Thursday, January 30, 2014

Jesus Tells of God's Love

Luke 12:22-31


Jesus said to his followers, “So I tell you, don’t worry about the food you need to live.  Don’t worry about the clothes you need for your body.  Life is more important than food.  And the body is more important than clothes.  Look at the birds.  They don’t plant or harvest.  They don’t save food in houses or barns.  But God takes care of them.  And you are worth much more than birds.  None of you can add any time to your life by worrying about it.  If you cannot do  even the little things, then why worry about the big things?  Look at the wild flowers.  See how they grow.  They don’t work or make clothes for themselves.  But I tell you that even Solomon, the great and rich king, was not dressed as beautifully as one of these flowers.  God clothes the grass in the field like that.  That grass is living today, but tomorrow it will be thrown into the fire.  So you know how much more God will clothe you.  Don’t have so little faith!  Don’t always think about what you will eat or what you will drink.  Don’t worry about it.  All the people in the world are trying to get those things.  Your Father knows that you need them.  The thing you should seek is God’s kingdom.  Then all the other things you need will be given.

Discussion Questions


  • Jesus told us not to worry.  Name three things he told us not to worry about. Food, Drink and Clothing
  • The story tells us about an animal that does not plan ahead for food. What animal was he talking about?  Birds


Prayer


 Dear God,

Thank you for always giving us exactly what we need.  Please help us to remember to only seek your kingdom.Amen. 


Bible Verse for January


“A friend loves at all times.”   Proverbs 17:17


Activity:  Make A Flower Garden


Materials:
  • Construction Paper (green, blue, yellow, and red)
  • Scissors
  • Glue
  • Markers

Guide Your Child To:
  • Help your child draw a few flowers
  • Cut out flower pieces
  • Glue pieces to construction paper
  • With the marker help your child write “God Cares For Us”

 Discussion:
Read the story above one more time and ask them to list things that God provides for them. 


Wednesday, January 22, 2014

The Good Samaritan

Luke 10:25-37


Then a teacher of the law stood up. He was trying to test Jesus.  He said, “Teacher, what must I do to get life forever?”

Jesus said to him, “What is written in the law? What do you read there?”

The man answered, “Love the Lord your God. Love him with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.” Also, “You must love your neighbor as you love yourself.”

Jesus said to him, “Your answer is right. Do this and you will have life forever.”

But the man wanted to show that the way he was living was right. So he said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

To answer this question, Jesus said, “A man was going down the road from Jerusalem to Jericho. Some robbers attacked him. They tore off his clothes and beat him. Then they left him lying there, almost dead.  It happened that a Jewish priest was going down that road. When the priest saw the man, he walked by on the other side of the road. Next, a Levite came there. He went over and looked at the man. Then he walked by on the other side of the road. Then a Samaritan traveling down the road came to where the hurt man was lying.   He saw the man and felt sorry for him. The Samaritan went to him and poured olive oil and wine on his wounds and bandaged them. He put the hurt man on his own donkey and took him to an inn. At the inn, the Samaritan took care of him.  The next day, the Samaritan brought out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. The Samaritan said, ‘Take care of this man. If you spend more money on him, I will pay it back when I come again.’”

Then Jesus said, “Which one of these three men do you think was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by the robbers?”

The teacher of the law answered, “The one who helped him.”

Jesus said to him, “Then go and do the same thing he did!”


Discussion Questions

  • What did Jesus say you must do to get life forever?  Love the Lord your God, and love your neighbor as yourself.
  • How many people saw the hurt man lying beside the road? Three.
  • Who stopped to help him? The Samaritan.
  • Who was the neighbor in this story? The Samaritan.


Prayer


Dear God,Thank you for the story of The Good Samaritan.  Thank you for teaching us to love you  and  to follow you.    Amen.



Bible Verse for January


“Love your neighbor as yourself.”    Leviticus 17:17


Activity


Science: Texture Walk


Materials:
A variety of materials with different textures to walk on (for example: cotton balls, linoleum
tiles, tightly woven and shaggy carpet samples, masking tape with the sticky side up,
sandpaper, leaves, a piece of plywood, cardboard, etc).

Guide Your Child To:
  • Remove his shoes and socks.
  • Walk over textured material, one item at a time.

