Does God Have Fun?
Children's sermon
Ping-Pong Words
And 30 More Children's Sermons
Object:
Scripture Reference
For everything, there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven ... a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance....
-- Ecclesiastes 3:1, 4
Materials Needed
Card stock printed with scripture reference and verses
Pictures of the following (look through encyclopedias, children's science books, and the internet)
1. puppy
2. aye-aye
3. crocuses
4. rainbow
Telling The Story
We're often very serious at church. Helping people learn about God is very important. But should we be serious all the time? What does God think about us doing things just for fun? Does God have fun? I think he does, and this morning, I'm going to show you some evidence.
Exhibit A: puppies. (Show the picture of a puppy.) God invented puppies. We know this because the first chapter of Genesis tells us that God created all of the animals, and puppies are animals. Puppies are cute and cuddly and lots of fun to play with ... and God invented them!
Exhibit B: the aye-aye. (Show the picture of an aye-aye.) The aye-aye is a strange looking creature. Believe it or not, it's a kind of lemur. One of its fingers is really long and skinny. It taps on logs and tree branches until it hears the sound of bugs inside, uses its teeth to dig into the branch, and then it sticks its finger into hole and pulls out the bugs to eat! When God created each animal, he thought carefully about how each would be designed. Looking at the aye-aye, it's easy to imagine that God was having fun when he designed it.
Exhibit C: crocuses. (Show the picture of the crocuses.) Crocuses are flowers that grow from bulbs instead of seeds. They bloom fairly early in the year, sometimes while there is still snow on the ground. Many people love them because they are some of the first signs of spring.
When God was creating plants, he could have made just one kind of tree, one kind of flower, and one kind of bush. In fact, he didn't have to even make flowers at all. God could have created just one plant that would have provided us shade, oxygen, and nutrition, but instead, he chose to create a wide variety of plants. Why would he do that? Maybe God enjoys gardening! Maybe he enjoys beautiful colors and likes to see different sizes and shapes of plants. I think God was having fun!
Exhibit D: rainbows. (Show the picture of a rainbow.) After the great flood in Genesis, God promised Noah that he would never flood the entire world again. As a sign that his promise was being honored, God put rainbows in the sky. Every time you see a rainbow, God is reminding you that he won't flood the entire world. Why did God invent rainbows? Could he have created a different sign, one that was less frivolous? He could have, but God chose to use bright, beautiful colors and a big, sky-wide arch. Why?
Exhibit E: Ecclesiastes 3:1 and 3:4. (Hold up the card stock printed with the scripture references and verses.) Ecclesiastes was written by Solomon, the wisest man in the world. And what did the wisest man in the world say? In Ecclesiastes 3:1, he said, "For everything, there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven" and in Ecclesiastes 3:4, he said, "... a time to weep, and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance...."
Laughing? Dancing? That sounds like someone having fun! God gave Solomon his wisdom, and Solomon says that there is time for laughing and dancing!
There are times when we really do need to be serious. Helping people learn about God, especially people who don't know anything about him at all, is serious business. But the God who created us in his image took time to rest and took time to have fun.
As you grow, you should follow God's example. Be serious when it's time to be serious, but be sure to take time to have fun, too!
Prayer
Dear Lord,
Thank you for this beautiful day and for loving us so much. Thank you, too, for giving us puppies and other animals, plants, rainbows, and friends, and for showing us that there is time for both seriousness and fun. Please help us to be wise enough to know which is which and to appreciate all you've given us.
In Jesus' name. Amen.
For everything, there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven ... a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance....
-- Ecclesiastes 3:1, 4
Materials Needed
Card stock printed with scripture reference and verses
Pictures of the following (look through encyclopedias, children's science books, and the internet)
1. puppy
2. aye-aye
3. crocuses
4. rainbow
Telling The Story
We're often very serious at church. Helping people learn about God is very important. But should we be serious all the time? What does God think about us doing things just for fun? Does God have fun? I think he does, and this morning, I'm going to show you some evidence.
Exhibit A: puppies. (Show the picture of a puppy.) God invented puppies. We know this because the first chapter of Genesis tells us that God created all of the animals, and puppies are animals. Puppies are cute and cuddly and lots of fun to play with ... and God invented them!
Exhibit B: the aye-aye. (Show the picture of an aye-aye.) The aye-aye is a strange looking creature. Believe it or not, it's a kind of lemur. One of its fingers is really long and skinny. It taps on logs and tree branches until it hears the sound of bugs inside, uses its teeth to dig into the branch, and then it sticks its finger into hole and pulls out the bugs to eat! When God created each animal, he thought carefully about how each would be designed. Looking at the aye-aye, it's easy to imagine that God was having fun when he designed it.
Exhibit C: crocuses. (Show the picture of the crocuses.) Crocuses are flowers that grow from bulbs instead of seeds. They bloom fairly early in the year, sometimes while there is still snow on the ground. Many people love them because they are some of the first signs of spring.
When God was creating plants, he could have made just one kind of tree, one kind of flower, and one kind of bush. In fact, he didn't have to even make flowers at all. God could have created just one plant that would have provided us shade, oxygen, and nutrition, but instead, he chose to create a wide variety of plants. Why would he do that? Maybe God enjoys gardening! Maybe he enjoys beautiful colors and likes to see different sizes and shapes of plants. I think God was having fun!
Exhibit D: rainbows. (Show the picture of a rainbow.) After the great flood in Genesis, God promised Noah that he would never flood the entire world again. As a sign that his promise was being honored, God put rainbows in the sky. Every time you see a rainbow, God is reminding you that he won't flood the entire world. Why did God invent rainbows? Could he have created a different sign, one that was less frivolous? He could have, but God chose to use bright, beautiful colors and a big, sky-wide arch. Why?
Exhibit E: Ecclesiastes 3:1 and 3:4. (Hold up the card stock printed with the scripture references and verses.) Ecclesiastes was written by Solomon, the wisest man in the world. And what did the wisest man in the world say? In Ecclesiastes 3:1, he said, "For everything, there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven" and in Ecclesiastes 3:4, he said, "... a time to weep, and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance...."
Laughing? Dancing? That sounds like someone having fun! God gave Solomon his wisdom, and Solomon says that there is time for laughing and dancing!
There are times when we really do need to be serious. Helping people learn about God, especially people who don't know anything about him at all, is serious business. But the God who created us in his image took time to rest and took time to have fun.
As you grow, you should follow God's example. Be serious when it's time to be serious, but be sure to take time to have fun, too!
Prayer
Dear Lord,
Thank you for this beautiful day and for loving us so much. Thank you, too, for giving us puppies and other animals, plants, rainbows, and friends, and for showing us that there is time for both seriousness and fun. Please help us to be wise enough to know which is which and to appreciate all you've given us.
In Jesus' name. Amen.
