The Wish
Children's sermon
Cows In Church
80 Biblically Based Children's Sermons
Object:
A mechanical rabbit.
"What is this?" I ask the assembled children as I hold up a small mechanical rabbit.
"A bunny!" several of the kids reply.
"Well now, since I brought a bunny rabbit today ..." I pause as if I'm uncertain of something "... is this Easter?"
"NO!" the children emphatically assure me.
"Well, if today isn't Easter, why did I bring a rabbit? I wonder ... Maybe you can help me figure this out. Is today any sort of holiday?"
"Yes," the children reply, "it's Father's Day."
"Oh, that's right. Now I remember. That's why I brought the rabbit." This elicits looks ranging from surprise to consternation. "I guess I'd better explain," I continue.
"When I was in the second grade, my father, who was in the army, got sent to a place called Korea. He was gone for a whole year and I missed him very much.
"But that still doesn't explain why I brought this rabbit. Let's see ... I'd better start the story sooner. Our family had gotten a kitten right before my dad had to leave for Korea. During the year he was gone, the kitten grew into a cat. She was a very nice cat too. But, for some reason, I had my heart set on having a white rabbit.
"However, the house we lived in wasn't ours. We rented it from the people who owned it. They had reluctantly agreed to let us have a cat, but a rabbit was out of the question because they thought it might mess up the house, and there was no place inside or outside to put a rabbit cage.
"Now, before I go any farther with this story, I need to know if any of you have ever heard of 'Brownies.' " Several children raise their hands. I nod to Jennifer, who says, "Brownies are really good! They're sort of chocolate cakes."
"Yes, that is one kind of brownie -- and I agree, they are delicious! But the 'Brownies' I was thinking of are people!" Some of the children look surprised; others grin with understanding.
"You see, 'Brownies' was what the youngest age group of Girl Scouts was called when I was a child. The same year my dad went to Korea, I became a Brownie.
"The Brownies met once a week after school. At the end of every meeting, we would have what we called a wish circle. Can you guess what I wished for every week?"
"A white rabbit!" several children answer at once.
"That's right. And my mother, who was the leader of our Brownie troop, heard me make that wish, week after week.
"Then one day in the mail I received a package -- from my dad! All the way from Korea! I was so excited I could hardly tear it open fast enough. And guess what I found inside?"
"A white rabbit?!"
"Yes! It wasn't a real one, of course. It was a mechanical toy, like this one. It was white and furry, and if I wound it up, it would hop -- just like this." To the children's delight, I proceed to demonstrate with the rabbit I've brought.
"You see, my parents knew how badly I wanted a rabbit. They also knew I couldn't have a real, live one. The closest my mom and dad could come to fulfilling a wish that was obviously very important to me was to have my dad send me a toy white rabbit. And since I never thought I'd actually have ANY sort of rabbit -- ever -- receiving the wind-up bunny was like a miracle to me.
"Many years later, I was talking with a friend of mine who just happened to be a minister. We were talking about prayer and he suggested to me that prayer takes many forms. He said that God hears all of our desires, even the ones we don't usually think of as prayer, such as wishes, hopes, and dreams.
"As he spoke, I suddenly remembered the year my dad was in Korea. I remembered how I had wished for a white rabbit every week -- and the tremendous love I felt when I opened the package from my dad and found the little toy rabbit.
"Because of my childhood experience, I understood what my minister friend was saying. When my father learned of my deep desire (I think my mother wrote him a letter), he did everything he could to fulfill my wishes. And that's how God is with our prayers, including our hopes, dreams, and wishes. Any expression we make of our very deepest desires, God hears.
"And, because of God's tremendous love for us, God will do everything God can to help us make those deepest desires become reality. Sometimes we need to take an active part and not just leave everything up to God, though.
"For example, if I had a deep desire to play the piano, I'd have to work hard at it -- I'd have to do my part. But God would help me have the patience to practice.
"Other times, there may be nothing we can do to help the dream come true other than to keep alive the hope that it will. And that is the gift of faith, something the Bible calls 'the substance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen' (Hebrews 11:1).
"Sometimes the hopes and dreams and wishes we have may seem impossible.
