Too much for me!
Children's Activity
Object:
Teachers or Parents: The lessons today are about
understanding. The first lesson (Romans 7:15-25a) is about
understanding our own actions -- especially sin. The Gospel
lesson is about understanding God -- specifically God's love. A
basket is used in both children's sermons.
*Make a small basket as a class project. Talk about how our understanding of many things is like a basket that can hold so much. Then talk about the limits of understanding God.
*Write on the board questions children have about God. "Who can we ask or where can we go to get answers?" Check out those resources.
*Some things are beyond our understanding: What does "forever" look like? What was before "the beginning" of all creation? How can it be that if I took a precisely-measured half-step to the wall and halved the next step so that I am now twice as close to the wall as before, I would never reach the wall? (Admittedly, these may be way beyond the children's understanding, but they have things they cannot understand -- many things -- and would like to hear that there are respected adults, like yourself, who also do not understand all things.)
*Faith is about trusting God even when God is incomprehensible. An illustration of this is flying. "How many of you have flown in an airplane?" "Do you understand how many tons of metal and people can become airborne?" "Does that keep you from flying anyway?"
Activities for alternative children's sermon:
*Illustrate other kinds of "overload" (this would work for the alternative children's sermon as well) such as overloading circuits with a plug in or the story of the camel loaded with so much that when the master put on just one more thing -- a straw - - it broke the camel's back.
*Close all eyes and imagine Jesus taking away our worries and fears. "Jesus is like that. He wants to help us any way he can."
*Make a small basket as a class project. Talk about how our understanding of many things is like a basket that can hold so much. Then talk about the limits of understanding God.
*Write on the board questions children have about God. "Who can we ask or where can we go to get answers?" Check out those resources.
*Some things are beyond our understanding: What does "forever" look like? What was before "the beginning" of all creation? How can it be that if I took a precisely-measured half-step to the wall and halved the next step so that I am now twice as close to the wall as before, I would never reach the wall? (Admittedly, these may be way beyond the children's understanding, but they have things they cannot understand -- many things -- and would like to hear that there are respected adults, like yourself, who also do not understand all things.)
*Faith is about trusting God even when God is incomprehensible. An illustration of this is flying. "How many of you have flown in an airplane?" "Do you understand how many tons of metal and people can become airborne?" "Does that keep you from flying anyway?"
Activities for alternative children's sermon:
*Illustrate other kinds of "overload" (this would work for the alternative children's sermon as well) such as overloading circuits with a plug in or the story of the camel loaded with so much that when the master put on just one more thing -- a straw - - it broke the camel's back.
*Close all eyes and imagine Jesus taking away our worries and fears. "Jesus is like that. He wants to help us any way he can."
