Worship, Work, Rest, And Play
Children's sermon
THE BIG INFLUENCE OF SMALL THINGS
Exegetical Aim: To teach how worship fits into our lives. Key verses: 19--24.
Props: A hammer and a piece of wood, a pillow, and a football (or any kind of playing toy).
Lesson: I have a guessing game. I have four things and I want you to guess what I am doing. Show the hammer. What is this? (response) Hammer on the piece of wood. What am I doing? (hammering, working) That's right. Can you name some other kinds of work? (response) What kind of work does your dad do? (response) What kind of work does your mom do? (response) What kind of work do you do? (response) What would happen if we stopped working? (response) We all have to work or nothing would get done and the world would just stop.
Here's something else. (show the pillow) What do you do with this? (take a nap, rest) What are some other ways that we can rest? (nap, sit down, sleep) Sometimes if we are working really hard, it's good to stop and take a short rest and catch our breath. What would happen if we stopped resting? (response)
I brought one other thing for our guessing game. Throw the ball up in the air and catch it. Now what am I doing? (playing) What do you like playing the most? (response) What does your mom like to play? (response) What does your dad like to play? (response) What would happen if we stopped playing? (response) Life would get pretty boring, wouldn't it?
Now we've named three important things we do in life. Can you name them? (work, rest, and play) We need to do all three of these or life is just no good. We all need to work and get things done. We all need to rest and take vacations because we get tired. And we all need to play because we need to have fun in life. Life isn't all work, work, work; sometimes we need to play.
Application: Now there is one thing we've left out. This is something that gets left out a lot. We need to work, we need to rest, and we need to play. What's missing? (response) Let me give you a hint. Turn the palm of your hands up and open to the sky, your head up, and your eyes open. Holding this position, ask What am I doing? (response) What is this called? (response) I am worshiping. I am afraid we forget this part of life sometimes. We forget that God made us to worship him. Jesus said that we are to worship God in spirit and in truth. We are to raise our hands and eyes and open our hearts and tell God how much we need him and love him.
Let's do that right now. Instead of praying with our eyes closed and our heads bowed, let's worship God like this: Hold up your hands and keep your eyes open. Let's worship God. "Oh, God you are the prince of peace, mighty God, everlasting Father. We worship you today and thank you for the work you give us, the rest you bring to our bodies, and the fun you put into our lives. You give us joy, O Lord, and we worship you. Amen."
Dismissal: That's our prayer. You are dismissed.
* * * * *
Lent 3
Romans 5:1-11
Love Poured In
Exegetical Aim: God's love is poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit.
Props: A bowl, a bottle with a small mouth, a very large pitcher of water, and a funnel.
Lesson: Bring out the bowl, the bottle, and the pitcher of water. Keep the funnel hidden. I need to put water from this large pitcher into this little bottle. I thought that I would do it here so you can help. We have to be very careful, because we don't want to spill any water. I need someone to hold the bowl on the floor so that it doesn't move. Choose a volunteer to hold the bowl steady on the floor. Now I need another volunteer to hold this bottle steady inside of the bowl. Choose your volunteer. I need both of you to be very still so I can pour this water into the little bottle without spilling it. Are you ready? (response) Here goes. Pour the water incorrectly over the side of the little bottle so that the children's hands get wet. Splash a bit on the bowl holder as well. This looks like it's going to be tougher than I thought. It's not enough for all of us to be still, and to be careful, is it? We need something that can help us get the water from the pitcher into the bottle. Any suggestions? (response) What's that thing called that's in the shape of a triangle? (response) A funnel. Of course! A funnel, like this one. Place the funnel in the little bottle. Now I need a volunteer to hold the funnel steady. Choose another volunteer. And I need my other two volunteers again to hold the bottle and the bowl. Okay, are you ready? (response) Here goes! Pour the water through the funnel into the small bottle. Hey! That's what we needed! The funnel helped the water into the little bottle.
Application: The Holy Spirit is like a funnel. God pours his love into our hearts with the help of the Spirit. When we try to live our lives without his funnel, we often make a mess of our lives and the lives of others. Just as the funnel helped the water into the bottle, the Holy Spirit funnels the love of God into our lives.
