Here are a couple of ideas: invite the children forward to help lead the Lord’s Prayer wherever it occurs in your worship service. Invite the older children/youth to write one line about what they think each petition means and use that for the prayers of intercession or the prayers of the people.
*For a more “traditional” children’s sermon: Gather the children and ask them what are questions that they might have for God? Have a large piece of paper and a marker to write down their answers (or have a helper with you). Accept all answers (Pray for these things at the end). More than likely, some of these responses will connect somehow to the petitions in the Lord’s Prayer (the traditional version that we say, not necessarily the one in Luke.)Say: We ask God all kinds of things! Do you ever ask your mom, dad, grandma and grandpa etc, for things? Maybe dinner, or lunch, or help finding a toy? Yes! We all ask for help! God wants us to ask for help and for what we need.
God is always happy to hear from us which is why Jesus taught his disciples to pray! You can pray to God yourself, you don’t need an adult or a pastor to pray, you get to talk to God anytime you want about anything you want and God listens. And we can talk to God about all sorts of things Jesus says: food, God’s peace, our fears, forgiveness, help with a friend. We may always not hear an answer right away, but we know that God promises to hear us! Sometimes we hear God’s answer through other people, or reading the Bible or in all kinds of ways. Sometimes, Jesus says, we have to look in lots of places for God’s answer to us.
To help us remember the Lord’s Prayer and all of the different things that we can pray for, I made a colorful bookmark out of different colors of ribbon tied together that I keep in my Bible. At our worship station today, you can make one too!
Jesus, thank you for teaching us that God hears us always. Let us remember that we can talk to God about anything, anytime we want. (Pray for the items written on the large sheet.) We pray together the Lord’s Prayer now: (use whichever version is comfortable in your community.)
Have a table with the instructions available for all with ribbons cut into three inch lengths.
Lord’s Prayer in Color
Blue-“Our Father, who art in heaven’”
White-“Hallowed be thy name,”
Purple-“Thy kingdom come, thy will be done,”
Green-“On earth as it is in heaven.”
Brown (yellow beads)-“Give us this day our daily bread”
Red-“And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.”
Gold-“For thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory, forever and ever, amen.
Tie each color of ribbon together with a knot making a bookmark for your Bible or any book.
Use this to help you to remember to pray unceasingly!
(For the bracelets-string the beads on in order and then tie the bracelet on your wrist.)
+God hears your prayers+
