Tonight I was working on my children's sermon for tomorrow, and thought I'd share with you a FREE Printable Advent Calendar from Sermons4Kids.com. Tomorrow begins the first day of Advent and the first day of December. That doesn't happen very often! Your child can color a star each day on the Advent Calendar until Christmas Day! Enjoy my friends!
Showing posts with label Children's Sermons. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Children's Sermons. Show all posts
Saturday, November 30, 2013
Monday, December 31, 2012
Packing Away Baby Jesus (Children's Sermon)
A few weeks ago, I was having a conversation with one of our church members. She shared with me a story from when her daughter was a little girl. It was the same time of year as it is now...when Christmas had just ended. While at church, she asked, "Mommy, are they going to pack Baby Jesus away until next Christmas?". Wow. Out of the mouth of babes...
As you pack away your nativity and other Christmas decorations this year--be mindful to not pack away the meaning of Christmas with it. Jesus is definitely the reason for the Christmas season---but we should share Jesus, love Jesus and talk to Jesus everyday of the year!
"Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage--with great patience and careful instruction." 2 Timothy 4:2
Monday, May 14, 2012
Restored
I hope all of you fellow moms out there had a great Mother's Day! Last year my Mother's Day was a bit of a "doozie". It's been a year now, and I can finally bring myself to talk about it. ;) Typically, most favorite thing on Mother's Day is to enjoy a picnic in the great outdoors with my husband and two boys. I like to find a big oak tree, spread out a big quilt, eat sandwiches, and drink IBC Rootbeer. (Chocolate is also involved!) Last Mother's Day before leaving for the park--we had a bit of an incident. The picnic basket and cooler were packed. I went to put them in our mini-van, but then realized that I didn't have the keys. So, I left them behind the van while I went inside to get them--but somewhere along the way the whole idea of getting keys and putting our picnic in the van got lost. When my dear husband asked if I was ready to go, I said, "Sure, go ahead and back the van out of the garage."
I think you can guess what happened. I was still inside when the travesty occured. My husband came inside, first telling me no one had been hurt. (Okay, I was glad for that.) But I could tell that whatever it was, it wasn't good. After my husband told me that he had crushed the picnic basket, I remained calm-since I realize Mother's Day is all about just being with my family and I just said, "That's okay, honey, you didn't mean to." I pretty much freaked out. Even though my husband was not at fault, I really needed someone to blame.
You see, this picnic basket is pretty special. My sweet hubby bought it from a crafter in the mountains of N.C. when we were dating and we took lots of picnics together. There are ring stains on the top of it that I cherish because they are from where we put our drinks when we used it like a table. (Back when it was just the two of us.) I was just so devastated that our beloved picnic basket was ruined. In my frustration, I lifted the lid of our big trash can to throw away the obviously unrepairable object. My husband stopped me. He said, "Letha, your daddy can fix this." I really had not considered that--and wasn't sure it was possible. I just left it there on the garage floor.
Later, I did give my dad the picnic basket. It was in shambles. I really wish I had taken a "before" picture. My dad is pretty amazing. He was able to use all the same parts, and lots of wood glue to repair it. There was one tiny piece of wood he never found (it's probably lodged in the rear bumber of our van). He added a few screws, and ta-da! My dad restored my picnic basket. It now works like it was intended to. I'm so glad I did not give up and throw it in the trash!
I think you can guess what happened. I was still inside when the travesty occured. My husband came inside, first telling me no one had been hurt. (Okay, I was glad for that.) But I could tell that whatever it was, it wasn't good. After my husband told me that he had crushed the picnic basket,
You see, this picnic basket is pretty special. My sweet hubby bought it from a crafter in the mountains of N.C. when we were dating and we took lots of picnics together. There are ring stains on the top of it that I cherish because they are from where we put our drinks when we used it like a table. (Back when it was just the two of us.) I was just so devastated that our beloved picnic basket was ruined. In my frustration, I lifted the lid of our big trash can to throw away the obviously unrepairable object. My husband stopped me. He said, "Letha, your daddy can fix this." I really had not considered that--and wasn't sure it was possible. I just left it there on the garage floor.
Later, I did give my dad the picnic basket. It was in shambles. I really wish I had taken a "before" picture. My dad is pretty amazing. He was able to use all the same parts, and lots of wood glue to repair it. There was one tiny piece of wood he never found (it's probably lodged in the rear bumber of our van). He added a few screws, and ta-da! My dad restored my picnic basket. It now works like it was intended to. I'm so glad I did not give up and throw it in the trash!
My smashed and broken basket reminded me of how we are sometimes. Our souls hurt. Our souls are burdened. (Maybe if feels like the weight of a mini-van) Our souls are sinful. We come unglued. (Like I did last Mother's Day.) God wants to restore us. He wants to make our souls right with Him. He is the God of all Comfort.
"...He restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for His name's sake."
Psalm 23: 3
You see, this picnic basket is pretty special. My husband bought it when we were dating. It is handcrafted by a mountaineer in N.C. It has seen many a delicious picnic. And to make it even more beautiful-- it was crushed by our mini-van, then beautifully and lovingly restored by my daddy.
Sunday, April 1, 2012
April Fools!