And without God's help, they might be. But faith is that gift of grace which keeps hopes and dreams alive as we place our trust and confidence in God. For, with God, nothing is impossible."
"A bunny!" several of the kids reply.
"Well now, since I brought a bunny rabbit today ..." I pause as if I'm uncertain of something "... is this Easter?"
"NO!" the children emphatically assure me.
"Well, if today isn't Easter, why did I bring a rabbit? I wonder ... Maybe you can help me figure this out. Is today any sort of holiday?"
"Yes," the children reply, "it's Father's Day."
"Oh, that's right. Now I remember. That's why I brought the rabbit." This elicits looks ranging from surprise to consternation. "I guess I'd better explain," I continue.
"When I was in the second grade, my father, who was in the army, got sent to a place called Korea. He was gone for a whole year and I missed him very much.
"But that still doesn't explain why I brought this rabbit. Let's see ... I'd better start the story sooner. Our family had gotten a kitten right before my dad had to leave for Korea. During the year he was gone, the kitten grew into a cat. She was a very nice cat too. But, for some reason, I had my heart set on having a white rabbit.
"However, the house we lived in wasn't ours. We rented it from the people who owned it. They had reluctantly agreed to let us have a cat, but a rabbit was out of the question because they thought it might mess up the house, and there was no place inside or outside to put a rabbit cage.
"Now, before I go any farther with this story, I need to know if any of you have ever heard of 'Brownies.' " Several children raise their hands. I nod to Jennifer, who says, "Brownies are really good! They're sort of chocolate cakes."
"Yes, that is one kind of brownie -- and I agree, they are delicious! But the 'Brownies' I was thinking of are people!" Some of the children look surprised; others grin with understanding.
"You see, 'Brownies' was what the youngest age group of Girl Scouts was called when I was a child. The same year my dad went to Korea, I became a Brownie.
"The Brownies met once a week after school. At the end of every meeting, we would have what we called a wish circle. Can you guess what I wished for every week?"
"A white rabbit!" several children answer at once.
"That's right. And my mother, who was the leader of our Brownie troop, heard me make that wish, week after week.
"Then one day in the mail I received a package -- from my dad! All the way from Korea! I was so excited I could hardly tear it open fast enough. And guess what I found inside?"
"A white rabbit?!"
"Yes! It wasn't a real one, of course. It was a mechanical toy, like this one. It was white and furry, and if I wound it up, it would hop -- just like this." To the children's delight, I proceed to demonstrate with the rabbit I've brought.
"You see, my parents knew how badly I wanted a rabbit. They also knew I couldn't have a real, live one. The closest my mom and dad could come to fulfilling a wish that was obviously very important to me was to have my dad send me a toy white rabbit. And since I never thought I'd actually have ANY sort of rabbit -- ever -- receiving the wind-up bunny was like a miracle to me.
"Many years later, I was talking with a friend of mine who just happened to be a minister. We were talking about prayer and he suggested to me that prayer takes many forms. He said that God hears all of our desires, even the ones we don't usually think of as prayer, such as wishes, hopes, and dreams.
"As he spoke, I suddenly remembered the year my dad was in Korea. I remembered how I had wished for a white rabbit every week -- and the tremendous love I felt when I opened the package from my dad and found the little toy rabbit.
"Because of my childhood experience, I understood what my minister friend was saying. When my father learned of my deep desire (I think my mother wrote him a letter), he did everything he could to fulfill my wishes. And that's how God is with our prayers, including our hopes, dreams, and wishes. Any expression we make of our very deepest desires, God hears.
"And, because of God's tremendous love for us, God will do everything God can to help us make those deepest desires become reality. Sometimes we need to take an active part and not just leave everything up to God, though.
"For example, if I had a deep desire to play the piano, I'd have to work hard at it -- I'd have to do my part. But God would help me have the patience to practice.
"Other times, there may be nothing we can do to help the dream come true other than to keep alive the hope that it will. And that is the gift of faith, something the Bible calls 'the substance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen' (Hebrews 11:1).
"Sometimes the hopes and dreams and wishes we have may seem impossible.
And without God's help, they might be. But faith is that gift of grace which keeps hopes and dreams alive as we place our trust and confidence in God. For, with God, nothing is impossible."
