Children's Sermons

Children’s Sermon 2nd Sunday of Lent Feb. 24th Luke 13: 31-35

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FaithCross_BibleALTThis story is a difficult one and is not in most children’s Bibles. I would recommend paraphrasing and making the point of that the Pharisees warn Jesus to leave as Herod wants to hurt him but Jesus refuses to leave. Jesus wants to stay and be with the people and protect them. Jesus stays with us always and through Jesus we are all connected to one another. This is the main point of our children’s time for this text.

FaithCross_ConversationALT Have a large ball of string or yarn handy. Ask: Have you ever been somewhere like on vacation or visiting grandma or grandpa and you didn’t want to leave? You wanted to stay with the friends or family that you were visiting? Or have you gone to a really good friend’s house and didn’t want to go because you like being with that person so much? Well in our story today Jesus is told that he should leave town because the king Herod wants to hurt him. But Jesus says no to them. He says that he will stay right there in Jerusalem. Why do you think that Jesus would stay in a place where he might get hurt? (Accept all answers) Jesus stays in Jerusalem because in that city are people that God loves very much and Jesus would rather be with those people and be hurt than not be hurt and be away from them. Jesus wants to be with us-all of us-and will stay with us NO MATTER WHAT!

            Jesus is always with you! Now Jesus tells the people at the end of our Bible story today “You will not see me again until you say ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of The Lord.” What do you think that might mean? (Accept all answers) Those are all good ideas! Could it mean that we are sent by God to show God’s love to all of the people in our day? I think it might!  Because of Jesus love for us we are to show that love to other people. And that love connects us all to God and to one another. It’s a connection that we can’t really see but it may be something like this. Unroll the ball of yarn and give an end to a child and then have each child hold on to a piece of the yarn. Let the yarn weave in and out of the group. They do not have to be in a circle. Depending on the size of your congregation and how much yarn you have, pass the ball of yarn around your worship space to connect the adults and children together as well!

Look at all of the people in this room that you are connected to! People of all ages, from lots of different places and with lots of different ideas. How wonderful is that! God connects you to a group of people who love and care for one another! What are some ways that we can show friends at school or in our neighborhood that we are all connected by God’s love? Can we share what we have? Can we talk to a new person at school or sit with someone who is lonely at lunch? Can we shovel the sidewalk for a neighbor or read a book to a younger brother or sister? Yes those are all great ways to show God’s love!

FaithCross_PrayALTWhile we are all connected with this yarn let’s pray: Dear Jesus, thank you for being with us all the time. Thank you for loving us all and send us to show love to all of our family members, friends, and eve those we don’t know. Hold us in your loving arms, amen.

FaithCross_BlessALTMake the sign of the cross on each child and say “You are a blessing to God’s world.” 

Faith + Home Connection

Faith + Home Connection March John13: 1-17, 31b-35

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FaithCross_BibleALTGather the household to a spot where are all comfortable. Maybe the dinner table, the family room or a child’s room. Read the story of John 13: 1-17, 31b-35, “Jesus washes the disciples’ feet” from a favorite early reader Bible or children’s Bible.  This Bible story is traditional read at Maundy Thursday worship services. Have a bowl of water, a wash rag and a towel handy.

FaithCross_ConversationALT As you read or tell the story take the time to stop and wash the hands of those in your home. In Jesus’ time feet would get dirty as one went about one’s day. In our culture and time hands are far more likely to be dirty and need washing. Use a favorite scented soap. After you have washed each other’s hands and finished the story talk about the points below or add your own thoughts!

For children: We take care of things that are very important to us. We clean our toys if they get dirty, clean our rooms, our clothes, shoes, etc. Jesus washes the disciples feet, does Jesus think that the disciples are important to God? Jesus says to love one another as Jesus has loved us. Jesus cares for us and takes care of us-how should we treat our friends, families and neighbors? How can we show people that we love them like God loves them? Can we give food to people who are hungry? Can we talk to someone who is sitting by themselves at lunch? Can we share with our friends or siblings?

For youth and adults: Sometimes it’s difficult to talk about the importance of God in our lives. Even as a pastor I find this not always easy! But Jesus says in verse 35 that people will know where are hearts are, with God, by how we treat other people and how we talk to others. Clearly our actions can be louder than our words. But how could we talk about our faith in a non-threatening and natural way? An idea could be to just say, “when I was talking to a friend at my church yesterday….” or “it was so fun and meaningful how my church collected 100 toothbrushes for children in need….” or just be excited about whatever your church community is doing! Practice it now and then talk to friends and neighbors and invite them to Holy Week or Easter worship!* 

FaithCross_PrayALTCleansing God, we are so grateful that you wash us with your care and love. We pray to be this same love in our church, families and community.  Send us to the ones who need to be shown your love. In the name of your Son who showed us your love, amen.

 FaithCross_BlessALT Make the sign of the cross after everyone’s hands have been washed : You are loved and have been made clean.

 FaithCross_ConnectALT Lent is a natural time to reach out to the neighborhood around us. To connect your Maundy Thursday worship with loving one another and Jesus instituting Holy Communion have worshipers bring a non-perishable food item for a local food bank or pantry. As you celebrate Holy Communion and Christ’s presence in this service, bless the food that will nourish the bodies of those in need. Thank you for showing God’s love to others!