It doesn't happen very often that April Fools Day falls on a Sunday. I thought it would be great to play an April Fool's funny on my children during the Children's Sermon (along with the adults in the audience).
As I began my time with the children, I took the microphone and told the children I thought that today I'd sing them a song. (Note: I have NEVER sang a solo in our church...not even close! I don't even sing in the choir. The only people who get to hear me sing are the sweet 3 and 4 year olds I teach on Sunday mornings.)
I nodded to our pianist (we had this all worked out!) and she gave the introduction for "How Great Thou Art". (How's that for my first solo?) At the moment when I should've sang the first note--I said, "April Fools!". Everyone laughed in relief! It was a lot of fun to do that. I tell you, though, I was so nervous! It made me shaky just pretending like I was going to sing a song!!
I went on in my Children's Sermon to talk about expectations and Palm Sunday. I asked the children if they expected me to sing. Do you know that many of them said "no"!? (I think they've heard me in Sunday School!) I shared with them that what most people expected of Jesus was not the way God had planned. Jesus' birth, life, Triumphal Entry, death and resurrection were all carried out in an unexpected way. I am so thankful that God's plan was exactly how it was. (Scripture I used today: Zechariah 9:9, John 12:16)
I'm sure our congregation is still breathing a sigh of relief that their preacher's wife did not attempt to sing today! THAT was a MUCH better plan, trust me!! :)
As I began my time with the children, I took the microphone and told the children I thought that today I'd sing them a song. (Note: I have NEVER sang a solo in our church...not even close! I don't even sing in the choir. The only people who get to hear me sing are the sweet 3 and 4 year olds I teach on Sunday mornings.)
I nodded to our pianist (we had this all worked out!) and she gave the introduction for "How Great Thou Art". (How's that for my first solo?) At the moment when I should've sang the first note--I said, "April Fools!". Everyone laughed in relief! It was a lot of fun to do that. I tell you, though, I was so nervous! It made me shaky just pretending like I was going to sing a song!!
I went on in my Children's Sermon to talk about expectations and Palm Sunday. I asked the children if they expected me to sing. Do you know that many of them said "no"!? (I think they've heard me in Sunday School!) I shared with them that what most people expected of Jesus was not the way God had planned. Jesus' birth, life, Triumphal Entry, death and resurrection were all carried out in an unexpected way. I am so thankful that God's plan was exactly how it was. (Scripture I used today: Zechariah 9:9, John 12:16)
I'm sure our congregation is still breathing a sigh of relief that their preacher's wife did not attempt to sing today! THAT was a MUCH better plan, trust me!! :)
Monday, February 6, 2012
Children's Sermon: "Who really obeyed?"
*NOTE: For about the last 7 years, I have given a children's sermon almost every Sunday. Most of the ideas I have are from another source, and I usually just "tweak" them to fit my context. Every once-in-a-while God will just give it to me. Other times (like for this children's sermon), my preacher husband and I will work on one together. I plan to start a section on my blog (see "labels") just for Children's Sermons. Feel free to use them or share them with someone who leads this ministry in your church.*
Who Really Obeyed?
Matthew 21: 28-31a
I told the boys and girls I felt confident they always obeyed their parents when it comes to room cleaning--but, for today, we were just going to pretend that some of them don't always obey. ;) I used 2 children from our group as an example. In a "pretend" situation, both children were asked by their mom to clean their room. In our pretend story, the first child refused to clean the room, but then later changed their mind and cleaned their room. The second child told their mom they would clean their room, but never actually did.
Which child actually obeyed? "The first child!", the children exclaimed.
I went on to share with the children: "Obey all the way, right away, with the right heart attitude." (These words of wisdom I learned before I became a mom aren't just for kids...it work for teenagers and adults as well. ALL of us should have this attitude when it comes to obeying our Heavenly Father!)
I read the first part of "The Parable of the Two Sons". (When it came to the part where Jesus asked, "Which of the two did what his father wanted?" a little girl shouted out, "The first one!" I said, "Yes! and that's just what the people in the Bible story said, too!") I shared with the children that Jesus was speaking to the Pharisees. These people were a lot of "talk", but not a lot of doing when it came to obedience. Jesus shared with Pharisees that the greatest of sinners who had turned from their sin would be entering the Kingdom of Heaven ahead of them!
I led the children in prayer, thanking God that we can turn away from our sin, follow Him and be forgiven.
I went on to share with the children: "Obey all the way, right away, with the right heart attitude." (These words of wisdom I learned before I became a mom aren't just for kids...it work for teenagers and adults as well. ALL of us should have this attitude when it comes to obeying our Heavenly Father!)
I read the first part of "The Parable of the Two Sons". (When it came to the part where Jesus asked, "Which of the two did what his father wanted?" a little girl shouted out, "The first one!" I said, "Yes! and that's just what the people in the Bible story said, too!") I shared with the children that Jesus was speaking to the Pharisees. These people were a lot of "talk", but not a lot of doing when it came to obedience. Jesus shared with Pharisees that the greatest of sinners who had turned from their sin would be entering the Kingdom of Heaven ahead of them!
I led the children in prayer, thanking God that we can turn away from our sin, follow Him and be forgiven.
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