Death in the Pot — Elisha and the Stew Preschool Lesson
Preschool lesson (ages 3–6, 20 minutes)
1. Welcome (3 min)
Sit in a circle, greet every child by name and show one thing from the story to touch.
2. The little story (5 min)
Teach the refrain first: “God took care of his hungry people.”
Elisha was God’s prophet. He went from town to town, and God helped many people through him. One day Elisha came again to a town called Gilgal.
There was a famine in the land. A famine is when there is not enough food. Everyone was hungry. Their tummies rumbled! Can you make a rumbly tummy sound?
Elisha’s students sat around him. They were young men learning to serve God and to hear his words. They were called the sons of the prophets. They sat and listened to Elisha, the way you listen to a story.
Elisha spoke to his servant. “Get the large pot, and boil stew for the sons of the prophets.” Stew is like a thick, warm soup. God took care of his hungry people.
So the servant put the big pot over the fire. Bubble, bubble! The water got hot. Soon there would be supper for everyone.
One young man went out into the field. He looked for herbs to put in the stew. Herbs are plants that make food taste good. What do you think he found?
He found a wild vine with wild gourds on it. A vine is a plant that climbs and creeps along. Gourds are a bit like little round squash. He picked a whole lap full!
He came back and cut them up into the pot. Chop, chop, chop! Can you pretend to chop? But nobody knew what kind of gourds they were.
The stew was ready. They poured it out for the men to eat. But as they were eating, they cried out. “Man of God, there is death in the pot!” Man of God was what people called Elisha. The gourds were bad. The stew could make them very sick. They could not eat it.
Hungry men, and a big pot of stew they could not eat! What would they do now? Would they have to go to bed hungry?
But Elisha knew what to do. He said, “Then bring meal.” Meal is flour, for making bread. Elisha threw the flour into the pot. Can you sprinkle pretend flour into a big pot?
Then Elisha said, “Serve it to the people, that they may eat.” So they poured out the stew again. And there was nothing harmful in the pot! Harmful means something that can hurt you. The stew was good. Mmm! Everyone could eat. God took care of his hungry people.
It was not the flour that made the stew good. God did it, through his prophet Elisha. God took care of his hungry people.
A psalm in the Bible says this. “Cast your burden on the LORD and he will sustain you.” A burden is a heavy worry. Sustain means to take care of. You can give your worries to God, and he will take care of you. Now rest your head, safe and warm. God took care of his hungry people.
3. Talk together (3 min)
- How do you think the young men felt when they cried, “There is death in the pot”?
- What is your favorite food to eat when you are hungry?
4. Move (3 min)
Refrain Freeze: move around the room; when you say the refrain, everyone freezes and says it together.
5. Make (4 min)
Draw a line to who said it.
6. Verse and prayer (2 min)
“Cast your burden on the LORD and he will sustain you.” — Psalm 55:22 (Cast your burden → pretend to throw a heavy bag; on the LORD → point up; he will sustain you → hug yourself)
Dear God, thank you for my food. Thank you that you take care of me. Amen.
Lesson for older kids (ages 6–10)
Big idea: God Can Fix What Seems Spoiled
Memory verse: “Cast your burden on the LORD and he will sustain you.” — Psalm 55:22 · WEB
The Bible story
A famine, a bubbling pot, and a scary surprise in the stew - watch how Elisha turns a spoiled supper into a miracle nobody expected!
Talk about it
- What hard time was happening in the land? — A famine
- Who was the man of God in the stew story? — Elisha
- What did Elisha tell his servant to make? — Stew in the big pot
- Where did one helper go to find food? — To the fields
- What did the helper find on the wild vine? — Wild gourds
- What did the men shout when they tasted the stew? — There is death in the pot
Where is Jesus in this story?
Elisha's handful of flour made one pot of stew safe for one hungry meal (2 Kings 4:41). Jesus said, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry” (John 6:35). Elisha's miracle helped the prophets for a day, but Jesus gives life that lasts forever to everyone who trusts Him.
What God wants to tell us
Sometimes things go wrong even when we are trying our best, just like the helper who picked the wrong gourds by mistake. But this story shows us that God is bigger than any problem. When the supper seemed ruined and everyone was scared, God used Elisha and a simple handful of flour to make it all better. We can bring our worries and our little messes to God, trusting that He loves to turn scary moments into safe and happy ones.
Prayer
Dear Lord, thank You that You are stronger than any problem. When things go wrong or feel scary, help me to trust You like Elisha did. Thank You for taking care of me every single day and for turning sad surprises into good ones. Amen.
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