Two Balloons, One Breath
Object Lesson ·
Early elementary ·
5 min
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Leeward Community Church
POWERED BY KIDOLOGY
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OBJECT LESSON · Ages 6–8 · 10-14 MIN · Ephesians 5:18
Two Balloons, One Breath
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BIG IDEA
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A life filled with God’s Spirit goes where God is going.
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GENERATED WITH 1 EDITOR NOTE · READ THEM AT THE END BEFORE YOU TEACH
SUPPLIES · 5 ITEMS
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A Bible |
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3 balloons |
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1 drinking straw |
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Fishing line or smooth string |
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Tape |
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| HOW TO SHOW IT |
YOUR NOTES |
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SET UP
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Set the balloon track
| DO |
Stretch the fishing line or string tightly across a clear part of the room, at adult chest height. Thread the straw onto the line. Tape one deflated balloon to the straw, with its neck pointing toward the starting end of the line. Keep one balloon loose and one as a spare. |
| DO |
Keep children back from the line and from the balloon-launching area. Test that the straw can slide to the far end before children arrive. Take the line down when the lesson is over. |
| DO |
If the straw sticks during the demonstration, gently slide it along the line and continue. If a balloon pops early, calmly use the spare balloon. |
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1
1-2 min |
Same air, watch what happens
| DO |
Hold the loose balloon in one hand and the balloon attached to the straw at the start of the line in the other. Inflate both balloons to about the same size. Do not tie them; pinch both necks shut. |
| SAY |
These two balloons have the same breath inside them. I blew them up from the same lungs. But I think they are about to act very differently. |
| SAY |
Make a prediction. When I let go, where will this loose balloon go? And where will the balloon on the line go? |
| DO |
Let children call out a prediction together. Accept quick guesses without correcting them. |
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2
1-2 min |
Let them fly
| SAY |
Ready? First, the loose balloon. |
| DO |
Point the loose balloon up and away from faces, then release it. Let it rocket, wobble, bump, and fall. |
| SAY |
That balloon had lots of noise and lots of zoom, but no place to go. |
| SAY |
Now watch the balloon on the line. |
| DO |
Release the balloon attached to the straw. Let it travel along the line to the end. |
| SAY |
Same kind of balloon. Same breath. But this one had a direction. |
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3
1-2 min |
Paul's two fillings
| DO |
Open the Bible and read the verse slowly. |
| SAY |
Ephesians 5:18 (WEB) says, “Don’t be drunken with wine, in which is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit,” |
| SAY |
Paul gives a warning about being drunk with wine. Then he gives a different instruction: be filled with the Spirit. |
| SAY |
These balloons are not people, and air is not the Spirit. But the picture can help us remember this: a life filled with God’s Spirit goes where God is going. |
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4
1-2 min |
The line is already there
| SAY |
The string did not yank the balloon around like a leash. It gave the balloon a way to go. |
| SAY |
God’s Spirit is not a leash. He helps us want to go God’s way and helps us follow him. |
| SAY |
Think quietly about Monday. Is there someone you need to apologize to? Is there a kid who usually sits alone that you could sit with? |
| DO |
Give children a few quiet seconds. Do not ask them to announce their person or choice. |
| SAY |
Before Monday, ask God’s Spirit to help you do that one thing. |
| DO |
Pray the closing prayer. |
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THE PASSAGE · Ephesians 5:18
Paul warns against being drunk with wine and tells believers to be filled with the Spirit.
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TALK ABOUT IT · PICK ONE OR TWO
YOUNGER
Where do you predict each balloon will end up: somewhere random, or at the end of the line? Why?
OLDER
What are some choices a kid might need God’s help to make at school?
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STILL BEING FINISHED · 1 EDITOR NOTE
This piece is usable as it stands. An editor has flagged the points below — read them before you teach, and use your judgement where they apply.
NOTE |
The balloon setup teaches that the string—not the breath inside the balloon—gives the second balloon its direction. Then Step 5 correctly says the Spirit is not a leash, leaving the demonstration working against its own point: both balloons have the same “breath,” but only one is externally constrained. No wording can make this device demonstrate that being filled with the Spirit helps a person follow God without implying the Spirit controls people like the string controls the balloon. |
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BEFORE YOU TEACH IT
Please review and adapt all generated content before use.
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Leeward Community Church · OBJECT LESSON · Two Balloons, One Breath
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