
Love Of God & Obedience
SET 2
GRADE 2 LESSON 5
WELCOME
God’s infinite love is shown through the laws and teachings He has given us. They are like guiding lamps, illuminating our path and showing us how to live in accordance with His will. By following these teachings, we draw closer to God, avoiding darkness and staying on the right path. Our love for God motivates us to obey His commandments, seeking His approval in all we do.
PRAYER
O my God! O my God! Unite the hearts of Thy servants, and reveal to them Thy great purpose. May they follow Thy commandments and abide in Thy law. Help them, O God, in their endeavor, and grant them strength to serve Thee. O God! Leave them not to themselves, but guide their steps by the light of Thy knowledge, and cheer their hearts by Thy love. Verily, Thou art their Helper and their Lord
QUOTE
The Tongue of My power hath, from the heaven of My omnipotent glory, addressed to My creation these words: ‘Observe My commandments, for the love of My beauty
Bahá’u’lláh
Meaning Of Words
Address
Once a year all the students in the school gather to hear the principal speak. The principal addresses the students each year.
Koichi always speaks to his grandmother with love and humility. Koichi addresses his grandmother with respect.
Observe
The traffic light turned red, Ethel brought to a stop the car she was driving. Ethel was careful to observe the traffic law.
Marisol was always quiet when she visited the library, where the people are asked to remain silent or to speak in whispers. She always observed the rules of the library.
Commandments
Samuel says his prayers every day in the morning and at night. Praying daily is one of the commandments of God. By praying Samuel is following God’s commandment.
Teresa never tells lies. She obeys God’s commandment to be truthful.
SONG
STORY
Draw any part of the story
HOW DO YOU FEEL?
A Story of Haji Muhammad
Haji Muhammad lived during the time of Baha’u’llah, Who, as you know, revealed God’s teachings for today.
Haji Muhammad was honest in all his dealings as a businessman and was known for his trustworthiness. For a period of time, his work brought him to ‘Akka. One day, he was sitting in his office when ‘Abdu’l-Baha entered, bringing an urgent message from Baha’u’llah. Haji Muhammad was to leave immediately for the city of Jeddah in Arabia. He asked ‘Abdu’l-Baha whether he could have the bounty of attaining the presence of Baha’u’llah before departing. ‘Abdu’l-Baha explained that there was no time as the ship was due to leave at any moment. Haji Muhammad closed the office at once and headed straight for the port to board the ship. His desire to obey was so exemplary that he had no other thought but to follow the command of Baha’u’llah.
As soon as Haji Muhammad boarded, the ship set sail. Only then did he realize that, because of the great rush, he had not thought to ask ‘Abdu’l-Baha the purpose of his trip to Arabia. Now it was too late! Still, he was not concerned. He was certain that, once he arrived in Jeddah, God would guide his steps.
The sea that day was unusually stormy, and the journey fraught with peril. Everyone was worried that the ship was going to sink – everyone, that is, except for Haji Muhammad. He knew that he would be protected and the ship would arrive safely in Jeddah, for he had been entrusted by Baha’u’llah with a mission to carry out in that city. And the ship did indeed arrive at its destination.
After leaving the ship, Haji Muhammad heard two people talking in Persian among the crowds. Being Persian himself, he approached them and discovered that they, too, were Baha’is and were on their way to Akka to visit Baha’u’llah. They had been unjustly imprisoned for their faith for ten years and had just been released. This was their first journey to the Holy Land, and they were in need of assistance. It became clear to Haji Muhammad that the purpose of his mission in Jeddah was to help these two souls to find their way to ‘Akka and attain the presence of Baha’u’llah, a responsibility which he carried out with great care and attention.
**modified from Revelation of Baha”u’llah vol.4 – Adib Taherzadeh
DRAMA
Creative Drama Activities for Children
Warm-Up:
- Have students stand in their imaginary squares.
- Begin with the stretching exercise from Lesson 2.
- Stretch arms out at shoulder length and rotate slowly, making small circles. Gradually increase the size of the circles until arms feel heavy, then let them drop and shake them out.
Group Shape Exercise:
- Students move outside their imaginary squares.
- Call out a shape (circle, triangle, square, straight line, crooked line).
- Without speaking, students form the shape together by observing and adjusting to each other’s movements.
These activities help develop creative drama skills and enhance teamwork and observation abilities. The above exercise will help your students learn to pay attention to one another and coordinate their movements. It builds on the exercise in the preceding lesson in which they were moving around together in a large space.
Understanding Obedience to God Through Drama
Imaginary Journey:
Ask the children to imagine boarding the ship that Haji Muhammad sailed on to Jeddah.
Describe the journey:The ship sets sail under the bright sun on calm waters.
The shore fades, and everyone settles in for the journey.
Waves begin to lap against the boat, the ship rocks, and dark clouds approach.
Thunder rolls, and big drops of rain begin to fall. The storm intensifies.
Passengers feel afraid as the ship is tossed by waves.
Just when it seems all is lost, the storm passes, and the sea calms.
The sun reappears, and they see distant shores.
Re-enactment:
Ask the children to re-enact the scene, pretending to be Haji Muhammad.
Emphasize how Haji Muhammad felt assured and protected by God because he obeyed Baha’u’llah, God’s Manifestation on earth.
Alternative Activity:
Play charades, acting out different laws and commandments God has sent us.
These activities help children understand obedience to God and develop their creative drama skills.
CRAFTS
MAKE A ROCKING BOAT
These 2 websites have examples that can get ideas flowing
USE RECYCLED
This is a boat made from Egg carton, just like the old days!
LOVE COMICS?
REVIEW QUOTES
Review the quotation from today’s lesson, and then remind the children of the qualities of trustworthiness and radiance and the quotations they memorized in Grade 1
The source of all glory is acceptance of whatsoever the Lord hath bestowed, and contentment with that which God hath ordained.
Tablets of Bahá’u’lláhRevealed after the Kitáb-i-Aqdas,
Trustworthiness is the greatest portal leading unto the tranquillity and security of the people
Baha’u’llah, Tablets of Baha’u’llah, p. 37.