Gospel Sparks Join the beta

Beauty for Ashes

Jesus reads Isaiah in Nazareth, play-dough potters, and the fast that feeds the hungry

  • 💧 CTR 8
  • Week 42
  • 📅 Sunday, October 18, 2026
🤔 Forehead Guess🏆 Showdown
💡 The big idea

Jesus Christ came to heal broken hearts and help people in need, and I help with His work when I fast, share, and care for others.

I can help Jesus by caring for people in need, fasting when I’m ready, and making the Sabbath a delight.

Study it yourself firstRead Isaiah 58–66 in Gospel LibraryCome, Follow Me manualOpen this week (Isaiah 58–66)
Know the chapters

Isaiah 58–66 closes the book of Isaiah with some of its most hopeful chapters. Isaiah 61:1–3 describes the mission of the Anointed One: good news for the humble, healing for broken hearts, freedom for captives, and comfort for everyone who mourns. About 700 years later, Jesus stood up in the synagogue in His hometown of Nazareth, read this passage aloud, and said, “This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears” (Luke 4:16–21). He was announcing that He is the One Isaiah wrote about. (Luke 4:28–30 tells that some of His neighbors turned against Him; today’s drama ends before that part.)

Isaiah 58 is the Lord’s great teaching on fasting. Some people were fasting while still quarreling and treating their workers unfairly (58:3–5). The Lord says the fast He wants is one that sets people free, shares bread with the hungry, and brings the homeless in (58:6–7). Look closely: that list is almost the same as Jesus’s mission in Isaiah 61. When we fast and give fast offerings, we are helping Jesus do His work. The promised blessings are beautiful: light breaking out like the morning, the Lord guiding us always, and becoming “like a watered garden” (58:8–11). In the same chapter, the Lord asks us to call the Sabbath “a delight” (58:13–14).

In the Church today, one Sunday each month (usually the first) is fast Sunday. Members who are able go without food and drink for two meals in a row, pray with a purpose, and give a fast offering, at least what those meals would have cost. The bishop uses fast offerings to help people in need. Children are never forced to fast; they can start small when they and their parents feel ready, and anyone whose health would be harmed should not go without food. Even before they fast, kids can pray with their family and help give the offering.

Other gems this week: “we are the clay, and thou our potter” (64:8) shows that God can shape us when our hearts are soft. In Isaiah’s day, deeply sad people put ashes on their heads, and the Lord promises “beauty for ashes” (61:3), a word that can mean a beautiful headdress, like trading ashes for a crown. Isaiah 65:17–25 describes the new heavens and new earth after Jesus comes again, when the wolf and the lamb will eat together. For eight-year-olds, keep coming back to one simple truth: Jesus came to help and heal, and He invites us to help Him.

Only have 5 minutes?

Read Luke 4:16–21 and Isaiah 58:6–11. Grab some play-dough and tear a paper heart in half. Let Teach Mode carry the Nazareth drama, do the Soft Clay, Hard Clay object lesson, and play Forehead Guess. End by taping the paper heart back together while you share your testimony. Skip the relay if you’re short on time. Brought nothing? Tap “I brought nothing”: the kids become the clay, and the broken heart is made with hands.

What to bring6 items

Tick what you have. Forgot something? Every step that needs a supply has a no-supplies version in the plan below.

Before class

  1. Leave a lump of play-dough uncovered overnight so it turns hard and crumbly. Keep the rest soft in a baggie.
  2. Cut out a paper heart about the size of your hand and tear it in half. Your Brokenhearted actor will hold the halves, and you will tape it back together at the end.
  3. Make the scroll: write “Isaiah” on the outside of the paper and the words of Isaiah 61:1 (from the Key Verse) on the inside. Roll it around the paper towel tube.
  4. Crumple the scrap paper into bread balls. Put the Bishop basket at one end of the room and the bread and spoons at the other.
  5. Add your kids’ names in the My Class tab so you can hand out story parts with one tap. Open the Sound Board and find the rumble sound for the hook.

