 7 to 12 to discuss what happens when we soften our hards towards God.

You’ll need:

• a Bible
• hard-boiled eggs
• washable markers

Elementary + Preteen Message: Having a Hard Heart

Give every child an egg, and allow kids to decorate the outside of the shells. As they work, ask:

• How does the outside of the egg feel?

Once they’ve finished decorating the eggs, read aloud Psalm 95:6-9.

Say: God wants our hearts to be soft toward him. But they can sometimes be hard.

Ask:

• What are some things that might happen to make people’s hearts hard?

Say: When our hearts get hard, they’re closed toward God.

Have kids crack their eggs. Once they’ve peeled away the shell, ask them to feel the inside of the egg.

Ask:

• Describe what the inside of the egg feels like.

Say: When our hearts are hard, God can crack away the hard outer shell to reveal something soft on the inside.

Ask:

• What helps to make your heart soft toward God? 

Pray with kids and ask God to make each of their hearts soft like the inside of the egg, not hard like its shell. Then let kids wash their eggs and enjoy a snack.

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