Tag Archives: Sharing God’s love

On the Road Again Luke 10:13-35 Easter 3A, April 30, 2017

April 24, 2017 bw Leave a comment

Gather the children in the back of your worship space. Ask them what they know about what was celebrated on Easter and what they know about the morning that the women found the tomb empty. As you are talking, begin to walk to wherever your font is in your space. Be sure that the children are following you. Keep talking until you get to the font. At the font, say, “We come together every Sunday to tell each other about Jesus in our lives. When we baptize people (children, babies and adults), we tell them how much God loves them and is with them forever. We also talk about how we are going to keep learning about God’s love through the Bible, The Ten Commandments, The Apostles’ Creed, The Lord’s Prayer, worship, and Holy Communion.” Then ask them what they know about Jesus from the Bible and begin walking toward the table. When you get to the table, say, “We know a lot about Jesus from the Bible, but in bread and wine, Jesus is known to us in real and concrete way! Give them all bread to eat (if this is a concern as it might look like communion for children who do not yet receive just hold up the bread). Jesus is truly with us just like this bread is truly with us!”

In our Bible story today, some disciples were walking and talking about Jesus’ death and resurrection. A man joined them and began to tell them about what the Bible said about Jesus’ and God’s love. But they didn’t know it was Jesus until they were sitting at dinner with him and he blessed bread and gave it to them to eat! They had been talking to Jesus that whole day! Even though they didn’t know it and they were sad about Jesus dying, Jesus was with them, even as they walked to a different town! Jesus is with us no matter where we walk, drive, ride our bikes or run. Jesus promises to be with us. We can talk to each other about Jesus no matter where we are too!

Everywhere our feet go, Jesus is there! Have different colors of construction paper, pencils, markers and scissors available. Invite people to trace their feet, cut out the tracings, write or draw how they know Jesus is with them in their daily lives, or how they experience the presence of Jesus in their daily lives. Hang them on a wall, or a bulletin board for a week and then invite them to take them home as a reminder.

Dear Jesus, you walk with us no matter where we go. Open our eyes to see you in our midst. Open our ears to hear your words of promise and love. Open our hearts to share the story of the good news of your death and resurrection that is for all people in all times and in all places. Give us your Holy Spirit to renew us for the journey. Amen.

+Jesus is risen indeed!+

Children's Sermons

God Knows Your Name Luke 10: 1-11, 16-20 Seventh Sunday after Pentecost, July 3rd, 2016 Year C

June 30, 2016 bw 2 Comments

As you have the children come forward have a large piece of butcher paper and numerous crayons available on the floor. Invite them to write their name on the butcher paper as you begin. (Just first names are fine for time sake.) Say, “When you meet someone for the first time, what’s usually the first thing you tell someone about yourself? Yes, your name! Our names are very important and they help other people talk to us, call us on the phone, email us, send us a card or even a present! Without our names, life could be very confusing, couldn’t it? Our names help people remember what is special about us and us about them. Do we learn and remember names of people who we don’t see very often? No, it’s hard to know the names of people who we don’t go to school with, live in our neighborhood or have never even met! But we learn the names of people who are important to us and we see a lot in our lives. Knowing someone’s name is a way to say “I care about you!”

In our story today, Jesus sends the disciples out to all kinds of different towns and cities where they will meet all kinds of different people. Jesus reminds the disciples and us, that the most important thing to remember as we go along in our life meeting new people, learning new things, and telling people about God is that God knows our name, everything about us and says that we belong to God. When people don’t like you, or don’t want to even meet you, even though that’s hard, it’s ok because God knows you and your name and says “I care about you!” When we baptize babies, children or adults, we say their name because we know that God is saying that we all belong to God, God knows us and promises to always call us by name to God.

Besides learning people’s names, how can we tell people that God cares for them? (Accept all answers.) There are all sorts of ways to show God’s love! A few ways we do that as a church are….(Fill in with ministries of your congregation). And you are never too little, young or old to help in one of those activities! As you go back to your seat, I want you to draw a heart around someone else’s name (not your own) to show that God cares for them.

(Invite the children and the whole congregation to join hands for the prayer. Have everyone hold their hands out with thumbs to the left. Then when you join hands, you are supporting someone’s hand and someone else is supporting you. The true meaning of community!) Dear Jesus, thank you for caring for us. You know our names and everything about us. Help us to share you love and care with our friends, with our families and with people that we meet. May your peace fill us and the whole earth. Amen.

Take the sheet of butcher paper with the children’s names on it from children’s sermon and place it on a table with more crayons, markers, etc. Have people write their own name as well as draw a heart around someone else’s name. Invite the congregation to pray for the person whose name they drew a heart around. And to try and meet them if they don’t already know each other!

+God knows your name and cares for you+

Children's Sermons

Matthew 4: 12-23 Children’s Sermon Year A January 26th, 2014

January 23, 2014 bw 1 Comment

Start from the back or side of your worship space (whatever makes sense but just not from where you usually gather the children). Call the children to come to you. As they come move closer to the doors or area that leads out of your building. (If you have cordless mics you will be able to go further but be aware that you want the adults to hear this as well.)