If your class is wild

  • Play-dough stays on the table until you say “Potters, go!” and goes back into a ball the moment you say “Pots down!” Practice both signals before you hand it out.
  • Give the Captive role to your most energetic kid. Breaking free of pretend chains is a great energy release.
  • Scene 5 of the drama is a Silence Challenge: every eye on you, no sound, for five whole seconds. Make a big deal when they pull it off, and use it again anytime you need quiet.
  • The relay is fast-walking only. Anyone who runs or drops the bread just goes back and tries again. No penalty, just a do-over.
  • If they come in bouncing, start with the Week Dash wiggle before the hook.

The 25-minute plan25 min + bonus

Bonus steps are for when you have extra time. Steps that mention Teach Mode, the Sound Board or other class games refer to the Gospel Sparks app; on the web you can play Forehead Guess and Scripture Showdown from this page.

1. Hook

The Growling Tummy

3 min

A silly sound and a strange question (why would anyone skip dinner on purpose?) opens the door to Isaiah’s teaching on fasting.

  1. Before anyone is watching, tap the rumble sound on the Sound Board. Grab your stomach: “Whoa! Was that my tummy?”
  2. Play it again. Ask: “When your tummy growls, what is it asking for?” (Food!)
  3. SAY“Here’s something strange. Sometimes people choose to go without food on purpose. Why would anybody do that?” Take a few guesses.
  4. SAY“It’s called fasting. Isaiah told us the kind of fast God loves, and it’s all about helping people, just like Jesus does. First, let’s see what Jesus read from Isaiah one Sabbath day.”
🌪️ Let the kid who is sitting most ready tap the next tummy growl. No phone or tablet? Make the growl yourself behind a book. It’s even funnier.
🔊 Sound Board (a class game in the Gospel Sparks app)

Class screen: 🍞 Why would anyone skip dinner ON PURPOSE? · Grrrrrowl!

2. Story

Story Drama: Jesus Reads Isaiah in Nazareth

6 min

Kids see Jesus announce that He is the Savior Isaiah promised, and they act out the people He came to help.

  1. Hand out the roles (tap Roles in Teach Mode to assign them from your class list). Everyone without a role is the Nazareth Crowd.
  2. SAY“In our class, nobody plays Jesus. I’ll read His words, and you’ll listen like the people in Nazareth did.”
  3. Read each scene aloud and pause for the action cue.
  4. At scene 5, run the Silence Challenge: five seconds, every eye on you, not a sound. Celebrate when they do it!
  5. After the last scene, ask: “Who was Isaiah writing about?” (Jesus!) Keep the torn paper heart for the ending.
🌪️ Put the Captive, the Blind Man, and the Mourner in the front row so their big moments happen where everyone can see them.

Class screen: 🎭 Story Drama time! · Everyone gets a part

No supplies? Do this instead

Instead of: A paper heart torn in two, plus a roll of clear tape, A paper towel tube with a sheet of paper wrapped around it for the scroll of Isaiah, A jacket, blanket, or towel for the “garment of praise”

  1. Hand out the roles (tap Roles in Teach Mode to assign them from your class list). Everyone without a role is the Nazareth Crowd.
  2. SAY“In our class, nobody plays Jesus. I’ll read His words, and you’ll listen like the people in Nazareth did.”
  3. Give the Synagogue Helper your own scriptures to carry like a precious scroll. The Brokenhearted makes a heart with both hands, then pulls it apart into two halves.
  4. Read each scene aloud and pause for the action cue. At scene 5, run the Silence Challenge: five seconds, every eye on you, not a sound. Celebrate when they do it!
  5. At scene 7, the Brokenhearted presses the two halves back together. At scene 8, the Mourner swings on an invisible garment of praise. Tap the whoosh sound on the Sound Board.
  6. After the last scene, ask: “Who was Isaiah writing about?” (Jesus!)
3. Scripture

Scripture Spotlight: Isaiah 61:1

3 min

Kids memorize the very words Jesus read in Nazareth, His own description of why He came.

