Genesis 14 - Abram rescues Lot Quiet Book Page

In Genesis chapter 14, Abram rescues Lot and receives Melchizedek's blessing.

Memory Verse: “Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was the priest of God Most High. And he blessed him and said:

“Blessed be Abram of God Most High,

Possessor of heaven and earth;

And blessed be God Most High,

Who has delivered your enemies into your hand.”

And he gave him a tithe of all.” Genesis 14:18-20. 

Materials needed to create the Abram Rescues Lot quiet book page:

• A4 felt background sheet - I used black
• Wonderwall scraps or velcro fabric in black
• stiff felt in black
• felt scraps in mid blue, light blue, tan, white, gray, yellow, purple and light purple
• sewing thread to best match the page
• velcro (black)
• hot glue gun and glue
• my free Genesis 14 - Abram Rescues Lot Bible Quiet Book Page Template Pattern

Wonderwall fabric

Cut out three larger rectangles of wonderwall or velcro fabric and sew them onto your background page vertically.

Cut out 9 rectangles of stiff felt and sew them down onto more stiff felt. Cut them out. 

Cut out all the pieces for this page and sew them onto the stiff felt rectangles in the following order: tunics, arms, coats, heads, beards, turbans and crown.

Cut lengths of velcro and hot glue them onto the back of the stiff felt rectangles.

Arrange and re-arrange the pieces to form Abram, Lot and Melchizedek.

Difficulty Level = Easy.

A very easy quiet book page!

Key Learning Areas and Skills

• Genesis 14 - Learn how Abram rescued Lot when he was captured from Sodom
• Puzzle/Matching - Match the three body sections with each other - mix them up for fun!
• Fine Motor Skills - all quiet books encourage fine motor skill development
• Hand-eye Co-ordination - all quiet books encourage hand-eye co-ordination

Read the Chapter

Genesis 14

Devotional

Unfortunately I couldn't think of a very relevant activity for this Bible chapter. Perhaps I just didn't understand the story enough.

The obvious thing to talk about here is Melchizedek. He was both a priest and a king, which is very much unusual. And of course the book of Hebrews talks about how Jesus will be a priest in the order of Melchizedek. He will be both our Great High Priest, and our King. Thankfully He has proved Himself trustworthy and selfless by His willingness to take our place and receive the punishment for our sins in order to share His reward of righteousness. You wouldn't want anyone else to be holding all the power.

Perhaps I should have added bread and wine to Melchizedek's arms to make his priesthood clear. He is offering God's people (through Abraham) communion - a representation of Jesus' offering of His body (the bread) and His blood (the wine).

Abraham accepts and responds with a tithe of all. What will your response be?

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Any ideas on how I could have made the activity more relevant to this Bible chapter?

Genesis 17 - Abram becomes Abraham Quiet Book Page

 In Genesis 17, God establishes a covenant with Abram and changes his name to Abraham, and Sarai becomes Sarah. 

Memory Verse: “No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations.” Genesis 17:5 NKJV.

Materials needed to create the Abram becomes Abraham quiet book page:

• A4 felt background sheet - I used mint
• my free Genesis 17 - Abram becomes Abraham Bible Quiet Book Template Pattern
• gray hard felt
• white felt and coloured felt in two (or three) colours, or alphabet felt in those colours, or
• a method of cutting letters - see my Letter Cutting Hacks post
• 5mm ribbon in matching colours to your white and coloured felt
• sewing threads to best match the page
• diaper hook and loop tape material (like velcro but doesn't wreck felt so much and is wider and can be cut to the size needed) - I bought this (not an afiliate link)
• clear plastic - you can use tablecloth plastic or sheet set packaging
• scotch tape and paper
• hot glue and glue gun
• scissors!

Firstly, cut out as many alphabet blocks as you need for the names you are making from the gray hard felt. I used: YHWH (4 blocks in white), ABRAAM (6 blocks in blue), SARAI (5 blocks in pink), and TALIA (5 blocks in green). You can add your own child's name if it has an "ah" or "ha" sound in it.

Tahlia's toy came in handy to trace around
to make the perfect block shape for me

Cut out you letters as required for the blocks above - see my Letter Cutting Hacks post (I used the Sizzix method). Sew them onto the gray alphabet blocks in the center of each block. Work out the length of each ribbon required to trim each block (13cm from memory). Cut the number of lengths needed and melt the ends to prevent fraying. Sew a border around each block using the corresponding colour 5mm ribbon, tucking the end of the ribbon under itself to finish it nicely at the ends.

