Storms Clouds In Your Life
1st Angle
(This angle, while better viewing does NOT have the explanation of the how the lesson is performed… to see that, please view the end of the video below)
2nd Angle
WHAT YOU NEED:
- 2 liter bottle with label removed
- Rubbing alcohol
- Tire pump
- Valve stem (the larger diameter kind; can be purchased at Wal-Mart in the tire section for a few dollars)
DEMONSTRATION:
- Put a couple of spoonfuls of alcohol (measures can be wildly inexact… just enough to “slosh” about a bit) in the bottom of the 2 liter bottle
- Insert the valve stem into the tire pump, place the bottom of the valve stem against the top of the bottle completely sealing the top (must be air-tight)
- Have someone pump up the bottle using the tire pump until the bottle gets very tight.
- Suddenly pull the valve stem away from the bottle and you will see an instant cloud appear in the bottle.
- Pumping it up once more will make the cloud vanish again.
LESSON:
I need a volunteer that is very strong, has lots of stamina and big muscles.
Put the tire valve in place on the bottle and have the volunteer start pumping
We are going peacefully through life and then a BIG STORM CLOUD comes along
- A sudden death in a family
- A divorce
- Someone you love leaves
- Someone steps on your favorite toy
Make the cloud appear by suddenly removing the tire valve
We can try anything we would like to wish it away but it doesn’t help. We can try counseling or talking to friends or professional people but it seldom makes the problem go away permanently. There is only one person that can really help. There IS someone who really and true loves us and can help lessen the pain.
Does anyone know what that someone is? JESUS IS THE ANSWER
Make the cloud go away by putting the tire valve back and beginning to pump again
Jesus loves you and can help you – Don’t leave Him or the cloud can come back
Release the pressure
Keep coming back to Jesus and He can help
Note: If you want to take this over the top, use 91% alcohol. At the very end you can say, “If you try to fix things yourself, THIS can happen”. With the cloud in the bottle, LIGHT the cloud (be careful of your hand) and watch a jet of flame shoot out and the bottle slightly warp from the heat. “Only Jesus can remove the cloud without hurting us.”
I’ve used this object lesson a few times. The last time I used it, I put a little too much alcohol in the bottle. So as I was explaining how there were other ways to calm the storm inside us like drugs or fantasy and so forth… Anyway, when I lit the cloud, it cleared the storm and then started to melt the bottle a little and my hand started getting a little hot. Fortunately the fire burned out before my fingers were damaged.. I just pretended that I meant to do that, turned the bottle upside right and held it out to the class and finished with something like, “But clearing your storm that way won’t leave you undamaged!”
Yes! I really like that. I found that you need the 91% alcohol to light it and cause the bottle to melt a bit. I tried with 50% and… alas… no bueno.
Yes. I used the 70 % the first time and it didn’t light either.