  1. Show the verse on your phone or tablet. Say: “This is the exact verse Jesus read in Nazareth.” Read it once slowly.
  2. SAY“‘Anointed’ means chosen and blessed for a special job. ‘Good tidings’ means good news. ‘Meek’ means humble and gentle. ‘Liberty’ means freedom.”
  3. Teach the motions one phrase at a time, then do the whole verse together.
  4. Say it three ways: church voice, whisper voice, and sports-announcer voice.
  5. Ask: “What jobs did Heavenly Father send Jesus to do?”

Class screen: 🕊️ He hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted

4. Wiggle break

Week Dash: Sabbath Delight

2 min

Isaiah 58:13 turns into a fast-action movement game that ends with calling Sunday a delight.

  1. SAY“Let’s zoom through the week! Do each day’s action as fast as you can.”
  2. Monday: march to school with a heavy backpack. Tuesday: kick a soccer ball. Wednesday: swim. Thursday: dribble a basketball. Friday: dance party. Saturday: sweep your room super fast.
  3. Shout: “SUNDAY!” Everyone stops, spreads their arms wide, and shouts, “A DELIGHT!”
  4. Read Isaiah 58:13: “call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the LORD, honourable.” Say: “Remember, Jesus went to church on the Sabbath too!” Ask: “What makes Sunday a delight for you?” Take three quick answers.
  5. Zoom through the whole week again, even faster!

Class screen: 📅 Zoom through the week. Sunday is a DELIGHT! · March! Kick! Swim! · Dribble! Dance! Sweep! · Sunday = a delight!

5. Object lesson

Soft Clay, Hard Clay

3 min

Play-dough shows Isaiah 64:8: God can shape us when our hearts are soft, and fasting and serving help soften our hearts.

  1. Hold up the hard, dried-out lump. Try to shape it into a bowl. It cracks and crumbles. Ask: “What’s wrong with this clay?”
  2. Give each child a soft ball of play-dough. Say: “Potters, go! Make a bowl.” After 30 seconds: “Pots down!”
  3. Read Isaiah 64:8: “we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.” Say: “The Lord is like a potter, and we’re the clay. He can shape us to be more like Him, but it works best when our hearts are soft, not hard.”
  4. Ask: “What makes a heart soft?” (Praying, saying sorry, listening, being kind, fasting.) Say: “Fasting is one way we tell God, ‘Please shape me.’”
  5. SAY“Potters, go! This time, make something that could help someone in need, like a loaf of bread, a blanket, or a bowl of soup.” Each child shows theirs in one sentence.
🌪️ Anyone who throws or smashes play-dough becomes the Pot Inspector and holds their dough until the next round.

Class screen: 🏺 We are the clay. God is the potter. · Potters, go! · Pots down!

No supplies? Do this instead

Instead of: Play-dough: a small soft ball for each child, plus one old, dried-out lump (leave some uncovered overnight). Store-bought play-dough contains wheat, so check for gluten allergies first.

Soft Kid, Hard Kid

  1. Pick a volunteer. Say: “You are old, dried-out clay. Stiff as a board!” Try to gently shape their arm into a bowl. It won’t bend! Tap the crash sound on the Sound Board. Ask: “What’s wrong with this clay?”
  2. Everyone pairs up: one potter, one clay. Clay goes floppy like soft dough. Say: “Potters, go! Gently shape your clay into a bowl.” After 30 seconds: “Pots down!” Swap jobs.
  3. Read Isaiah 64:8: “we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.” Say: “The Lord is like a potter, and we’re the clay. He can shape us to be more like Him, but it works best when our hearts are soft, not hard.”
  4. Ask: “What makes a heart soft?” (Praying, saying sorry, listening, being kind, fasting.) Say: “Fasting is one way we tell God, ‘Please shape me.’”
  5. SAY“Potters, go! This time, shape your clay into someone helping a person in need: handing out bread, giving a hug, carrying groceries.” Each statue comes alive and says what it’s doing in one sentence.

