Week 89 · about 45 minutes
Genesis 41
Genesis 41 · Memory verse Genesis 41:16
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Queues the lesson plan, this story’s coloring page (Genesis 41), the matching word search and answer key (Genesis 41 word search), the memory-verse tracer, and a parent slip.
Five-minute object lesson
Prop: a key
Hold a key. Read Genesis 41 in about four minutes, stopping at Genesis 41:16: “Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, “It isn’t in me. God will give Pharaoh an answer of peace.”” Ask, “What does this prop have to do with Genesis 41?” Let two children answer, then say the memory verse together.
Story script
Genesis 41 is a real chapter from the Old Testament. It starts, “At the end of two full years, Pharaoh dreamed: and behold, he stood by the river.” That is not a motto invented for a poster. It is the first sentence a family hears when this page is opened at night.
Keep going a little further. The chapter also says, “Behold, there come seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt.” Genesis 41 opens with these words: “At the end of two full years, Pharaoh dreamed: and behold, he stood by the river.” The line to keep is Genesis 41:16: “Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, “It isn’t in me. God will give Pharaoh an answer of peace.”” Carry the word “joseph” from that verse into the rest of the day.
The line worth learning out loud is Genesis 41:16: “Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, “It isn’t in me. God will give Pharaoh an answer of peace.”” If the rest of the chapter feels crowded, hold that one sentence until the room is quiet.
What happens first in Genesis 41? Then try this: Read “Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, “It isn’t in me. God will give Pharaoh an answer of peace.”” once more. What does it show you about God? You do not have to finish every verse. You can close the book after the memory verse and still have read the Bible together.
Group game
Walk the room as if you are moving through Genesis 41. Every time you freeze, a child says one word from Genesis 41:16. The last child says the whole verse.
Craft
On a US Letter sheet, draw one picture from Genesis 41 and write Genesis 41:16 under it. Send it home as tonight’s reminder, not as a decoration contest.
Memory verse
Genesis 41:16
“Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, “It isn’t in me. God will give Pharaoh an answer of peace.””
Take-home prayer
Father, thank you for Genesis 41. Help us remember Genesis 41:16 when we wake up, and teach us to notice you in an ordinary night. Amen.