Samuel Anoints Saul Sunday School Lesson for Kids

This free Samuel anoints Saul Sunday school lesson teaches kids that God guides our steps. Saul went looking for his father's lost donkeys, and his search led him straight to Samuel, because the LORD had told Samuel the day before that he was coming (1 Samuel 9:15–16). Samuel poured a vial of oil upon Saul's head (10:1). It comes in four age levels, each a separate printable teacher lesson, plus one take-home sheet for families. Pick the one that fits your class. Everything is in the order you teach it.

Choose your age level

• Preschool (ages 3–5), 20–30 minutes, 2 pages: a short story with hand motions and repeat-after-me lines, a find-the-donkeys game, three simple questions, a shortened memory verse ("the LORD hath anointed thee") with a motion, and a drawing activity.
• Kindergarten to 2nd grade, 45 minutes, 3 pages: the story in simple words, six recall questions with answers, and the Pour It Out memory verse game with six index cards.
• 3rd to 5th grade, 45–60 minutes, 3 pages: kids look up verses in their own Bibles during a fuller story (the search through four lands, the seer, the best seat, the vial of oil, hid among the stuff), five thinking questions and three recall questions, and a Bible look-up race.
• Preteens (ages 11–12), 45–60 minutes, 3 pages: students read 1 Samuel 9 and 10 out loud themselves, then discuss how God directs our steps, humility, hiding from God's call and wanting what everyone else has. Six discussion questions, a journal page, and two memory verses (1 Samuel 10:1 and Proverbs 16:9).

Lesson at a glance

• Bible passage: 1 Samuel 9:1–10:1 and 10:17–24
• Main point: God guides our steps, even when we don't know where we are going.
• Memory verse: 1 Samuel 10:1 (KJV), with Proverbs 16:9 added for preteens
• Ages: preschool to preteen, in four versions

Lesson outline (the same in every version)

1. Opening game: finding lost donkeys, being guided by a voice, or plans that went sideways.
2. Bible story: the lost asses, the seer God told ahead of time, the best seat at the meal, the vial of oil, and Saul hidden among the stuff at Mizpeh. Every fact has its verse reference so you can check it.
3. Questions to ask: with answers, at the right level for each age.
4. Memory verse: a game or motion to help kids learn 1 Samuel 10:1.
5. What this means for us: God guides our steps, the gospel (Acts 2:38), and a challenge for the week.
6. Activity: the Samuel anoints Saul word search, a hide-and-find game, a Bible look-up race or a journal page, depending on the age.
7. Prayer.

Tips for teaching Samuel anoints Saul

• Read 1 Samuel 9:15–16 straight from the Bible. God told Samuel about Saul a day before he came, while Saul thought he was only looking for donkeys.
• The Bible gives Saul no crown in this story and doesn't say he knelt: Samuel poured a vial of oil upon his head as they stood at the end of the city (9:27, 10:1).
• If a child asks why Israel wanted a king, or what happened to Saul later, each lesson gives you a short answer from Scripture.
• Short on time? Do the story, three questions and the memory verse. That is a solid 25-minute lesson.