Centered
Children's sermon
Object:
a lazy Susan
"He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together." (v. 17)
Good morning, boys and girls! I brought something interesting to show you. Can anyone tell me what this is? (allow answers) What does it look like? (have children describe it) Have you seen one of these before? (allow answers) This is called a lazy Susan. It is a tray that spins if you push it. Many people put lazy Susans in their cupboards or pantries so that they can store food without losing it in the back of the cupboard and so that they can reach it more easily. Instead of climbing up and sorting through so many cans, they can spin the lazy Susan and see what is on the shelf. Lazy Susans are very convenient for peoples' kitchens!
Lazy Susans work because they are centered on something stable. The bottom part of the lazy Susan sits solidly on the shelf. The solid base allows the spinning tray to move without falling.
Our faith is like a lazy Susan. In order to do the work that God wants us to do, we need to be able to move. We need to know that we have a solid, safe base to rely on while we are busy doing God's work. Jesus is the center of our faith. He holds us safely like the base of this lazy Susan. We know we can trust in Jesus, and we know that he will not slip or wobble.
Why do we need a strong base? Because sometimes we feel like we are spinning too fast and too far from our center. Sometimes we get to the point that it seems nothing is going right and we have nowhere to turn. If we are spinning without a solid base, we have nowhere to turn when we get to this point! But if we trust in Jesus, the center of our faith, we know that we are not really hopeless. We can always turn to Jesus in times of trouble.
In fact, the very name of our faith reminds us that Jesus Christ is our center. "Christ" is the first part of "Christianity"! If we ever start to forget, that is our constant reminder of where we should place our trust. Although it might be like a lazy Susan, there's nothing lazy about putting our trust in Jesus. It takes dedication to do the work of God -- and it takes faith to be sure of Jesus, our solid foundation. Amen.
Good morning, boys and girls! I brought something interesting to show you. Can anyone tell me what this is? (allow answers) What does it look like? (have children describe it) Have you seen one of these before? (allow answers) This is called a lazy Susan. It is a tray that spins if you push it. Many people put lazy Susans in their cupboards or pantries so that they can store food without losing it in the back of the cupboard and so that they can reach it more easily. Instead of climbing up and sorting through so many cans, they can spin the lazy Susan and see what is on the shelf. Lazy Susans are very convenient for peoples' kitchens!
Lazy Susans work because they are centered on something stable. The bottom part of the lazy Susan sits solidly on the shelf. The solid base allows the spinning tray to move without falling.
Our faith is like a lazy Susan. In order to do the work that God wants us to do, we need to be able to move. We need to know that we have a solid, safe base to rely on while we are busy doing God's work. Jesus is the center of our faith. He holds us safely like the base of this lazy Susan. We know we can trust in Jesus, and we know that he will not slip or wobble.
Why do we need a strong base? Because sometimes we feel like we are spinning too fast and too far from our center. Sometimes we get to the point that it seems nothing is going right and we have nowhere to turn. If we are spinning without a solid base, we have nowhere to turn when we get to this point! But if we trust in Jesus, the center of our faith, we know that we are not really hopeless. We can always turn to Jesus in times of trouble.
In fact, the very name of our faith reminds us that Jesus Christ is our center. "Christ" is the first part of "Christianity"! If we ever start to forget, that is our constant reminder of where we should place our trust. Although it might be like a lazy Susan, there's nothing lazy about putting our trust in Jesus. It takes dedication to do the work of God -- and it takes faith to be sure of Jesus, our solid foundation. Amen.
