WAYS TO BEGIN: Greet your class, talk together, and share refreshments. You may wish to spend a few minutes talking about the origins of Halloween (All Hallows Eve) and looking at the liturgy in THE BOOK OF OCCASIONAL SERVICES.
THE THEME: The proper way to approach God in prayer.
THE LESSON:Luke 18:9-14 Have someone read the story aloud.
SOME QUESTIONS TO TALK ABOUT:
1. What do you think Jesus is trying to teach us in this story?
2. How do you define humility?
3. What examples in contemporary life might be used to replace the character of the Pharisee and the character of the Tax Collector?
4. How do you understand Jesus' statement that everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted"? Another way of saying it is "the first will be last and the last, first". Is this just? Are there ever times when pride is good?
AN ACTIVITY TO DO: Provide a balloon for each person in the class as well as markers. Give everyone a balloon and have them write all the characteristics of a prideful person. Then using scissors, colored construction paper, clear tape and imagination, ask them to create a symbol for humility that personally reminds them of what Jesus means by humble. Create a class display with the balloons and the colored symbols.
End with a prayer.