Class screen: 🏺 We are the clay. God is the potter. · Stiff clay cracks! · Soft clay shapes · Potters, go!

6. Game

Fast Offering Relay

3 minBONUS

Kids move while they learn what fast offerings are and who they help.

  1. SAY“On fast Sunday, people who are able skip two meals, pray, and give the money they would have spent on that food to the bishop. That’s called a fast offering. The bishop uses it to help people who need food, a place to live, or other help.”
  2. Split into two teams behind the start line, next to the bread. The Bishop basket waits at the other end of the room.
  3. One at a time, each player carries a bread ball on a spoon (fast-walking only), drops it in the basket, and hurries back to hand the spoon to the next teammate.
  4. When all the bread is in, read Isaiah 58:7: “Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house?”
  5. SAY“Both teams win, because every piece of bread helps someone. Isaiah said people who fast and help others will be like a watered garden!”
🌪️ Dropped your bread? Scoop it up and keep going. Running sends you back to the start for a do-over.

Class screen: 🥄 Carry the bread to the bishop! · Fast-walking only! · Every piece helps someone

No supplies? Do this instead

Instead of: Scrap paper crumpled into 10–12 balls (the “bread”), two large spoons, and a basket or box labeled “Bishop”

Invisible Bread Relay

  1. SAY“On fast Sunday, people who are able skip two meals, pray, and give the money they would have spent on that food to the bishop. That’s called a fast offering. The bishop uses it to help people who need food, a place to live, or other help.”
  2. Pick one kid to be the Bishop and sit in a chair at the far end of the room. Split everyone else into two teams behind the start line.
  3. Tap Big Timer and set one minute. One at a time, each player carries an invisible loaf of bread balanced on one flat hand like a waiter (fast-walking only), hands it to the Bishop, and hurries back to tag the next teammate. The Bishop says, “Thank you!” every time.
  4. Both teams race the clock together. If the Bishop sees anyone running, they call, “Crumbs!” and that player goes back for a do-over.
  5. When time is up, read Isaiah 58:7: “Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house?”
  6. SAY“Both teams win, because every piece of bread helps someone. Isaiah said people who fast and help others will be like a watered garden!”

Class screen: 🍞 Carry the invisible bread to the bishop! · Fast-walking only! · Beat the clock!

7. Game

Forehead Guess: Beauty for Ashes Edition

4 min

The Heads Up–style game reviews the people, places, and promises from Isaiah 58–66.

  1. Tap Forehead Guess. One kid holds your phone or tablet on their forehead, screen facing the class.
  2. Classmates give clues without saying the word. The hint under each word helps if they get stuck.
  3. The guesser tilts your phone or tablet down for “got it,” up to pass. Each turn lasts 45 seconds.
  4. Switch to Act It Out mode for Potter, Chains, Bread, Blind Man, and Wolf and Lamb.
  5. No phone or tablet? Write words on sticky notes and stick one on the guesser’s forehead.
🌪️ The guesser picks who gives the next clue, and kids who are sitting quietly get picked first.
▶ Play Forehead Guess on the web

Class screen: 🤔 Forehead Guess! · Give clues, don’t say the word!

8. Talk it over

Talk It Over

2 min

Help kids see where they can do Jesus’s work in their own neighborhood this week.

  1. Sit in a circle. Pass a ball of play-dough to whoever answers next.
  2. Ask one question at a time, and share your own answer too.
💬 Ask the class
  • Jesus came to heal broken hearts. What kinds of things can make a kid’s heart feel broken?
  • Why do you think the Lord asks us to fast and give fast offerings?
  • Who is someone you know who might be hungry, lonely, or sad? What could you do to help?
  • What is one thing that could make this Sunday a delight for you and your family?

