Login / Signup

Free Access

Fighting Racism Is A Big Job, But So Was The Great Commission

Children's sermon
Children are acutely tuned to pick up on disturbances. Even if we think they have not seen an image of a protestor or heard us talking about the unrest in the world, they know something is up. Not talking to kids about times of social unrest is not an option. Even if they do not see it this time they will encounter it at some point. We live in a country that allows protests, which is a great thing! We need to give them context to why and how so they can interpret the things they see and hear appropriately.

In your lesson say something like:

I wanted to talk to you about a word you may be hearing, that word is “racism.” Racism is when people are treated differently because of the color of their skin. There used to be stores that only people with light colored, or white skin, could go in to (if you have a personal memory of a “whites only” space this is a great time to share. Consider also sharing how you felt surprised, angry, etc). That was unfair to people who did not have white skin. Unfortunately, there is still racism in our world and that has made a lot of people mad these past few weeks.

You may have heard that these mad people are protesting. Protesting is something very important in America. Protesting is a way for us to let people who make the rules know we do not like something. Protesting is usually a group of people with signs who stand or march around a special area, but sometimes people get so angry they make bad choices. They sometimes break things or steal things. That has happened this week too, which makes for some really scary pictures on TV.

What I want you to know is that your parents and the adults in this church will do everything we can to keep you safe. If you are feeling scared ask questions. Sometimes we are scared because we do not know what is happening. Then our imaginations go wild with what if and what does that mean and what happens next. This is not the first time protests have happened and not the first time we have had to talk about racism. Ask an adult what they feel and think and know and don't be afraid to tell them if you are scared.

If you are feeling angry, maybe you have a friend who is black who you care about and do not want them to be bullied by a racist, a great thing you can do is listen. Ask your friend what it is like to be treated differently. Listening to their story without talking shows them we care and helps us understand a different experience.

Getting rid of racism in the world can feel like a really big job. Adults have been trying to get rid of it for hundreds of years! We have made progress but there is still a long way to go. It can feel like a huge problem to solve, but there are people in the Bible who know what that is like. Jesus asked a group of people to go out in the world and tell people about him. At the time it was a huge task! Only a few people knew about Jesus then and Jesus wanted the whole world to know his name. It was a big job. But think about today’s world, it is actually much harder today to find someone who has not heard about Jesus. That means those people did a great job spreading the news about Jesus. They told as many people as they could, and those people told more people until we get to today. That gives us a lot of hope that we can change the world too, just by starting with a few people.

Let’s pray together.

Amazing God, getting rid of racism is a big job but we want to do our part. We pray for a world where racism does not exist. Help us make that world real. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.
UPCOMING WEEKS
In addition to the lectionary resources there are thousands of non-lectionary, scripture based resources...
Proper 10 | OT 15 | Pentecost 5
30 – Sermons
160+ – Illustrations / Stories
30 – Children's Sermons / Resources
29 – Worship Resources
34 – Commentary / Exegesis
4 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
Proper 11 | OT 16 | Pentecost 6
29 – Sermons
160+ – Illustrations / Stories
27 – Children's Sermons / Resources
20 – Worship Resources
29 – Commentary / Exegesis
4 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
Proper 12 | OT 17 | Pentecost 7
34 – Sermons
160+ – Illustrations / Stories
32 – Children's Sermons / Resources
26 – Worship Resources
31 – Commentary / Exegesis
4 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
Plus thousands of non-lectionary, scripture based resources...

New & Featured This Week

CSSPlus

John Jamison
Object: This is a role play activity.

Note: You will need to select six children to play roles in this activity. If you have a smaller group, you might ask some older youth or even adults to play the parts of the two attackers and the man being attacked. I will give suggestions for how they can play their roles, but feel free to help your children make the story as fun and memorable as you can. I have used boys and girls in the various roles, but you can change those however you want to change them.

