Carbon Copy

Scripture:  John 13:15

Props:  Paper and crayons  (A simple stiff cardboard back on the paper makes it easier for the kids to draw)

A picture or picture of a stained glass window or windows showing different parts of Jesus’ ministry

I have given each of you a crayon and a piece of paper.  While I am talking I would like you to make a copy of this window.                       When I said that, I am sure a few of you older kids said to yourselves, “He has to be joking!”  After all, we only have one crayon and a small piece of paper.  And I am certain many in the congregation said to themselves, “I hope he doesn’t make us stay until they are finished.”

In our scripture for today Jesus is asking His disciples to copy Him just as I asked you to copy this window.  And I am sure, after watching Jesus return sight to the blind man and bring Lazarus back to life, the disciples made some of the same comments to themselves that you just did.  After all, they were only human: farmers, fishermen and tax collectors.  When we are faced with a job that seems impossible for us, there are several approaches we can take.  First we can give up and not do anything because the job is so big.  That’s why those toys never seem to get picked up off the floor isn’t it?  I know when I look at this beautiful window, knowing art is not my best talent, I would probably feel I just wasn’t good enough to even try to copy it.  But I don’t think Jesus would have been happy with either of those answers, do you?

So, what can we do?  Let’s look at some other possibilities. First, we could pick out our favorite part of the window and do our best to fit that part on the paper we have.  Or we could make our picture smaller, leaving out some of the finer details, but still making a drawing that most people would recognize.  The important thing is that we do the best we can even though it won’t look exactly like the original.  That’s what the disciples did, too. They did their best to imitate Jesus in their lives and we have churches to worship in today because they didn’t give up.

Over the next few months we are going to look at the different frames in the window to see what we can learn about Jesus, so we will be better able to copy Him in our lives.

Prayer:  Jesus, thank you for picking disciples that wouldn’t give up so that we are able to know about you.  Give us the courage to try, even though our copy of Your life will not be the same.  Help us recognize those things which we can do well, with your help. Amen.

Never Alone

Scripture: Hebrew 13:5, Proverbs 18:24, John 14:16

Props: Flannel shirt, Bible, picture of pet dog (optional)

Do any of you have a pet dog?  Have you taken it for a walk in the woods?  I read a story about a man that had a pet dog named Sam; the man and his dog often went out to the country a long way away from their home to go for walks in the woods.  Sometimes they would share lunch, sometimes even take a nap under a tree in the woods.  Late one afternoon the man’s dog ran off into the woods chasing a rabbit.  The man called and whistled but Sam didn’t come back.  The man had to go back to town for a meeting but he didn’t want to leave Sam there because they were a long way from home and neither one of them were familiar with the area.

How could he leave his trusty dog to wander all night alone and cold? He wondered.  What if Sam came back and no one was there.  He was afraid Sam might try to find his way home and get really lost or get hurt trying to cross the highways.   Then he remembered that Sam liked to lay on the old flannel shirt he had on.  So he took the shirt off and set it on the ground by a small bush.  Sure enough, when he came back the next morning there was Sam laying on that shirt waiting for him.

Sometimes we feel lonely too, don’t we?  Even when we have lots of people around us sometimes we can still feel lonely.  Well, we have something better than an old shirt to curl up with, we have the Bible that we can go to and be reminded that God is always with us ready to put His arms around us and comfort us.

He promised never to leave us (Hebrews 13:5)

He is a friend that sticks closer than a brother   (Proverbs 18:24)

He has given us the Comforter, His Spirit (John 14:16)

So any time you are feeling alone, just remember that God is always with you and loves you.

Prayer:

Jesus Wept

Scripture: John 11: 33-35

Props: Someone with a calloused hand, preferably a carpenter

Do any of you know what a callous is?  Have you ever had a blister?  Do you know what causes a blister?  That’s correct – when your hands are soft and you work harder than you normally do, like raking leaves, then the skin gets a blister and gets really sensitive.  It hurts just to touch it.  Someone who works a lot with their hands, like [______________] develops a callous so their skin is not so sensitive.  The callous is really tough and it would take a lot more to make that spot hurt than some other place on the hand.  Young boys of Jesus time normally learned to do the same jobs as their fathers.  Do any of you know what Jesus’ earthly father, Joseph, did?  That’s right – he was a carpenter.  Some people say that he probably worked more with stone than wood like today’s carpenters do because most buildings in that area were made with stone.  But in either case, Joseph’s hands (and probably Jesus’ hands) were calloused from working hard.

Sometimes people will get a calloused heart.  Do you know what that means?  How do you feel when you are around someone who gets hurt or is really sad?  You get sad too, don’t you.  Adults have a big word for that.  They call it compassion.  In our Bible verses today, Jesus knew what was going to happen.  He knew He was going to bring Lazarus back to life so everything was going to be all right, but still He got really sad when He saw how sad that Lazarus’ family was – and He cried.  Jesus had been around many people who were hurt or sad but He still had compassion for them each time.  Sometimes people who work in hospitals where people are sick or in shelters where people are really sad, the workers have to be tough and strong so they can help the other people.     But it’s important that we are always like Jesus and care about other people.  We need to have compassion for them.  We need to be sorry they are sad or hurt.  We can still be strong and let them know that Jesus will help them get through whatever is wrong, but we can’t let our hearts get calloused and hard so that we don’t care any more.

Prayer: God we know you love us.  We know you will help us get through whatever hurts we may have.  Help us be strong for our friends when they are hurt, but don’t let us get callouses on our hearts.  Help us to always care about others.  Amen.

Weeds in the Garden

Scripture: Romans 6:14, 18

Does your family have a garden?  What grows there?  You know sometimes I think I am best at growing weeds.          One thing that has always confused me is that grass in your vegetable garden is a weed and a bean plant in your yard is a weed.  But that’s a different message.  Today I want to talk about a particular plant that I planted in my flower bed.

I thought it was going to be a pretty, little plant that would stay down in front of the taller plants I already had planted and cover the bare ground.  The first year that worked out pretty well. But last year, it took over.  It grew way too tall and spread all over the place!  It even got so bad that it smothered some of the other flowers I planted.

So this year I decided to try to control the plant that had become a weed.  Since it is a plant that spreads by sending its roots underground to another place, I had to dig up the ground and sift it with my hands to get out all the pieces of root.  If any little root was left then another of those weeds would grow up there.  Once I got it cut back then I could put a piece of metal under the ground so the roots couldn’t spread over into my other flowers.  But I had to be very careful when I dug so I didn’t hurt the flowers I was trying to protect.

You know, those bad things we say or do that we call sin is a lot like that weed.  At first it seems like a pretty, little flower but pretty soon it takes over our life.  And when we try to get rid of it we have to work really hard to get all the roots out or it will come right back again.

A lot of grown-ups have a hard time understanding this, too.  They think once you have asked Jesus to be a part of your life, that you shouldn’t ever do anything bad again.  Even though I would like for there never to be any more weeds in my garden after I pulled all those up, I know there are going to be a few now and then, but if I pull them up right away then they won’t take over the whole garden.  Even though we want to be like Jesus we are going to make a mistake once in a while.  But if we ask for forgiveness right away then that sin won’t take over our lives.

Prayer:  Thank you, God, for forgiving us when we make mistakes and do something we know we shouldn’t have done.  Help us understand about your Son, Jesus, and how He lived so we can follow His example.  Amen.