A young man paused for breath at the edge of the forest. He looked at the pile of logs and smiled. He was helping build a new, bigger school of the prophets.
He aimed his ax near the base of the tree. Thwack! He liked his school. Thwack! They studied how God led His people in the past and how He would lead them in the future. Thwack!
They sang praise songs, worked in the garden and cooked their meals. Thwack! They saw God in nature. Thwack! Best of all, they learned to love and trust God and help others do the same. Thwack!
Many people wanted to come to his school. Thwack! But there was no more room. Zing!
As he pulled the ax back over his shoulder to strike another blow to the tree, the ax head flew off the handle. Splash! It landed in the Jordan River. “Oh no!” he yelled. “The ax was borrowed!”
Elisha asked, “Where did it fall in?”
“Here,” he pointed.
Elisha threw a stick at that spot in the river. The ax head floated to the top so the young man could pick it up.
All the students had already learned God cares about big things — like schools. That day, they learned God also cares about little things — like borrowed axes.
The Bible tells us about another school where only a few students knew about or trusted God. Things changed after Paul taught there for two years. At first, Paul preached in the synagogue for three months. Then he took Jews who had learned to believe in Jesus to a school building owned by Tyrannus.
The school was open to anyone, and plenty of Greeks came to listen to Paul. He taught the good news of Jesus every day. After two years, “everyone in Asia, Jews and Greeks, heard the word of the Lord” (Act 19:10).
Paul taught. Jews and Greeks listened. Many trusted God and told others about our God who cares.
Church schools are one place where you can learn to trust God with big and little things in your life.
Read 2 Kings 6:1–7 and Acts 19:5–10 for family worship.
Grandparents and grandchildren enjoy a moment in a home built fort tent.
Build a School
Build your very own school of the prophets! Gather five or six cardboard boxes to stack and decorate with colored markers, or use blankets and pillows to create a fort-like structure.
Let your imagination run wild! Decorate your school however you would like. Draw on your cardboard walls with markers, add some cozy lights to the inside and grab a few books.
Once you have completed your construction, crawl inside. Ask your family or friends to join you. Sing songs, pray and tell Bible stories.
Find the Ax Head (Bag Toss)
For this game, you will need three bean bags for each player and some painter's tape or yarn.
If you don't have bean bags, make some with resealable plastic sandwich bags. Put a cup of rice, popcorn or lentils into each bag. Seal each bag. Fold the top over and place packing tape around the bag to secure it.
Next, use string or painter’s tape to make two squares in your yard or driveway. Start with 12-inch squares 8–10 feet apart. As you gain skill, you can shrink the squares to as small as 7 inches and try distances closer together and farther apart.
Stand behind one square and toss your bags toward the other square. Think about when Elisha threw a stick in the Jordan River to find the ax head under the water. Take turns with other players.