Cut out the pocket from your clear plastic and trim with ribbon in a simmilar manner as above. Place scotch tape onto your sewing machine foot so the plastic will move through your machine easily. I also place paper underneath part of my sewing machine - see my set-up on my Psalm 46 - Be Still and Know that I Am God Tea Set Quiet Book Page post. Sew the plastic onto your page on three sides leaving the top open to form a pocket. Place it at the bottom leaving room to sew the pages together at the end and enough room at the top for the writing strip.

Cut the writing strip from loop tape material and sew it onto your page at the top.

Cut as many hook tape backings as you need and hot glue to the back of each alphabet block.

Finished! Store blocks back to back in the pocket to minimise dammage that can be done with the hook side of the hook and loop tape material.

Difficulty Level = Difficult

It would be easy except for sewing the ribbons around the corners is a little tricky, but you will get better with practice! Sewing the plastic is very tricky if you don't follow the suggestions of using scotch tape and paper above.

Key Learning Areas and Skills

• Genesis 17 - God gave Abram and Sarai new names to show his covenant with them
• Spelling - learn to spell the names Abram, Abraham, Sarai, Sarah, and maybe some others
• Fine Motor Skills - all quiet books encourage fine motor skill development
• Hand-eye Co-ordination - all quiet books encourage hand-eye co-ordination

Read the Chapter

Genesis 17

Devotional

I heard something about this Bible chapter once and it has stuck with me. I don't remember where I heard it so unfortunately I can't give credit where it is due. It may have been a sermon - I'm not sure. But their words definitely helped inspire this quiet book page.

Basically, they were saying that when God changed Abram's name to Abraham, and Sarai's name to Sarah, He was breathing into their names (and lives). God added the "H" sound from His name YHWH (often translated as Yahweh) to their names. The "ah" sound is the sound made when breathing, so it was as if God was speaking a miracle into their lives. And when God speaks, things happen!

God created the whole universe by speaking. He said "let there be light" and there was light. He made a man out of dust, and when He breathed into him, he became a soul. When God breathed into Abram and Sarai's lives, they had a baby in their old age, even though they both laughed at the idea.

Who But You (Abraham & Sarah)

I had heard this before Tahlia came along, and it definitely influenced how I spelled her name. It HAD to be spelled with an "ah" in it. Many Hebrew names contain an "ah" sound, and I suppose it is only natural since God interfered with the name of the first Hebrew, Abraham.

As I have discussed in more detail in my post Tahlia's Quiet Book - Front Cover and First Page, Tahlia means "dew from Heaven". If I had known that the root word for "dew" in Hebrew was "Tal" beforehand, I might have spelled her name Taliah instead. I have explained all this reasoning to her and occasionally she now likes to spell her name Tahliah! I guess the more "ah" sounds the better hahaha (pun intended)!

I hope this page will become a special one to your child as well, especially if their name is spelled with an "ah" or "ha" too. May God breathe into their life, and yours.

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Can you include your child's name on this page? 

Genesis 24 - Rebecca at the Well Quiet Book Page

Rebecca at the Well in Genesis 24 is a beautiful story and every girl's matchmaking dream come true.

Memory Verse: “And when she had finished giving him a drink, she said, “I will draw water for your camels also, until they have finished drinking.”” Genesis 24:19 NKJV.

Materials needed to create the Rebecca at the Well quiet book page:

• A4 felt background sheet - I used orange
• this printable from LambSongsNZ
• a method of sublimation printing - see below
• white acrylic/polyester felt
• sewing thread to best match the page
• two mini black split pins
• string or wool
• hot glue and glue gun
• scissors!

Firstly, get the printable transferred onto white felt by the sublimation printing and heat press method - see my post on Sublimation Printing on Felt - Test. Print the Rebecca and bucket section in reverse as well so you can glue her back to back.

Cut out the printable picture and both buckets and Rebecca's.

Attach your wool or string to the background felt underneath where your picture will be sewn using zig zag stitch. Go back and forth a few times to reinforce the hold.

Sew down the picture along three sides to form a pocket at the top.

Use the split pins to join each Rebecca to her bucket. Hot glue the buckets together and enclose the other end of the wool or string inside, leaving space for the split pins to remain free to turn. Hot glue Rebecca together, again leaving space for the bucket to swivel between her arms and the bottom edge open to form a finger puppet.