 Talk About:
  • Texture is the way something feels when you touch it. Things can be soft or hard, rough or smooth, and so on. How does this cotton feel to your feet? Have you ever felt anything else like this before? Is it hard or soft?
  • Who made textures? Who made our skin able to feel textures?
  • We walked over this path. In Bible times, most people walked when they traveled. Who traveled in our story? Where did they go? What happened?








Wednesday, January 15, 2014

A Hole in the Roof

Luke 5:17-26

One day Jesus was teaching the people. The Pharisees and teachers of the law were there, too. They had come from every town in Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem. The Lord was giving Jesus the power to heal people. There was a man who was paralyzed. Some men were carrying him on a mat. They tried to bring him in and put him down before Jesus. But because there were so many people there, they could not find a way to Jesus. So the men went up on the roof and made a hole in the ceiling. They lowered the man so that the paralyzed man was lying right before Jesus. Jesus saw that these men believed. So he said to the sick man, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.”

The Jewish teachers of the law and the Pharisees thought to themselves, “Who is this man? He is saying things that are against God! Only God can forgive sins.”

But Jesus knew what they were thinking. He said, ‘Why do you have thoughts like that in your hearts? Which is easier: to tell this paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,” or to tell him, ‘Stand up and walk’? But I will prove to you that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So Jesus said to the paralyzed man, “I tell you, stand up! Take your mat and go home.”

Then the man stood up before the people there. He picked up his mat and went home, praising God. All the people were fully amazed and began to praise God. They were filled with much respect and said, “Today we have seen amazing things!”

Discussion Questions

  • What did God give Jesus the power to do?   Heal people & forgive sins.
  • Who brought the paralyzed man to see Jesus? His friends.
  • How did they get the man to Jesus? They made a hole in the roof and lowered him down.
  • What did Jesus say to the paralyzed man? “Friend, your sins are forgiven.  I tell you, stand up! Take your mat and go home!” 


Prayer

Dear God,Thank you for the story of Jesus healing the paralyzed man.  Thank you for reminding us that you do amazing things.Amen.



Bible Verse for January

“A friend loves at all times.”   Proverbs 17:17

Activity: Friendly Elevator

Materials:
  • 1 big box
  • Pillow
  • 2 pieces of rope or yarn
  • Baby doll


Guide Your Child To:
  • Lay out the two pieces of rope on the floor so they are parallel to each other
  • Put the pillow on top so it is on top of both pieces of rope
  • Lay the doll on top of the pillow
  • Hold one piece of the rope while you hold the other piece (this would really work well if there are 4 friends or family members who can help with this; then each person will hold one end of the rope, just like in the story)
  • Pick the “man on the mat” up and then lower him into the box, just like the friends in the story lower him through the roof in front of Jesus.


Talk About:
  • Why did the friends lower the man on a mat?
  • How would you feel if you were one of the people who saw this miracle take place?
  • If you were crippled like this man and Jesus healed you so you could walk again, what would you do?




 

Tuesday, January 7, 2014

Jesus Quiets the Storm

Matthew 8:23-27

Jesus got into a boat, and his followers went with him. A very bad storm arose on the lake. The waves covered the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. The followers went to Jesus and woke him. They said, “Lord, save us! We will drown!”

 Jesus answered, “Why are you afraid? You don’t have enough faith.” Then Jesus got up and gave a command to the wind and the sea. The wind stopped, and the sea became very calm.

The men were amazed. They said, “What kind of man is this? Even the wind and the sea obey him!”

Discussion Questions

  • What was Jesus doing during the storm?  He was sleeping.
  • What did the followers think was going to happen? That they were going to drown.
  • What did Jesus say to his followers?  “Why are you afraid? You don't have enough faith.”
  • How did Jesus calm the storm? He gave a command

Prayer

Dear God,
Thank you for the story of Jesus Calming the Storm.  Thank you for teaching us that we can always trust in you.
Amen.

Bible Verse for January


“A friend loves at all times.”   Proverbs 17:17

Activity


Science: Storm in a Bottle

Materials:
· Transparent 2-liter soft drink bottle with a lid
· Water
· Salt
· Dishwashing liquid
· Measuring spoons

Guide Your Child To:
· Help fill the bottle about 2/3 full with water
· Add 1/2 teaspoon salt.
· Add 2 drops of dishwashing liquid
· Close the bottle tightly
· Shake the bottle in a circular motion, from side to side.
· Watch the swirling water tornado form in the center.

Talk About:
· How do you feel about storms? Where do you like to be in a storm?
· How did the people in the story feel about the storm? What happened?