Crossing Kids: Sunday, July 31, 2011

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Jul 312011
 

Little Ones

Big Idea: God protects us.

Bible Passage: The Fiery Furnace—Daniel 3:1-30
God rescued Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from the fiery furnace after they refused to worship a statue.

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Remember Verse: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” Isaiah 6:3

*Monthly Song: “You Are With Me” and “The Big God Story” from Forever/Home

Activity: God Is With Me
Teach your children this finger play. Practice it with them several times.
God is with me (Point to heaven.)
When I sleep. (Lay head on hands as if sleeping.)
God is with me (Point to heaven.)
When I play. (Run fingers of one hand across the palm of the other.)
God is with me (Point to heaven.)
All the time. (Stretch arms out wide.)
Every night, (Lay head on hands as if sleeping.)
And every day. (Join hands about heave as a rising sun.)

Remind the children that God was with the three friends, even when they were thrown into the fiery furnace.

Preschool

Big Idea: Our God Is Able to Protect

Bible Passages: The Fiery Furnace—Daniel 3:1-30

Remember Verse: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” Isaiah 6:3

Monthly Song: “Wherever, Whenever” from I Can Count on You

Dinner Table Discussion

Discuss the following questions as a family during dinner this week.  They’re meant to prompt further conversation about what was experienced on Sunday morning.

Say: In today’s part of The Big God Story, we heard how Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused to worship anything or anyone but God. Even though the king threatened to throw them into a hot, fiery furnace, they knew their God was able to protect them. 

I wonder … How did it make me feel when God protected Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego?

I wonder … Since God is protecting me, how does that make me feel? How can I respond?

I wonder … How can I worship God with all of myself (my hands, feet, arms, legs, and with all of my heart)?

Kindergarten – 4th Grade

Read Acts 11:19-30 together.  You can use a few of the following questions to discuss how the Gospel changes lives.  (Feel free to pick and choose.)

Discussion Questions
Why did people call the first believers Christians?
Why did the first Christians like this name?
How did the first Christians love others?
How can we love others?
How did the first Christians love others who weren’t Christians?
How do you think God can use you to show others His love?

Follow-Up:  Spend time praying for people who live in your neighborhood. Pray God would continue to show your family how to live out the good news and love people.  You might also look for ways to love/serve those around you together as a family.  You might make a meal, bake and deliver homemade cookies, create cards, or think of others ways to share God’s love with those He has put in your life.

 

5th Grade

Grapple Question:  What if I Don’t Like It?  (Taking risks for the Kingdom of God.)

Kids Learn:  God Is Good

Dig Into the Bible:  Exodus 16:1-15; Deuteronomy 1:26-46; Psalm 116:1-8; Romans 8:28

Do you have picky eaters in your family? This week, serve a few different foods that no one in your family has ever tried before (exotic fruits are a good place to start). Encourage everyone to take one bite to see if they like it.

Wouldn’t it be nice if the hardest thing God asked us to do was to eat unusual foods? God has lots of ideas in mind for us, including many that seem risky or strange. Read Romans 8:28 as a family: “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.” Talk with your preteen about something you did in the past that you didn’t want to do, and share how God used that situation for good.

 

Spiritual Parenting

 Book Review, Parents  Comments Off
Jul 302011
 

Dear Dads and Moms: If you pick up one parenting book this year, I would suggest Spiritual Parenting.  I’ve been reading and rereading it this past year and am consistently encouraged, convicted, and challenged as a parent as a result. This book has also influenced our Crossing Kids staff team in how we think about teaching and ministering to the children God has placed in our ministry. Here’s why…

“What is my end goal in raising each of the children God has entrusted to me, and then how will I parent them with that end in mind?”  This is the core question Michelle Anthony, the author of Spiritual Parenting, wants each parent to ask.  Her thesis: “The goal of spiritual parenting is that our children would learn to hear and know God’s voice, desire to obey it, and obey it in the power of God’s Spirit, not their own strength.”

Spiritual Parenting goes beyond a “how to” parenting book.  Through honest personal stories and clear biblical teaching, Anthony paints a compelling big picture of a parent’s God-given role.  She calls parents to depend on God for their children’s spiritual growth while cultivating 10 environments in their home that foster a heart-transforming faith. “If we believe that the Holy Spirit is God’s chosen teacher in our children’s hearts and that He is the one who causes spiritual growth…, then we must be willing to cultivate environments for Him to do this work,” Anthony writes.

These home environments, which are fleshed out in each chapter and frankly have changed the way I think about parenting, include:

1. Storytelling – Exposes children to the Big God Story.  This gives them an awe-inspiring perspective into how God has been moving throughout history and is creating even our own unique story for his glory.

2. Identity – Focuses on who we are in Christ, according to Ephesians 1. An understanding of their true identity helps children stand firm against the myriad of false-identities waiting to seduce them in the world.

3. Faith Community – Helps children see the importance of living life with, worshiping  with, and learning from others who are following Him.