Finished!

Difficulty Level = Easy, plus No Sew version.

A very easy quiet book page! The hardest part is lining up both side of Rebecca when hot gluing (but that's not that hard)!
Just use hot glue wherever sewing is recommended for a no sew version.

Key Learning Areas and Skills

• Genesis 24 - God is a good matchmaker!
• Imaginative Play - draw water from the well to give the camels a drink
• Finger Puppet - Rebecca
• Fine Motor Skills - all quiet books encourage fine motor skill development
• Hand-eye Co-ordination - all quiet books encourage hand-eye co-ordination

Read the Chapter

Genesis 24

Devotional

How great are the rewards for being faithful in little.

All Rebecca was asked for was a simple drink of water - something which would have taken one minute max. But she offered to water the camels too. Surely Abraham sent more than his "oldest servant who ruled over his house" with the caravan to Nahor! They could have easily drawn the water for the camels. And in fact there were more servants, although they are not mentioned until after Rebecca is found and secured.

I was wondering how many camels there were - can you guess? I was guessing at least five, probably more - but I read it again and it says there were ten. There was all the presents for Rebecca and her mother and brother to carry, plus a bride price, food for the camels and servants to last a good portion of the journey, and possibly camels to ride for the servants. It seems to me that this trip was an urgent one. Everything happens in a rush!

Abraham asks and in the next sentence, Eliezer has left and arrived. Before he finishes praying, Rebecca has appeared. He "runs" to her and she "quickly" lets down her pitcher. She "runs" home to make arrangements for him to stay and her brother "runs" out to invite him in. Then he refuses to eat before he tells them his mission, and after being asked to stay ten nights he will only agree to stay one before returning home.

Giving Eliezer a drink would have fulfilled his request, and is more than Rebecca was obligated to do. But to offer to water ten camels must have taken quite a while even though she did it "quickly".
The below podcast by experienced people says that a thirsty camel can drink between 100-150 liters of water in around 15 minutes. So to water 10 camels, Rebecca might have had to draw 1000-1500 liters of water. I imagine that Rebecca could lift no more than 20 liters at once, so she would have to draw water at least 50-75 times in order to draw that much water which must have taken a couple of hours. It was no casual offer that she made.

How Much Water Does a Camel Drink?

by Camel Connection

Rebecca is not the only virtuous person we can learn from in this chapter. Eliezer is pretty impressive too. Although he is not named in this chapter, Abraham thinks in chapter 15 that Eliezer his servant will be his heir. Eliezer must have known this at the time too. Not only does he not become hurt or offended when he is no longer heir, but he is the one trusted to secure a Godly wife for his replacement Issac. What faithfulness! We can learn so much about how to behave when we are disappointed by not receiving what we thought we were going to. Like when we don't get the promotion we thought we deserved. God has a plan, and often it is not our business!

Isaac and Rebekah Rap

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What do you think? 

Genesis 13 - Abram and Lot Separate Quiet Book Page

In Genesis 13, Abram allows Lot to choose which part of the Land to use because their families and herds have grown too large for them to stay together.

Memory Verse: “Is not the whole land before you? Please separate from me. If you take the left, then I will go to the right; or, if you go to the right, then I will go to the left.”” Genesis 13:9

Materials needed to create the Abram and Lot Separate quiet book page:

• A4 felt background sheet - I used light blue
• felt scraps
• shiny blue material scrap for the lake
• clear craft glue (optional) - I used polyacetic acid & ethylene resin based glue
• ribbon scraps in vegetation motifs and colours
• thin grey ribbon
• letter beads
• my free Abram and Lot Separate template download

Cut out a section of shiny blue material to fit where the lake goes. My material was very prone to fraying, so I folded it over the edge and glued it down and then zig zagged around the sides at the back once it was dry. The front was covered by the mountains and foreground so I don't think I worried about zig zagging around that, but I did glue it down.

Next I sewed down the mountains followed by the foreground and a series of decorative ribbons to look like rows of fields and vegetation on the same side as the lake.

To make Abram and Lot, first sew the hands to a piece of the same coloured felt and cut them out. Wedge these under the sleeves of their coats when sewing the coats to a piece of the same coloured felt to double it up and cut then cut them out. Sew a small button hole in the center of their coats to thread them onto ribbon with for sliding across the page.