Class screen: 💬 Let’s talk!

No supplies? Do this instead

Instead of: Play-dough: a small soft ball for each child, plus one old, dried-out lump (leave some uncovered overnight). Store-bought play-dough contains wheat, so check for gluten allergies first.

  1. Sit in a circle. Pass an invisible lump of clay to whoever answers next. Before you answer, squish it into something and tell us what you made.
  2. Ask one question at a time, and share your own answer too.
9. Testimony

The Taped-Up Heart

2 min

End calm and reverent with a picture of what Jesus does for broken hearts, and what we can do to help Him.

  1. Lower your voice. Hold up the two halves of the paper heart from the drama. Slowly tape them back together while everyone watches.
  2. SAY“Isaiah said Jesus was sent ‘to bind up the brokenhearted.’ When our hearts feel broken, He can heal them. And when we fast, share, and are kind, we help Him bind up other people’s hearts.”
  3. Share one or two sentences about a time Jesus healed your heart, or a time you saw fasting or fast offerings bless someone (no names).
  4. Introduce the Isaiah 58 Helper challenge on the screen, and ask a child to say the closing prayer.

Class screen: ❤️‍🩹 Jesus heals broken hearts, and I can help. · Share · Help · Be kind

No supplies? Do this instead

Instead of: A paper heart torn in two, plus a roll of clear tape

The Two-Hand Heart

  1. Lower your voice. Make a heart with both hands, then slowly pull it apart into two halves. Say: “This is a broken heart.”
  2. SAY“Isaiah said Jesus was sent ‘to bind up the brokenhearted.’ When our hearts feel broken, He can heal them.” Slowly press your two halves back together.
  3. Everyone makes half a heart with one hand, then finds a partner and presses the halves together into one whole heart. Say: “And when we fast, share, and are kind, we help Him bind up other people’s hearts.”
  4. Share one or two sentences about a time Jesus healed your heart, or a time you saw fasting or fast offerings bless someone (no names).
  5. Introduce the Isaiah 58 Helper challenge on the screen, and ask a child to say the closing prayer.

Class screen: 🫶 Jesus heals broken hearts, and I can help. · Half a heart · Find a partner · Make it whole

10. Game

Draw & Guess: Isaiah Pictures

4 minBONUS

Quick drawing turns give artsy kids a turn to shine while reviewing today’s words.

  1. Tap Draw & Guess. One kid draws a word from today’s lesson on your phone or tablet while everyone else guesses.
  2. Whoever guesses right draws next. Keep each turn under a minute.
  3. No phone or tablet? Draw on a whiteboard or a sheet of paper instead.
🖍️ Draw & Guess (a class game in the Gospel Sparks app)

Class screen: 🎨 Draw it! Can they guess it?

11. Game

Scripture Showdown

5 minBONUS

A fast team quiz reviews everything they learned.

  1. Split into two teams: Team Potter and Team Garden. Tap Scripture Showdown to start.
  2. Read each question aloud. Teams whisper together, then point to an answer.
  3. Tap the team that got it right to give them a point.
▶ Play Scripture Showdown on the web

Class screen: 🏆 Scripture Showdown!

Story drama

Jesus Reads Isaiah in Nazareth

Luke 4:16–22; Isaiah 61:1–3 ↗

Parts to hand out

  • IsaiahWrites the promise on a scroll 700 years early and hands it to the Synagogue Helper.
  • Synagogue HelperCarries the big scroll very carefully, hands it over for the reading, and takes it back.
  • Nazareth NeighborsTwo or three kids who wave, stare, and whisper, “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?”
  • The BrokenheartedHolds up a paper heart torn in two, then holds the halves back together.
  • The CaptiveHolds their wrists together like they’re chained, then breaks free: “I’m free!”
  • The Blind ManCovers their eyes, then opens them wide: “I can see!”
  • The MournerPats pretend ashes on their head, then puts on the garment of praise and spins for joy.
  • Nazareth CrowdEveryone else: walk to the synagogue, unroll pretend scrolls, gasp, whisper, and cheer.