* * *

The Immediate Word

Dean Feldmeyer
Katy Stenta
Thomas Willadsen
Christopher Keating
George Reed
Mary Austin
Nazish Naseem
For July 13, 2025:
  • Samaritans Among Us by Dean Feldmeyer based on Acts 2:1-21. Samaritans were despised and dismissed by the original audience who first heard Jesus tell this parable. Who are the Samaritans in our lives and how does this parable apply today?
  • Second Thoughts: The Helpers by Katy Stenta based on Amos 7:7-17.

StoryShare

Frank Ramirez
I say, “You are gods,
    children of the Most High, all of you;
nevertheless, you shall die like mortals
    and fall like any prince….”
(vv. 6-7)

There have been any number of brother-sister acts that achieved a measure of fame. Take the Carpenters, famed for their singing, musicianship, and songwriting skills. Also worthy of mention are John and Joan Cusack who have acted together in over sixteen films.

Emphasis Preaching Journal

Wayne Brouwer
An ancient legend tells of a remote mountain village where people used to send their senior citizens out into the woods to die. The villagers had an eye to the future; they felt that those beyond a certain age would only slow down progress or use up valuable resources to no economically profitable end. Those who reached a certain age weren’t “put out to pasture” or “put out of their misery”; they were simply put out of other people’s way.
Mark Ellingsen
Bill Thomas
Frank Ramirez
Amos 7:7-17 and Psalm 82
The tallest building in the world is the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. It is more than 2,700 feet high—over half a mile tall. It has 160 floors and is twice as tall as the Empire State Building in New York City. It is home to the world’s fastest elevator which reaches speeds of forty miles an hour. The Burj Khalifa also hosts the world’s highest outdoor observation deck (on the 124th floor) and the world’s highest swimming pool (on the 76th floor).

The Village Shepherd

Janice B. Scott
Mabel hummed a familiar hymn tune as she made her way to church. She always enjoyed her Sunday morning walk. It was one of the few times she felt safe to walk alone through the inner city, for she knew nobody would be up at 7.45 in the morning. Today was a particularly beautiful morning, with blue sky, warm sunshine, and the song of a few intrepid blackbirds who still inhabited the city.

SermonStudio

James Evans
Often, a distinction is made between the pastoral or priestly work of the church and the prophetic work. Pastoral care has to do with the care of souls, the offering of comfort in times of loss. The priestly character of pastoral work seeks to mediate the presence of God to those who are hurting.

Schuyler Rhodes
Trusting is never easy. Even in the best of relationships, people step into trust slowly. There is wariness -- questioning -- worry. What happens if trust is betrayed? What if this doesn't work? Sometimes it's like a dance. We step in and out of trust, moving to the rhythms of fear. For many, the routine is achingly familiar. Indeed, it's not easy to trust.
John Jamison
It was back in the days when the railroad was the most common mode of transportation. There were automobiles, and some airplanes, but the steam locomotive was the way most folks traveled and the way that most of the goods were distributed around the country. After dinner, people sat in the drawing room and listened to the radio programs, fading in and out from some faraway location, over the magical broadcasting signal.
Robert Leslie Holmes
Not many tourists to Washington, D.C., look for the Federal Bureau of Standards offices. It's the Capitol and the White House, the Supreme Court Building or the Smithsonian most of us want to see when we go there. Yet, at the Bureau of Standards offices something very important is stored, something that impacts your life and mine every single day. Have you ever bought the materials for a new project? When you did, most likely you purchased so many inches or feet or yards. Or, you stopped to buy gasoline for your car and purchased it at a certain price per gallon.
David O. Bales
I have the two best jobs in the world. I teach social studies at Leon Griffith Junior High School (a fairly small junior high) and I am Sunday School Superintendent at Calvary Presbyterian Church (an enormous church school). Each job is my vocation. I tell people that at school they'll find my room where the halls cross. At church they can look but probably won't find me. I'll be in someone's classroom. At each job I practice what I most deeply believe: it's how you see the world that determines how you respond to it. I'll give you an example, actually, two examples.
Erskine White
O Lord my God! When I in awesome wonder,
Consider all the worlds Thy hands have made,
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
Thy power throughout the universe displayed,
Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art!
(Stuart K. Hine)

Special Occasion

Wildcard SSL