Cut two heads for each person - you can't sew one to a larger background and then cut it out for this one as it will be difficult to cut out afterwards because the coat is in the way. But it doesn't really matter if the sewing is messy here anyway. It will be covered up by a beard and turban.

The beards have a slit up the middle to allow them to sit correctly over the coat. I only cut one side of the beard and left a large piece of felt on the other side so it could be sewn neatly from one side and cut away on the other later.

Sew the turbans in a similar way, cutting the back felt piece away after sewing.

Thread Abram and Lot onto a piece of grey ribbon each and cut it to the length of your page. Melt the edges of your ribbon - see my post on How to Stop Ribbons Fraying.

Cover the bottom section with grey felt and then cover the line where the grey and foreground meet with grey stones. Thread the word 'left' using alphabet beads onto Abram's ribbon on the left side and the word 'right' onto Lot's ribbon on the right side. Sew down both ends of the grey ribbons using zig zag stitch so that  Abram and Lot can slide along the bottom of the page. Cover the ends with more rocks so you can't see the ugly stitching.

Finished!

Difficulty Level = Intermediate.

Getting the beards and turbans right is the most difficult part of this page, but I have shared my tips on how to do this in the tutorial.

Key Learning Areas and Skills

• Genesis 13 - selfishness often harms us without us even realising it.
• Directions - this page teaches about right and left. There are very few quiet book pages that teach this.
• Imaginative Play - would you choose the left or the right side?
• Fine Motor Skills - all quiet books encourage fine motor skill development
• Hand-eye Co-ordination - all quiet books encourage hand-eye co-ordination

I did consider putting Abraham's tent on the left side, but I decided against it -
the starkness of the landscape contrasts better with the lushness of the right.

Read the Chapter

Genesis 13

Devotional

Lot leaves Abram as a very rich man, having so many herds and servants that they cannot continue to live together. He chooses the best part of the land for himself however, and it is not long until we find that Lot has not benefited from his decision.

It is only the next chapter in which he is taken captive when an army attacks the cities of the plain. Following his rescue by Abraham, he remains living there. Why?

When we find Lot in Sodom, there is no longer any mention of his flocks and herds and servants - the very reason he left Abraham in the first place. I often wonder what happened to them. They must have been sold before the visit from the angels, else surely Lot would have been given a chance to save them as he was with his other daughters and sons-in-law.

I always wonder how different things might have turned out had Lot chosen the other side. I don't imagine that Abraham would have lost nearly everything if he had lived near Sodom. Perhaps that is where Lot went wrong. He moved to a wicked city. Abraham stayed in his tent. And I imagine if he had been given the other side, he would have still lived in his tent. Don't let the priorities of the world sway you. Romans 12:2 NKJV says "And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God."

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Which side would you choose?

Genesis 12 - Abram's Journey Quiet Book Page

In Genesis chapter 12, God tells Abram to go to a place He would show him. I have included a few verses from chapters 11 and 13 here for convenience.

Memory Verse: "The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you." Genesis 12:1

Materials needed to create Abram's Journey quiet book page:

• A4 felt background sheet. I used deep blue.
• brown felt, plus tan scraps
• sewing thread to match, plus blue for the rivers
• a shoelace
• crotchet rings
• my free template

First place your map UPSIDE DOWN on your brown felt and trace around it with a pen.  This way the pen side will be face down...

...and the map will be the right way when placed on the background felt. Sew it down.

Next mark each point at which you will turn when sewing the rivers. I placed my template on top of my felt version and pushed in a pin at each turning point. I started at the branched ends and aimed for the entrance point of each pin when I got to each subsequent pin.

Sew down your pyramids and crotchet rings where indicated. For the crotchet rings I set my machine to zero length on zig zag stitch and secured them with about 20 stitches.

Measure the length of shoelace needed by threading it as shown in the first picture and  leaving enough of an end to stitch it down underneath the zigurat. Melt the ends of the shoelace to prevent fraying before using zig zag stitch to secure it to your page . Place the ziggurat over the end of the shoelace and sew down.

Finished!

Difficulty Level = Intermediate

This is a very easy quiet book page to sew, except for sewing the rivers. You might find this part easier if you do it by hand.