Scenes

  1. 🧔📜 Isaiah writes a promise

    About 700 years before Jesus was born, the Lord gave Isaiah the words the promised Savior would one day say: “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me.” Isaiah wrote them on a scroll, and people carefully copied that scroll for hundreds and hundreds of years.

    🎬 Isaiah writes, rolls up the scroll, and hands it to the Synagogue Helper. Crowd whispers, “Someday…”

  2. 🏘️🚶 Jesus comes home to Nazareth

    Jesus grew up in a little town called Nazareth. When He was grown, He came home for a visit. On the Sabbath day He went to the synagogue, where people gathered to worship, just like He always did.

    🎬 Everyone walks in place to church. Neighbors wave: “Hey, it’s Joseph’s boy!”

  3. 📜🙌 The scroll of Isaiah

    Jesus stood up to read. The helper carried out the scroll of the prophet Isaiah and handed it to Him. Jesus unrolled it, and unrolled it, and unrolled it, until He found exactly the place He was looking for.

    🎬 The Helper tiptoes the scroll to the teacher. Crowd unrolls pretend scrolls: “Roll… roll… roll…”

  4. 💔⛓️ Good news for broken hearts

    Jesus read Isaiah’s words out loud: the Lord had sent Him to bring good news to the poor, to heal people with broken hearts, to set captives free, and to help blind people see again.

    🎬 The Brokenhearted holds up the torn heart. The Captive holds wrists together. The Blind Man covers their eyes. Everyone listens hard, hands cupped to ears.

  5. 👀🤫 Every eye was on Him

    Then Jesus rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the helper, and sat down. Nobody moved. Nobody made a sound. The Bible says the eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on Him.

    🎬 SILENCE CHALLENGE: everyone freezes and stares at the teacher for five seconds. Not a single sound!

  6. 😲✨ “This day is this scripture fulfilled”

    Then Jesus said, “This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.” In other words: “Isaiah was writing about Me. I am the One the Lord sent.” The neighbors were amazed.

    🎬 Everyone gasps! Neighbors whisper to each other, “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?”

  7. 👁️🙌 Jesus did what Isaiah said

    And that’s exactly what Jesus did. He opened blind eyes. He healed people who were sick. He forgave sins and set people free from things that held them captive. He comforted people whose hearts were broken.

    🎬 The Blind Man opens their eyes: “I can see!” The Captive breaks free: “I’m free!” The Brokenhearted holds the halves together. Crowd cheers!

  8. 😢👑 Beauty for ashes

    In Isaiah’s day, people who were very sad put ashes on their heads. But Isaiah promised the Savior would give “beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness.” Jesus trades our sadness for joy.

    🎬 The Mourner brushes off the ashes, puts on the garment of praise (the jacket), and spins. Everyone claps!

  9. 🌍🙋 He still heals, and He needs helpers

    Jesus still heals broken hearts today. Someday He will come again and make a new heaven and a new earth. Until then, He asks us to help Him: to feed the hungry, comfort the sad, and be kind to anyone who feels left out.

    🎬 Everyone stands, holds out helping hands, and shouts, “We can help!”

Key verse

Isaiah 61:1 ↗
“The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives”
In kid words: Jesus said: “God’s Spirit is with Me. He chose Me to bring good news to humble people, to fix broken hearts, and to set people free.”
🙌 “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me” = flutter your fingers down from above onto your shoulders · “because the LORD hath anointed me” = gently pat the top of your head · “to preach good tidings unto the meek” = cup your hands around your mouth like a megaphone · “to bind up the brokenhearted” = make a heart with your hands, pull it apart, then wrap it back together like a bandage · “to proclaim liberty to the captives” = cross your wrists, then burst them apart: “Free!”

