Submitted by
S. Daly

Age Group
8-14

Aim
To hear about Moses as a good leader
To relate this to Jesus, the Apostles, Joshua and ourselves as leaders

Faith Group
Christian

Script
1. Good morning. Today we are going to think about leaders and about one special leader in particular.

2. The job of a leader is to encourage others.
In a factory, the foreman is a leader.
On a ship, the captain is a leader.
In a school, the headteacher is a leader.
Amongst our friends, we are sometimes leaders.
A leader always guides his followers towards a goal - and helps them overcome any difficulties they meet on the way.

3. History is full of famous leaders, for example: Joan of Arc, Florence Nightingale and Winston Churchill.
One of the most famous leaders is Moses.

4. Moses was born the son of a Hebrew slave. At that time, all male babies, born to Hebrews living in Egypt, were put to death. This was because the Egyptians were frightened that the Hebrews, who were foreigners, would soon outnumber them.
The Hebrews who remained were used as slaves.
Many toiled from morning 'til night, making bricks. If they stopped for a moment, they were whipped.

5. When Moses was born, his mother hid him, so that he would not be killed. When he was three months old, and too big to hide, his mother put him into a basket and set this afloat on a river.
He was found by an Egyptian princess. She took pity on him, adopted him and brought him up as a prince and future ruler.

6. When Moses was a young man, he began to move around the kingdom of Egypt.
It was then that he noticed how the Hebrew slaves were ill-treated and how very unhappy they were.
So Moses rescued his people from slavery in Egypt and led them through all kinds of difficulties towards the Promised Land.

7. Moses was the leader whom the people saw, but he knew that the real leader was God whom they could not see.

8. The Hebrews who followed Moses were not an ideal team.
Sometimes they were so hungry and thirsty that they even threatened to kill Moses.
Throughout this, Moses prayed to God for help and strength. He said to the people,

MOSES: Fear not - trust God.

8. ... and God brought them to the Promised Land.

9. Just before they arrived there, Moses, who was now a very old man, (as the journey and stay in the wilderness had taken many years), died.
For many days, the people mourned for Moses, remembering his great goodness, his wisdom, his patience and the way in which he lived and spoke with God.

10. Moses had been a great leader, but now a younger man called Joshua, whom Moses had chosen to carry on his work, had to take command.
Joshua was a brave soldier and a fine captain, but he knew he did not have the great wisdom that Moses had had - and he felt that he was not fit to be a leader.
Still, he knew that God would help him and he kept repeating to himself the brave words which Moses had spoken to him,

JOSHUA: It is the Lord that doth go before you. He will be with you and will not fail you, nor forsake you.

11. Now the time had come to lead the people forward into the Promised Land.
With a humble heart, Joshua made his plans and asked for God's blessing on them. Now he was ready to lead the people on.
Of one thing, Joshua was certain, and that was that God was the real leader of his people.
He himself was just God's captain, willing and ready to carry out his Lord's commands.
So, eventually, led by Moses and Joshua, the Hebrews reached the land promised to them by God.

12. After Moses of course, came an even more famous leader - Jesus Christ.
He came to lead all people away from sin and to his Father in heaven.
He showed us how to reach his Father, by living a good life, serving others. Before he went to his Father in heaven, he trained the Apostles. He gave them the power to carry on the work of building up the Church.

13. The Apostles were good followers and leaders. They trusted Jesus and were faithful to him. They did what Jesus had meant when he said,

JESUS: If any man will come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.

13. The power that God gave to the Apostles has come down to us in an unbroken line of priests and bishops. They are the leaders in our Church today.

14. God our Father, we need good leaders in our country and in our world. Give us wise, strong and good leaders, who will help to make the world what you want it to be.
Lord hear us.
ALL: Lord graciously hear us.

15. God gave each of us here a role to play. Some of us are made to be leaders; others are made to follow.
Each role is important, as we are all working towards one goal - to live to please and serve God.
Let us pray that whichever is our role, we will fulfil it to the best of our abilities.
Lord hear us.
ALL: Lord graciously hear us.

16. Some of us are leaders in our classes. Let us pray that we do not misuse this talent, by leading others into trouble.
Instead we should aim to set a good example by working extra hard.
Lord hear us.
ALL: Lord graciously hear us.

17. Some of us are followers. Let us pray that we accept this role with dignity.
Lord hear us.
ALL: Lord graciously hear us.

18. We will now say the prayer that Jesus taught his followers. Our Father...
We will now sing "When Israel was in Egypt's land" (Celebration Hymnal for Everyone number 803) or "You shall cross the barren desert" by R. Dufford (Celebration Hymnal for Everyone number 830) or "Follow me" by M. Cockett (Celebration Hymnal for Everyone number 175)