Jericho March for Kids' Church

We all know that God is a miracle-working God but have you ever paused to wonder why He performed so many miracles? I think one of the reasons why God would cause the sun to go backward or bring the walls of Jericho down is to show His people that nothing is impossible–if He is in the equation. As children’s pastors, we must teach kids about His miracles so they can see what He has already done and what He is willing to do for them. Some of my favorite ways to teach is through visual aids and interactions like a Jericho march.
Recently in my children’s ministry, I taught kids about the falling of the walls of Jericho and we finished the lesson with a Jericho march. The kids absolutely loved it! Before the class I gathered noisemakers, like tambourines, maracas and clappers. Kids giggled, made noise when they weren’t supposed to but overall I think they got a lot out of it. First, I read the passage from Joshua 6:6-20 and then I discussed each section with them. Here’s what I taught:
“God challenged His people to take back the city of Jericho. The leader of God’s people was Joshua, a mighty man who had served Moses. Now the walls of this city were huge, monstrous even. Just looking at the wall, they weren’t sure how they could do it. Probably some of the people thought, “We could use ropes to pull them down,” or “We could all push at once and knock the walls down,” but none of these ideas would work. Still, God wanted them to take Jericho in His name and He knew exactly what to do.”
“God told the people of Israel to march around Jericho for seven days. God told the priests to walk ahead of the Ark of the Covenant followed by all the people. They had to do this for six days. On the seventh day something special was going to happen. I’m going to tell you about it but first I want to share something else. Those thick walls of Jericho can represent a lot of things for us. Today, God hasn’t asked us to march around a walled city but He does want you to have victory. God has ideas on how you can overcome those sins; how you can defeat the enemy. Wouldn’t that be great? Okay, back to our story here.”
“God said to march quietly around the city for six days but on the seventh day, you will march and then everyone will blow trumpets and make noise. You will shout together for victory! So they did! They marched around the city and when they blew the trumpet and shouted, walls fell down to the ground. God won the city and the people rejoiced. Now I think we should do that too. I am going to give you noisemakers but don’t use them yet. You can test them quickly to make sure they work, then everyone should be quiet like little mouses. Let’s march around the room—I will count. When we get done with the seventh march, I will give you the signal and we will make noise for God! Ready?”
You can also use our free Bible lesson about Joshua and the Battle of Jericho. Don’t miss the coloring page from the book of Joshua.