This is Creation Day 3 of a vintage Creation Circles felt board set.
You can build this set together in class by gluing on felt pieces to form a layered picture.
On Day 3 of Creation, God made dry ground to appear and vegetation covered the land. The following needs to be glued down during this lesson:
grass and tree
apples
pumpkin vine
red and yellow flowers
You can also place the correct number on or near the circle, but I don't think it is meant to be glued down, just matched for re-use.
A space for the beasts and mankind to inhabit has been made ready for Day 6.
I believe this set is a vintage version of these Creation Circles by Betty Lukens. You can get the new ones in a larger option with one circle and 17 pieces to form various overlays, or a smaller version with seven separate circles like this set.
You can get a cartoon type version, Beginner Bible Creation from Little Folk Visuals as well.
Once published, I will link the other Creation Circle posts below (you may find something different in each post):
In Psalm 85, God provides a way for His justice and His mercy to prevail together.
Memory Verse: Mercy and truth have met together; Righteousness and peace have kissed. Truth shall spring out of the earth, And righteousness shall look down from heaven. Psalm 85:10-11 (NKJV).
Materials needed to create the Righteousness and Peace Have Kissed quiet book page:
7 black grommets and tool set - I used 3mm inside diameter (perhaps 5mm height)
round hat elastic in black
4 small thin buttons
sewing thread to best match the page
Cut out your hill piece from green felt and insert grommets where indicated. Thread your elastic through to the front and thread your "mercy" and "truth" beads on at either side (remember to thread "truth" in reverse order so it shows correctly - a little ironic, I know!). Detach the magnetic hand beads from the keychains and thread them onto either end of the elastic before threading the elastic back through the "mercy" and "truth" beads and then to the back of the felt. Thread the elastic through a thin button and tie together to prevent the elastic knot from making it's way to the front of the felt, making sure the correct length is achieved for the hands to clasp each other without too much slack or needing the elastic to stretch. Sew the green hill to green felt to cover the back button and cut it out.
Repeat this process with the two cross pieces, although you don't need to double the elastic back through the beads (just thread them straight back through the other grommet to the back). Then addon your buttonholes where indicated.
Use the template pieces to position the green hill on your page and sew along the sides and bottom leaving the top open to form a pocket.
Use the template pieces to mark the position of where to place the kissing lips button. Add a grommet to the page background. Thread more elastic through from the back of he page and thread on your lips, then pass the elastic back through the grommet to the back of the page.
Again, thread the elastic through a thin button and tie together to prevent the elastic knot from making it's way to the front of the felt, making sure the correct length is achieved to allow both cross pieces to be buttoned on comfortably.
Finished! Now you can play with your page.
Difficulty Level = Easy
Grommet installation can be scary - but the following YouTube tutorial by Irina Sorokina from My Craft Quiet Books should help.
Eyelets and grommets - My Craft Quiet Books
Key Learning Areas and Skills
Psalm 85 - the cross was the only solution for God to both uphold justice and extend mercy
Imaginative Play/Clasping - clasp and unclasp the hands as if they are "meeting together" or shaking hands greeting each other
Buttoning - button the sections of tthe cross to the kissing lips button
Spelling - learn to spell the words "mercy", "truth", "righteousness" and "peace"
Pocket Play - young children love pulling things out and placing items and putting them back (not always lol) into pockets - the cross pieces can be stored in the hill pocket
Fine Motor Skills - all quiet books encourage fine motor skill development
Hand-eye Co-ordination - all quiet books encourage hand-eye co-ordination
There is a great deal to learn from this Psalm and Matthew Henry's commentary on it is very enlightening. I will summarise one point only. Ultimately Jesus is the mediator who brings Heaven and earth together again. He is the truth that sprang out of the Earth (rose from the grave). And God justifies us by looking down favourably from Heaven because of Jesus' restoration. The cross is where God's mercy meets Truth, and where Righteousness brings Peace to men.
The penalty of sin is death. If God wants goodness to exist and goodness to rule, the rules He established to make good conditions must be kept. If He forgave without justice then why bother having laws - kaos and death would dominate instead of love. In order to forgive and keep the good rules in place, He had to pay the penalty (death) for us.
Here is another interesting read on Mercy and Truth by Ismar Schorsch from the Jewish Theological Seminary.
There is an interesting history of Aaron and Moses representing mercy and truth respectively via the atoning sacrifices and the provision of the law. Additionally, during the Zugot (pairs) time period of Judaism (c. 170 BCE – 30 CE), after the loss of confidence in the High Priest, the Sanhedrin was ruled by two appointed rulers, the Nasi (President) representing mercy, and the Ab Bet Din (Vice President) representing truth.