Key Learning Areas and Skills

• Genesis 12 - This page tells the story of how Abraham obeyed God and moved his family to Canaan
• Threading - thread the shoelace through the places mentioned that Abraham stopped at on his way
• Fine Motor Skills - all quiet books encourage fine motor skill development
• Hand-eye Co-ordination - all quiet books encourage hand-eye co-ordination

Read the Chapter

Genesis 12

Devotional

Abraham had already moved from Ur to Haran when God called him to move again. Moving can be a hard thing, particularly when leaving family - although sometimes it is the reason for the move! Perhaps it was one reason that God wanted Abraham to move, although maybe not. Whilst it is recorded in non-Biblical sources that Abraham's father was an idol worshiper and even owned an idol shop, it does seem that God waited until his death before instructing Abraham to leave.

It is also difficult to trust God and take those first steps when you can't see the end of the road. But God asked Abraham to go to a place that He would show him. Abraham didn't know where the road ended. But He decided to trust God anyway.

It ended up being a bit like a wander in the wilderness for him, and although he eventually ended up living in the promised land, the only piece of it he owned was a burial plot. I assume he could not build a house on land that did not belong to him, and that he continued to live in a tent for the rest of his long life.

There is a lot of pressure on people these days to buy their own home and people who are not able to often feel unsuccessful and like they lack something to show for their efforts. Circumstances are far from perfect and though someone works hard, often things don't work out how we plan. God wants us to remember that this earth is not our home - we are wanderers here. And if we live in a tent for the rest of our lives here that is quite OK. One day we will possess a 'mansion'.

Abraham's Exciting Journey - Song for the Kids

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I'd love to hear from you!

Genesis 15 - Abraham can you count the stars? Quiet Book Page

In Genesis chapter 15, God promises Abraham that his decedents will be like the stars in number - uncountable!  I tried to make the stars on this quiet book page uncountable too.

Memory verse: "He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness." Genesis 15:5,6.

Materials needed to create the Abraham can you count the stars? quiet book page:

• A4 felt background sheet in a dark colour. I used black.
• star die-cut felt sheet in blue - available from Spotlight stores or Arbee online.
• multi-coloured star buttons in mixed colours - as many as you can get your hands on
• sewing thread
• a star template - I used this star template from smallpersonalbiz.com

Choose a few star sizes and shapes from the template. Make sure to include the six-pointed star of David, because both David and our Messiah, Jesus, were Abraham's descendents. Cut them out of the star die-cut felt and arrange them on the page. Sew them down.

Arrange the star buttons on the page. I used pins through the holes in the buttons to anchor them where I wanted them. Sew them on. I set my sewing machine to a stitch length of zero and put it on the zig zag setting. Then I adjusted the stitch width until it was the right size to fit my buttons. I found it much quicker to sew them on like this rather than by hand, which would have taken ages. For newer sewing machines, you can buy a button foot especially for this purpose.

Finished!

Difficulty Level = Easy

This page is rather easy, and although it may seem fairly non-interactive, it is! 

Key Learning Areas and Skills

• Genesis 15 - This page is supposed to illustrate the difficulty in counting the stars, just as God wanted to assure Abraham that it would be that difficult to count his promised future offspring. Also, believing God is counted as righteousness!
• Counting - Younger children can count the star buttons. The die-cut stars make the page more difficult as the child grows. And because some of the die-cut stars get cut in half when cutting the felt into star shapes, it makes it really hard to count the number of stars accurately. Also, many of them are hidden behind the star buttons. 
• Star shapes - stars shapes can have different numbers of points
• Colours and star colours - make sure you use different coloured star buttons for this learning area. Stars are also classified by colour, which is related to their temperature. Find a chart and some other star classification activities for the older child here on hmxearthscience.com.
• Fine Motor Skills - all quiet books encourage fine motor skill development
• Hand-eye Co-ordination - all quiet books encourage hand-eye co-ordination

Read the Chapter

Genesis 15

Devotional

The covenant ceremony described in this chapter that takes place between God and Abraham was a very common ceremony used in the middle east back then to "cut" a covenant. Both parties were supposed to walk in the blood between the animals.  However, God did not ask Abraham to walk, and instead walked twice Himself. If you can't guess, this is a foreshadow of the cross and how Jesus would pay the price in His own blood for our side of the covenant that we couldn't keep.  For an excellent and brief explanation, read my fellow bloggers post Walking the Bloodpath by Marty Solomon from Covered In His Dust.

Also in this chapter, God predicts that Abraham's decedents would be so-journers and slaves for four hundred years in a foreign county (Egypt) after which time, they would be given the land God promised to Abraham. Genesis 15 helps set the scene for the next book in the Bible, Exodus.

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Which star represents you?