In God’s Hands
The importance of trust
by Alison Groves
Suitable for Whole School (Pri)
Aims
To consider how God is greater than we could ever imagine and keeps us safe in his hands.
Preparation and materials
- You will need a large sheet of paper (at least A3), a pen and a tray of multilink cubes, or similar.
- You will also need the PowerPoint slides that accompany this assembly (In God's Hands) and the means to display them.
- Have available the poem ‘Father’s hands’ by Paul Cookson and the means to play it during the assembly. A reading of it is available at: https://tinyurl.com/y3xzxryk (2.38 minutes long)
- Have available the song ‘Great big God’ by Nigel and Jo Hemming (Vineyard Songs) and the means to play it during the assembly. It is available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8fcpShP19c (2.51 minutes long)
Assembly
- Ask for three or four volunteers and choose children of different ages and sizes.
Ask each volunteer to put one of their hands on the large sheet of paper, and then draw round each hand. - Ask the rest of the children what they notice about the outlines. (Encourage observations about the size of each hand.)
Listen to a range of responses. - Ask the children, ‘Does the size of our hands determine what we can do with them?’
Listen to a range of responses. - Invite the volunteers to take part in an investigation.
One at a time, ask each volunteer to use one hand to pick up as many multilink cubes (or similar) as they can.
How many cubes can each volunteer hold in one hand?
Ask the children, ‘Does the number of cubes that the volunteers can hold relate to the size of their hands?’
Thank the volunteers, and then invite them to return to their seats. - Show Slide 1.
Talk about the image on the slide and ask the children why we might hold an adult’s hand. Consider how it might make us feel. Suggestions may include safe, loved, cared for, warm and so on. - Play the reading of Paul Cookson’s poem ‘Father’s hands’.
Ask the children what they can remember about the father’s hands in the poem.
Ask the children what the father did with his hands. Encourage the use of adjectives. - Play the song ‘Great big God’. It is 2.51 minutes long, but you can stop it at 0.40 minutes if you prefer.
Show Slides 2 to 5.
Ask the children to consider the adults who care for them: parents, carers, teachers and so on. Would their hands be big enough and strong enough to hold a skyscraper (Slide 2), a submarine (Slide 3), the universe (Slide 4) or even our dreams (Slide 5)? - Explain that no one in the world could hold these things in their hands. However, Christians believe that God holds everything in his hands!
Time for reflection
Explain that Psalm 146.6 tells us that ‘God made heaven and earth, the sea and everything in it.’
For God to do this, he must be so much bigger than all of these things.
Ask the children to think about the amazing things that they can achieve by using their hands. Ask them to think about something that they have made, drawn or built with their hands.
Pause to allow time for thought.
Now ask the children to imagine how much more God can achieve with his hands! Christians believe that God made the world and everything in it.
Pause to allow time for thought.
Ask the children to consider a time when they have felt safe holding an adult’s hand. Point out how safe we can feel, knowing that God holds us in his hands.
Remind the children of the words of the song ‘Great big God’.
Prayer
Dear Lord,
Thank you for the abilities that you have given us.
Thank you, too, for the adults in our lives who love us and keep us safe.
Thank you that you hold the world in your hands.
Thank you that we can always trust you.
Amen.
Song/music
‘Great big God’ by Nigel and Jo Hemming (Vineyard Songs), available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8fcpShP19c (2.51 minutes long)
