Faith Formation Journeys

Walking Together in Grace

Tag: faith

  • Children’s Sermon 12th Sunday After Pentecost (Lec. 19), Genesis 15:1-6 and Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16, August 11, 2013

    Children’s Sermon 12th Sunday After Pentecost (Lec. 19), Genesis 15:1-6 and Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16, August 11, 2013

    Prepare:  Bring a tent.  It does not need to be set up, it can just be a tent in a bag.

    20130715-114218.jpg  Talk a little about your tent as the children gather, when you got it, why you got it, how often you use it (this is the important one).  Ask them if they have tents at home.

    FaithCross  Today we hear about Abraham and Sarah in two different readings.  Abraham and Sarah lived in a tent!  It wasn’t just a fun thing to do on the weekend, it was their house.  Actually, they probably had several tents, because they had a big household.  There were two of them, then they had many servants to help them, because Abraham and Sarah had a whole bunch of animals.  It was kind of like a moving farm.

    So, they had tents, they had servants, they even had animals, but do you know what they didn’t have?  They didn’t have any children!  This was a problem because Abraham had all these things, he was really kind of rich for when and where he lived, but there would be no one to take over his herds and tents when he died.  What made Abraham even more upset was that God had promised that he would have a son to take over the herds, but now Abraham was old, much too old to have children, and so was his wife Sarah.  So, he complained to God about it.  Do any of you do that sometimes?  I know that I do.  I usually don’t get very far when I complain to God, but for Abraham God showed up and said, “Don’t you remember what I promised?”  God promised Abraham again that he would have a son, and that his descendants would be as many as the stars in heaven!

    Abraham and Sarah kept their faith in God’s promise and God gave them a son!  Abraham had to wait a long time for God’s promise.  We, too, should keep our faith in God, and hold on to God’s promise of love and grace and mercy for us in our lives.

    FaithCross_PrayALT  Gracious God, we rejoice in your promise of love, mercy and grace.  Help us to stay faithful to you like Abraham and Sarah did, and keep your faith in us like you kept your faith in Abraham. Amen.

    FaithCross_BlessALT  In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit you are loved by God. (have children repeat this)

    ~GB

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  • Children’s Sermon July 1, 2012, Mark 5:21-43 – 5th Sunday after Pentecost

    Scripture Focus: Mark 5:21-43

    Preparation: Get an alb or robe sized for a child. It doesn’t have to be a perfect fit, the child will just stand in one place.

    Faith+Open: Invite the children to gather together and ask for a volunteer to wear the robe. Once they have it on have them turn and face the other children and away from you. Ask the child to tell you when you touch robe.

    Faith+Share: That was pretty tricky, wasn’t it? In the gospel story that we hear today, Jesus does something even more amazing! But first, let’s finish talking about the robe. Jesus is surrounded by a crowd of people, all of them are trying to touch him because they believe that Jesus can heal them and make them feel better. Jesus notices when one woman touches him, and he stops to look for her. Pretty amazing, but not as amazing as what happens next.

    You see, Jesus was walking through the crowd to get to someone’s house, his name is Jairus. Jairus’ daughter was dying and Jairus knew that if he could get Jesus to come to his house that Jesus would save his daughter. He had faith in Jesus. Well, at the same time, a woman who had been very sick for years and years knew that Jesus was going to be walking through the town. She knew that if she could just touch Jesus’ robe that she would be healed. She had faith in Jesus, too. She pushed her way through the crowd and touched his robe, and Jesus stopped, not because he felt her touch the robe, but because he felt power go out of him. He felt the woman get healed! She was very scared to talk to Jesus, because she thought that she had done something wrong, but Jesus was kind and blessed her. But, in the time that Jesus stopped to talk to the woman, Jairus’ daughter died. Jesus continued to the house anyway and brought her back to life.

    Now, all that sounds pretty amazing, and it is amazing, but there is still something even better in the story. It doesn’t matter how we come to Jesus, he still takes time to listen to us and care for us! Jairus was afraid for his daughter, but was not afraid to ask Jesus for help. He went right up to Jesus and asked . . . well, maybe he more pleaded and begged, but he was not afraid to talk to Jesus. The woman, on the other hand, thought that she was not worth Jesus’ time, and thought she would just sneak up without being noticed. Then she was afraid when Jesus turned to find her. Jesus cares for each of us in the same way. He listens when we pray and ask for help. He looks for us when we need help and don’t know how to ask.

    Faith+Prayer: Loving God, thank you for listening when we pray, and thank you for loving and caring for us even when we don’t know how to pray. Give us faith like Jairus and the woman so that we are never afraid to come to you when we need help. Amen

    Faith+Blessing: May your eyes be opened to see all the amazing works of God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

    – GB