Ask the children: “Why do you think we are by the back doors and not up front where we usually are with the altar and the candles?” (Accept all answers) “Well, in today’s Bible story we see Jesus calling people to follow him and to help him tell the whole world about God. Does Jesus tell only pastors or priests to follow him? No, he tells ordinary fisherman to help him talk about God’s love for the world. Does Jesus tell the fisherman to go to the temple or the church in Jerusalem? No, he tells them to follow him out into the world with all kinds of people. This is what Jesus means by “fishing for people.” The fishermen didn’t actually throw nets on people and drag them to Jesus. But Jesus knows that showing love “catches” people and lights up their lives with God’s love and care.”

“Does Jesus ask us to follow him, too? Should we only tell people here in this church about Jesus and not anyone else or should we tell everyone who is outside of these doors (point to the back doors)? Jesus knows that all of us have a special way to tell others about God and that we don’t need special powers or to have read special books to know how to talk about God. All we have to do is to talk about God in our own words. We don’t need any special powers or classes; God says that God will help us. God’s love lights up our lives and we want that light to be everywhere for everyone. So let’s move our candles by/on the altar to the doors to remind us that we are to take God’s love and light to the whole world every day and in every place that we go.” (Have some adults prepped to help move candles or if your altar candles don’t move have some special candles on the altar this day that can go by the door. Or have some tables by the doors and lots of votive candles for each child to move from the altar to the door.)

“God of love and light, you ask us to share your love with the whole world. May we share your love at school, work, piano lesson, baseball, soccer, volleyball,____, and all places in our day. In Jesus name, amen.”

“God’s light is with you always.”

Children's Sermons

Children’s sermon Epiphany 2, Jan. 19th, 2014, John 1: 29-42 Year A

January 16, 2014 bw 2 Comments

Gather the children around you. Have some sort of treasure with you (maybe a neat rock, or something special that you found). Ask the children if they have ever found something that was really cool and exciting. Maybe it was a rock, a bird feather, or an animal. What did you do when you found it? Did you keep the excitement to yourself? No, you went and told your mom or dad or a brother or a sister. Why did you do that? (Accept all answers) Was it to have that person share in your excitement and to see with you what you found? It’s much more fun to share exciting things with other people than just by yourself isn’t it?

In today’s story from the Bible, John the Baptist sees Jesus and points him out to other people around him. One of those people is Andrew, a friend of John. Andrew is so excited about Jesus and the first thing he does is find his brother Simon and tell him about Jesus! Andrew tells his brother that he has found God’s son. Simon is also excited and goes with Andrew to see Jesus.

Have you ever told anyone about Jesus? A friend or a family member? What would you tell someone about Jesus if they had never heard of him? Jesus shows us what about God? (Accept all answers) These are all wonderful things aren’t they? These things are exciting enough to tell people about! But it can be hard can’t it? So let’s practice right now (invite everyone in the congregation to join in!) telling people about why Jesus is good news and exciting for our world.

Find someone in the worship space to tell about why you are excited about Jesus in your life. (Have the kids find someone in the chairs/pews and invite the adults to leave their seats to talk to someone new if they would like.) You can also word it differently: maybe ask how they have experienced the love of Jesus in their week.

Invite the congregation to join hands as one people of God and pray: Dear God, thank you for sending Jesus to show us your love. Help us to share the excitement of your love and forgiveness with the world. In the name of Jesus, amen.

Make the sign of the cross on each other’s hands and say: May you see Jesus in your life today.

*Thanks to Rob Moss for the idea!

Children's Sermons, Communications

May 5, 2013: Children’s sermon Acts 16: 9-15 6th Sunday of Easter

April 29, 2013 bw Leave a comment

Bring the children either to the back of the worship space or another spot but not up front or where you usually gather for the children’s message. Have a simple map (hand drawn is fine!) of the worship space. Also have a simple compass on the map.

What do I have here? (a map, guide, picture of the worship space, etc.). Yes, this picture or map shows me what the space looks like and how maybe best to walk around in here. It guides me to where I need to go!

In today’s story Paul and and some of his friends were traveling all over the region. Paul and other early Christians traveled quite a bit to tell other people about Jesus and God’s love and forgiveness for the whole world. God came to Paul in a vision, like a dream, and told him to go to a distant place where people needed to hear about Jesus. Paul went and when these people heard about Jesus and how much Jesus loved them, they believed in God and were baptized to show the whole world that they were a child of God. Paul didn’t go there because PAUL thought it was a good idea-Paul and his friends went because God led them there and told them to go. God was like Paul’s map or guide. Paul wasn’t on his own but had God with him and all of his friends with him. God makes sure that we have people with us so that we are not alone.

Let’s use this map to walk from here the back of the room to the front of the room (or whatever you want to do). On our way let’s see who will join us on our journey. (Weave your way through the congregation and every now and again stop and tell someone “Jesus loves you. Come with us!” Gather the larger group at the front or even by the font.

Wherever we go we can share God’s love and not worry because God will guide us! What are ways that you can share God’s love at school, on the playground or at soccer practice, etc.?

Pray: God you guide us everyday throughout our whole lives. Thank you for being with us always. We will tell everyone we meet about you and your love! Amen.

God is with you always. (Make the sign of the cross on one another.)

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.