More verses

Isaiah 61:3 ↗
“to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness”
In kid words: Jesus trades our sad, heavy feelings for joy and beauty, like swapping a head full of ashes for a beautiful crown.
Isaiah 58:7 ↗
“Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house?”
In kid words: The fast the Lord loves: share your food with hungry people and welcome people who have nowhere to go.
Isaiah 58:11 ↗
“And the LORD shall guide thee continually … and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.”
In kid words: When we fast and help others, the Lord guides us and keeps us fresh and growing, like a garden that always has water.
Isaiah 64:8 ↗
“But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.”
In kid words: God is like a potter, and we are His clay. He is shaping each of us into something beautiful.

Forehead Guess words19 words

  • 🧔 Isaiah
  • 🏘️ Nazareth
  • 🕍 Synagogue
  • 📜 Scroll
  • 📅 Sabbath
  • 🍽️ Fasting
  • 🍞 Bread
  • 🧑‍💼 Bishop
  • 💵 Fast Offering
  • 🌱 Watered Garden
  • 🏺 Potter
  • 🧱 Clay
  • 🔥 Ashes
  • 👑 Crown
  • 💔 Broken Heart
  • ⛓️ Chains
  • 🙈 Blind Man
  • 🌍 New Earth
  • 🐺 Wolf and Lamb
Clues for each word
  • Isaiah: Wrote the words Jesus read in Nazareth
  • Nazareth: The little town where Jesus grew up
  • Synagogue: Where Jesus stood up to read on the Sabbath
  • Scroll: Rolled-up book Jesus unrolled to find Isaiah’s words
  • Sabbath: Isaiah said to call it a delight
  • Fasting: Going without food and drink to grow closer to God
  • Bread: Isaiah said to share it with the hungry
  • Bishop: Uses fast offerings to help people in need
  • Fast Offering: Money we give so hungry people can eat
  • Watered Garden: Isaiah said we’d be like one when we fast and help
  • Potter: Shapes clay into bowls and jars
  • Clay: Soft stuff a potter shapes. Isaiah said it’s us!
  • Ashes: Gray stuff left after a fire; sad people put it on their heads
  • Crown: Jesus gives beauty, like one of these, for ashes
  • Broken Heart: Jesus came to bind it up
  • Chains: Jesus came to set captives free from these
  • Blind Man: Jesus helped people like him see again
  • New Earth: Jesus will make one when He comes again
  • Wolf and Lamb: Isaiah said they’ll eat together someday
▶ Play Forehead GuessFull screen, 60-second timer, works on any phone.

Scripture Showdown8 questions

  1. Where did Jesus read Isaiah’s words out loud?
    • A. On a fishing boat
    • B. In a palace in Egypt
    • C. In the synagogue in Nazareth
    Show answer

    ✅ C. In the synagogue in Nazareth Luke 4:16–21. He read Isaiah 61 and said, “This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.”

  2. Isaiah said the Savior would give beauty for…
    • A. Ashes
    • B. Books
    • C. Apples
    Show answer

    ✅ A. Ashes Isaiah 61:3. Jesus trades our sadness for joy.

  3. What does it mean to fast?
    • A. Run really fast
    • B. Go without food and drink to draw close to God
    • C. Eat extra dessert
    Show answer

    ✅ B. Go without food and drink to draw close to God When we fast, we also pray and help people in need.

  4. What is a fast offering used for?
    • A. Buying church balloons
    • B. Paying for the bishop’s lunch
    • C. Helping people in need
    Show answer

    ✅ C. Helping people in need The bishop uses fast offerings to help people with food and other needs.

  5. Isaiah said people who fast and help others will be like a…
    • A. Watered garden
    • B. Rusty bike
    • C. Dry desert
    Show answer

    ✅ A. Watered garden Isaiah 58:11. Fresh, growing, and full of life!

