I Corinthians 15:33 teaches the importance of choosing good friends because their behavior will influence yours. In this object lesson, you will need a sharpened pencil and a printout of the the word "friends" in a bubble letter outline. Have each student use the pencil to shade their word in completely. Then have them gently rub their hands over the papers and examine their hands. Explain to the students how friends' actions, thoughts, speech and reputations can influence you. Be sure to allow time to wash hands or bring baby wipes so the students can clean up.
This activity teaches youth that true friendship means sharing the Bible with their friends. For this activity, put pieces of candy, popcorn or coins in a brown paper bag. Explain to the students that Jesus told us to go into the world and tell people about Him, from Mark 16:15. Take an item out of the bag and explain that it is the first child who went to church, and then went home and invited a friend. Take out two items and put them below the first item. Continue adding new people, doubling the number in each row, to demonstrate the pyramid effect. Tell the children about how just one person can have a huge impact for God.
Combing hair is an activity that teaches children that friendship begins with serving one another. It is based on I Peter 4:10. You will need two clean combs. Choose two helpers and ask them to demonstrate combing their hair but require that they keep their arms straight. The children should find this to be impossible. Challenge the students to find a way to comb their hair. You might need to help them by giving them the hint of helping each other. The students should find that if they comb each other's hair, they will be successful. Talk about how much better friendship can be if you serve one another.
The Good Samaritan is a story that shows youth that a good friend will care for you when you are in trouble. Have students participate in the good man relay. In the relay, teams of two must work together to complete various tasks before making it to the finish line. At the first station, each group must bandage a baby doll, then run to another station that is the "inn." Then, put small tokens that serve as coins in the bottom of a baby pool filled with packing peanuts. The group must find the coins and pay the innkeeper. You can build as many additional obstacles into the sequence as you like, depending on how long you want the activity to last. The activity demonstrates to the youth that sometimes helping someone is hard work, but it is well rewarded.