Purpose: To help children understand the nature of prayer.

Material: If you feel it is safe to do so, you might have a prayer written on a piece of paper and burn it on a metal tray.

Lesson: Today I want to talk to you about something we do together each Sunday and which I assume you have done at home. We call it "praying." You may use prayers in your family when you sit down to have a meal or when you are getting ready to go to sleep. These are special times for prayers, but I hope you know that you can pray anytime, anywhere.

Long ago people used altars and smoke and fire to help them when they prayed. …