*Lutheran Church of the Master in Lakewood, CO is currently focusing on invitation to the neighborhood. Visit www.lcmonline.org for more info.

Children's Sermons

Children’s Sermon Transfiguration of Our Lord, Luke 9:28-36

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ffjChildrenSermonPrepare:  Bring some kind of party decoration, preferably something that marks a change in your life, like a graduation, marriage, retirement, etc.  Note that you will need to modify parts of this children’s sermon to fit your party and your experience.

Faith+Open:  Have your party item out and easy to see as you gather the children together.  Ask the children if they have ever been to a party, be ready to hear a few stories and move on.

Faith+Share:  Wow, those sound like some great parties!  I wanted to tell you a little about a party that I was at once.  (Here is where you will need to think about your own situation.  I will write what I would say.)  This says ”Congrats Grad!”  What do you think it’s from?  Right, a graduation!  I was thinking about my college graduation and all the fun I had celebrating that day.  That party was celebrating more than a single event, the graduation itself, but also all that had come before and all that lay ahead.  See, you can only get to a college graduation by staying in school and working really hard, so it’s fun to celebrate all that work that was put in.  Even more, though, a college graduation celebrates all the possibilities that are to come!  Graduating from college was great fun, too.  We had parties, and I got to spend time with my family and some good friends, I even got some gifts, and everybody likes gifts!  I didn’t want all that fun to end.

In our Gospel story today Jesus takes Peter, John and James to an amazing event.  We call the Transfiguration.  Peter, John and James see Jesus talking with Moses and Elijah.  They see their friend and teaching in a dazzling new way, and they don’t want to leave that place or that moment.  They want to stay right there, they even offer to build houses to live so they never have to leave.  They even hear the voice of God claim Jesus as God’s Son!  But they can’t stay there.  Just like I had to move on from the fun of graduation, they have to go back to their lives, back to the ministry that they are part of with Jesus.

So, kind of like a graduation, Jesus transfiguration marks a moment of change.  Jesus is claimed by God and is ready to start the next part of his life.  Peter, John and James see Jesus in a new way, and as much as they want to stay in that moment they have to move on, but they move on with a new way of understanding Jesus, and a new excitement about the things to come.  This Sunday, for us, marks the beginning of the journey toward Easter, and we, too, should move forward with excitement!

Faith+Prayer: Ever changing and amazing God, we thank you for the transfiguration of Jesus on the mountain, and for the turning points in our own lives.  Help us to celebrate these turning points and to move forward with our lives with excitement and joy.  Amen.

Faith+Blessing:  Shine with God’s light so that all may see God’s Glory.

~GB

Permission to use for nonprofit. When printing give credit to Faith Formation Journeys. Intellectual property rights apply.

Children's Sermons

Children’s Sermon 4th Sunday after Epiphany, John 4:21-30 –or- 1 Corinthians 13:1-13

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ffjChildrenSermonNOTE: This children’s sermon could be adapted for many different Sundays and readings.

Faith+Open:  Find a way to enter into the worship space that gives you a little time to walk before you invite the children to join you.  Sing “Zippity Do Dah” as you walk in.  Here’s a link to a youtube video – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcxYwwIL5zQ

Faith+Share:  Have you ever heard that song before?  Uncle Remis, the character that sang that song, was singing it as a prayer of thanks for a beautiful day.  Well, I have a prayer that I call the “Zippity Do Dah Prayer” that I think might go well with the readings that we have today.  The Zippity Do Dah Prayers is a prayer of thanks for the good things that are happening, like love and hope and joy.  It is also a great prayer to help us look at the good things that are happening and help us to let go of some of the bad things.

I thought of it when I read the story about Jesus that we hear today.  Jesus is in his hometown and he says things that are true, but that make the people who live there really upset.  I mean really upset, they decided that they should throw him off a cliff because they were so mad.  Then something amazing happens, Jesus just walks through the angry crowd of people and walks away.  He leaves the anger behind him and continues his ministry somewhere else.

Now, the Zippity Do Dah prayer has some important parts.  First is the position – prayers often have a special position like folded hands, or kneeling.  For this one, you lie down on your back, cross your ankles and put your hands behind your head, like this.

The second thing is that this is a prayer of thanks!  No “Lord help me,” just thanks.  Thank God for different things, something like, “Good morning, God, I hope you are having a good day.  I sure am thankful for . . . “ and fill in what you are thankful for.  Then at the end say, “I’ll talk to you again soon, Amen!”

Let’s try it!  We’ll all lie down in the prayer position and I’ll start, then we can all say 1 or 2 things that we are thankful for.  It’s ok if we all talk at the same time.

Faith+Prayer:   (use the prayer, then invite the children to sing “Zippity Do Dah” as they go back to their seats.

Faith+Blessing:  Shine with God’s light so that all may see God’s Glory.

Special thanks to my friend Randy Williams for this prayer and the idea to use it as a children’s sermon.

~GB

Permission to use for nonprofit. When printing give credit to Faith Formation Journeys. Intellectual property rights apply.

Let us walk with you on the journey of faith. Whether your feet are big or small, fresh or worn, running or crawling, God's love goes with you and you stand on holy ground.