History’s First Boat Ride
After a long while, there were many people on the earth. Sad to say, they had become very wicked. God decided to destroy them by sending a flood.
As God looked down from heaven, He saw one good man called Noah. Because Noah was God’s friend, God told him about the flood He was going to send. He commanded Noah to build a big ark, and told him exactly how to do it.
No doubt the wicked people laughed at Noah for building this great boat when there was no water for it to float on. But Noah kept right on building as God had commanded. He believed God’s Word. Noah also preached to the people about God and the punishment that was coming.
Finally the ark was finished, more than one hundred years later. God told Noah to come into the ark with his family of eight. God caused animals, birds, and creeping things to enter the ark so that some of every kind could be kept alive. When they were all safe inside, God shut the door.
After seven days, it began to rain. It rained forty days and forty nights without stopping. Rain fell as if it were poured out of great windows in the heavens. Water flooded the whole earth until there was no dry ground or breath of life left on it.
High above the earth floated the ark with Noah and his family. After many days the water began to go down, and the ark bumped onto the mountains of Ararat. One day Noah opened the window of the ark and sent out a dove. But the dove came back because it could not find a dry place to stay. A week later, Noah sent out the dove again. This time it returned with a leaf in its beak. The water must be below the trees by now! The next time he sent out the dove, it did not come back. Then Noah knew the earth had become dry again.
God called Noah and his family out of the ark. Noah was so thankful to God for saving their lives that he built an altar of worship. There God formed a beautiful rainbow in the sky. He told Noah that it was a sign of His promise never again to destroy the earth with a flood.
Genesis 6; 7; 8; 9:1-18
Noah and his family thank God for saving their lives.
Parents:
For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness: neither shall evil dwell with thee. (Psalm 5:4)
Children:
1. Who told Noah to build an ark?
2. What was in the ark besides Noah and his family?
3. Why did God place a rainbow in the sky?