This video explains how God upholds justice and can deliver mercy at the same time. It's a great listen, and not too long.
Have you ever tried to draw your own template for a quiet book?
It might sound daunting, but it is easier than you think. Here is a tip my Mum shared with me when I first started making busy books - how to draw a symmetrical template!
As you can see, this method is a simple way to correct flaws in your template drawing. All you have to do is make a fold down the center of your drawing and cut it out by following the line on the better side. When you unfold the template, it will be the same shape on both sides. Of course, this method only works for symmetrical shapes.
In Ephesians chapter 3, Paul explains that Gentiles can become heirs alongside Israel, and share in access to God through faith in Christ.
Memory Verse: "so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." Ephesians 3:17-19 (NIV).
Materials needed to create the Christ May Dwell in Your Heart Through Faith quiet book page:
a ribbon to match the felt colour of the heart - I used an organza ribbon and did some tacking and gathering on it
felt scraps in mid brown, white, and dark brown for Jesus
awl and/or darning needle
sewing thread to best match the page
scissors!
Cut out your heart from felt and sew it onto the middle of your page. Add the ribbon to the top edge of the pocket part of your heart before sewing it down over the bottom section of the heart.
Tacking and gathering the organza ribbon.
Cut out two feet and hands from your mid brown felt (reverse the pattern to make the right and left sides), sew them down and cut them out. Cut out a tunic from white felt and sandwich the hands and feet between it and a piece of white felt on the bottom. Sew the tunic down and cut it out, making sure to bend back the hands and feet as you go.
Cut out a face from mid brown felt and a hair and beard piece from dark brown felt. Position the hair/beard over the head and sew it down around the mouth and face. Place dark brown felt behind the head/chest area of the tunic with the hair/beard/face on top and sew around the outside of the head (hair/beard), catching the tunic in between at the bottom. Cut out the head around the top and trim at the bottom on the back side at the same width from the sewing as the rest of the head.
Use the awl to make holes in the hands and ankles and use a darning needle to make the hole wider.
Finished!
Difficulty Level = Easy, plus No-Sew Version.
A very easy and quick quiet book page. Just use hot glue wherever sewing is recommended for a no sew version, but make sure you don't put glue where you want to put the holes in the hands and feet.
Key Learning Areas and Skills
Ephesians 3 - God's love is so wide/long/high/deep - let's pray that we will be filled with the measure of all the fullness of God
Imaginative play - Jesus dwells in our hearts, His love is wide like His arms are stretched wide
Hand-eye Co-ordination - all quiet books encourage hand-eye co-ordination
I have had this idea churning around for a while. I remember as a child in Bible class we used to hold hearts up similar to this on a stick with a picture of Jesus inside while we sang "Into My Heart".
As I grew up, I started thinking about whether this was a concept that came from the Bible or not. More often, it is the Holy Spirit which is said to live in our hearts. I guess Ephesians 3 is more of an abstract idea due to having faith, rather than Jesus actually living in our hearts. I think the only other place the Bible talks about Jesus (rather than the Holy Spirit) being in our hearts is 2 Corinthians 4, where Jesus' face shines in our hearts. I think this is also alluding to the idea that others ought to be able to see Jesus' love shining out from our hearts, just as we can feel the happiness and peace within.
Faith in Christ gives Gentiles access to God too, and we can share the inheritance. In this way, Christ can dwell in our hearts. And we will begin to understand the immeasurable love Jesus has for us. This love is beyond knowledge. Knowledge alone would not cause someone to die in someone else's place. It is only great love that would move someone enough to do that. I made Jesus with his arms outstretched and nail holes in his hands and feet so we can grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ in some small way.
This is Creation Day 2 of a vintage Creation Circles felt board set.
The set is intended to be used in conjunction with a felt board for lessons in a Bible class. Pieces are added to the circles as the story of creation is explained. Interactive stories are always a hit with children, and repetition is something they love.
They also love matching, and you can learn what happened on each day of creation while matching a set of numbers to each creation circle.
On Creation Day 2, God separated the waters (in the firmament above and covering the Earth below). You need to glue the clouds down on this creation circle to complete it.
A space has bean created to be filled with birds and fish on Day 5.
I believe this set is a vintage version of these Creation Circles by Betty Lukens. You can get a cartoon type version, Beginner Bible Creation from Little Folk Visuals as well.