Let's Pray: Thank you, Father. Through your Spirit you have poured your love into our lives. Amen.
Props: A hammer and a piece of wood, a pillow, and a football (or any kind of playing toy).
Lesson: I have a guessing game. I have four things and I want you to guess what I am doing. Show the hammer. What is this? (response) Hammer on the piece of wood. What am I doing? (hammering, working) That's right. Can you name some other kinds of work? (response) What kind of work does your dad do? (response) What kind of work does your mom do? (response) What kind of work do you do? (response) What would happen if we stopped working? (response) We all have to work or nothing would get done and the world would just stop.
Here's something else. (show the pillow) What do you do with this? (take a nap, rest) What are some other ways that we can rest? (nap, sit down, sleep) Sometimes if we are working really hard, it's good to stop and take a short rest and catch our breath. What would happen if we stopped resting? (response)
I brought one other thing for our guessing game. Throw the ball up in the air and catch it. Now what am I doing? (playing) What do you like playing the most? (response) What does your mom like to play? (response) What does your dad like to play? (response) What would happen if we stopped playing? (response) Life would get pretty boring, wouldn't it?
Now we've named three important things we do in life. Can you name them? (work, rest, and play) We need to do all three of these or life is just no good. We all need to work and get things done. We all need to rest and take vacations because we get tired. And we all need to play because we need to have fun in life. Life isn't all work, work, work; sometimes we need to play.
Application: Now there is one thing we've left out. This is something that gets left out a lot. We need to work, we need to rest, and we need to play. What's missing? (response) Let me give you a hint. Turn the palm of your hands up and open to the sky, your head up, and your eyes open. Holding this position, ask What am I doing? (response) What is this called? (response) I am worshiping. I am afraid we forget this part of life sometimes. We forget that God made us to worship him. Jesus said that we are to worship God in spirit and in truth. We are to raise our hands and eyes and open our hearts and tell God how much we need him and love him.
Let's do that right now. Instead of praying with our eyes closed and our heads bowed, let's worship God like this: Hold up your hands and keep your eyes open. Let's worship God. "Oh, God you are the prince of peace, mighty God, everlasting Father. We worship you today and thank you for the work you give us, the rest you bring to our bodies, and the fun you put into our lives. You give us joy, O Lord, and we worship you. Amen."
Dismissal: That's our prayer. You are dismissed.
* * * * *
Lent 3
Romans 5:1-11
Love Poured In
Exegetical Aim: God's love is poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit.
Props: A bowl, a bottle with a small mouth, a very large pitcher of water, and a funnel.
Lesson: Bring out the bowl, the bottle, and the pitcher of water. Keep the funnel hidden. I need to put water from this large pitcher into this little bottle. I thought that I would do it here so you can help. We have to be very careful, because we don't want to spill any water. I need someone to hold the bowl on the floor so that it doesn't move. Choose a volunteer to hold the bowl steady on the floor. Now I need another volunteer to hold this bottle steady inside of the bowl. Choose your volunteer. I need both of you to be very still so I can pour this water into the little bottle without spilling it. Are you ready? (response) Here goes. Pour the water incorrectly over the side of the little bottle so that the children's hands get wet. Splash a bit on the bowl holder as well. This looks like it's going to be tougher than I thought. It's not enough for all of us to be still, and to be careful, is it? We need something that can help us get the water from the pitcher into the bottle. Any suggestions? (response) What's that thing called that's in the shape of a triangle? (response) A funnel. Of course! A funnel, like this one. Place the funnel in the little bottle. Now I need a volunteer to hold the funnel steady. Choose another volunteer. And I need my other two volunteers again to hold the bottle and the bowl. Okay, are you ready? (response) Here goes! Pour the water through the funnel into the small bottle. Hey! That's what we needed! The funnel helped the water into the little bottle.
Application: The Holy Spirit is like a funnel. God pours his love into our hearts with the help of the Spirit. When we try to live our lives without his funnel, we often make a mess of our lives and the lives of others. Just as the funnel helped the water into the bottle, the Holy Spirit funnels the love of God into our lives.
Let's Pray: Thank you, Father. Through your Spirit you have poured your love into our lives. Amen.