  6. Isaiah said to call the Sabbath a…
    • A. Boring day
    • B. Delight
    • C. Chore day
    Show answer

    ✅ B. Delight Isaiah 58:13. Sunday can be the best day of the week!

  7. In Isaiah 64:8, we are the clay. Who is the potter?
    • A. The Lord
    • B. The king
    • C. A pizza chef
    Show answer

    ✅ A. The Lord He shapes us into something beautiful when our hearts are soft.

  8. When Jesus comes again, Isaiah says there will be a new…
    • A. Video game
    • B. School bus
    • C. Earth
    Show answer

    ✅ C. Earth Isaiah 65:17. A new heaven and a new earth, full of joy!

▶ Play Scripture ShowdownTeams take turns on one screen.

Songs

  • I’m Trying to Be like Jesus Children’s Songbook, p. 78

    Jesus came to help and heal. We can try to do the same, starting this week. Find it ↗

  • Give, Said the Little Stream Children’s Songbook, p. 236

    Isaiah 58:11: people who give become like a spring of water that never runs dry. Find it ↗

  • When He Comes Again Children’s Songbook, p. 82

    Isaiah 65:17: a new heaven and a new earth when Jesus comes again. Find it ↗

This week’s challenge

Isaiah 58 Helper

Do one thing from Isaiah’s list this week: share food with someone, include someone who is left out, or cheer up someone who is sad. Then, on your family’s next fast Sunday, ask your parents how you can join in: praying together, fasting for a meal when you’re ready, or helping give the fast offering.

Text the parents

Today in Primary we learned that Jesus read Isaiah 61 in the synagogue in Nazareth and announced that He is the Savior who heals broken hearts and sets people free. We learned that the fast the Lord loves includes sharing bread with the hungry (Isaiah 58:7), and that fast offerings help people in need. We also made play-dough pots to remember that “we are the clay, and thou our potter.” Ask your child: why do we fast, and who do fast offerings help?

📝 After class

What worked? Who needs a check-in this week? Jot it here on a printed copy, or in the app’s private class notes.

Got extra time?

🔦 Arise, Shine! · 4 min

  1. Turn off the lights (or close the blinds) and have everyone crouch down low in the dim room.
  2. Read Isaiah 60:1: “Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.”
  3. Turn on a flashlight. Say: “Jesus is the Light.” Shine it on one child, who stands up (“Arise!”) and makes sparkle fingers (“Shine!”).
  4. Hand them the flashlight. They shine it on the next person, who arises and shines, until everyone is standing. Say: “When Jesus’s light is on us, we can pass it on to others.”

🐺 The Wolf and Lamb Picnic · 3 min

  1. Read Isaiah 65:25: “The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock.”
  2. Pair kids up as animals that are usually enemies: wolf and lamb, lion and ox, cat and mouse. Each pair acts like enemies for five seconds (growl! squeak!).
  3. Then call out, “Jesus has come again!” Each pair sits down together for a pretend picnic and shares pretend food.
  4. Ask: “What will be wonderful about the earth when Jesus comes again? What can we do right now to bring that kind of peace to our homes?” (Make up with a sibling, share, forgive.)

📌 Sabbath Delight Wall · 4 min

  1. Write “Sunday Is a Delight!” across the top of a poster or a big sheet of paper.
  2. Read Isaiah 58:13: “call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the LORD, honourable.”
  3. Each child draws or writes one Sabbath delight on a sticky note and sticks it on: a family walk, writing to a missionary, visiting Grandma, acting out a scripture story, baking cookies for a neighbor.
  4. Snap a photo of the wall and send it to parents so every family can borrow ideas.

Sources

Scripture quotations are from the King James Version, the Bible used by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Tap or click a reference to open it in Gospel Library. Start with the official Come, Follow Me manual; these ideas are here to help it come alive.

All CTR 8 lessons