4. Service – Cultivates a heart that asks, “What needs to be done?” and helps kids to view their lives as living sacrifices that we generously give away.

5. Out of the Comfort Zone – Inspires a generation to seek not comfort but a radical life of faith in Christ.

6. Responsibility – Enables children to take ownership of their lives, gifts, resources, and relationships before God.

7. Course Correction (Discipline) – Fleshes out Hebrews 12:11-13 and a grace-driven vision for biblical discipline of a child.

8. Love and Respect – Recognizes that children need an environment of love and respect in order to be free to both receive and give God’s grace.

9. Knowing – As we, through personally knowing God, create an environment that upholds and displays God’s truth, we give children the assurance of being known by God through a relationship with Him in Christ.

10. Modeling – Biblical content needs to be expressed in practical living in order for it to make a difference spiritually.  Knowing is the “who” while Modeling is the “how.”

Now creating not one, not two, but 10 environments seems overwhelming, right?  As I read each chapter, I felt like I had significant ways to grow in each one of these areas.  Fortunately, Anthony does a great job of reminding parents again and again that it’s not about us.  It’s about God.  Our role is from God, and He wants to equip us and help us grow as spiritual parents as we seek Him.

One of the ways I use this book is to periodically read a chapter during my devotional times with God in the morning.  It’s been helpful to re-read, journal about, and pray about several portions of the book and how they apply to my family.

The book appropriately ends with a simple prayer that you and I can make our own today:  “I am Yours.  Our home is Yours.  These children are Yours.  Be glorified!  Amen.”

P.S. The Women’s Ministry is running the Spiritual Parenting DVD Curriculum as a Bible study on Tuesday mornings and Wednesday nights from the week of September 12 through November 14.  Registration is August 14 – September 4.  Here’s a teaser video.

The Heat

 Devotional, Parents, Volunteers  Comments Off
Jul 282011
 

I’m getting ready to spend the weekend outside at a swim meet with my daughter…in the heat. It has amazed me how much the heat has affected what I choose to do every day.  I see its affects on nature when I look at my backyard. But I was most affected by the heat while reading Psalm 19 recently. I was surprised to see that the heat of the sun also affected King David. Read verses 1-6 and see what I mean.

Psalm 19 (ESV)

1The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
2Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge.
3There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard.
4Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.
In them he has set a tent for the sun,5 which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber, and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy.
6Its rising is from the end of the heavens, and its circuit to the end of them, and there is nothing hidden from its heat.

There is nothing hidden from the sun’s heat right now in Columbia.  I can’t hide from it– even when I’m not in the sun.  I can’t escape its heat.  When I get up early to go to the gym – the heat is there.  When I go for a walk at night with my husband, the heat is there.

What surprised me though was what comes next in verses 7-11

7The law of the LORD is perfect,reviving the soul;
the testimony of the LORD is sure,making wisethe simple;
the precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the LORD is pure,enlightening the eyes;
9the fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever;
the rules of the LORD are true, and righteous altogether.
10More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold;
sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb.
11Moreover, by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward.

David goes straight from talking about not escaping the heat of the sun to talking about God’s word. Huh? This is not random.  It is purposeful.  He wants us to see that we cannot hide from God’s word just like we can’t hide from the heat of the sun. He wants us to contemplate what the word does in our life when we read it and can’t escape it. He gives us a picture of what it does in our heart and mind:

revives us

makes us wise

rejoices our heart

enlightens our eyes

more desirable than gold

sweeter than honey

warns us

The last few weeks of constant heat has affected most of us in some way. I have been convicted and encouraged to see that the heat outside can also be a reminder to me of how I can’t hide from God or his word.  I need the affects of his “heat” in my life so that I can say with David…

 14Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight,
O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.

 

Crossing Kids: Sunday, July 24, 2011

 Sunday Morning  Comments Off
Jul 242011
 

Little Ones

Big Idea: God protects us.

Bible Passage: The Fiery Furnace—Daniel 3:1-30
God rescued Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from the fiery furnace after they refused to worship a statue.

Remember Verse: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” Isaiah 6:3

*Monthly Song: “You Are With Me” and “The Big God Story” from Forever/Home

Activity: God Is With Me
Teach your children this finger play. Practice it with them several times.
God is with me (Point to heaven.)
When I sleep. (Lay head on hands as if sleeping.)
God is with me (Point to heaven.)
When I play. (Run fingers of one hand across the palm of the other.)
God is with me (Point to heaven.)
All the time. (Stretch arms out wide.)
Every night, (Lay head on hands as if sleeping.)
And every day. (Join hands about heave as a rising sun.)

Remind the children that God was with the three friends, even when they were thrown into the fiery furnace.
*The Funky Bunk Band also played this Sunday.

 

Preschool

Big Idea: God’s Word Has Power

Bible Passages: Josiah and God’s Word—2 Kings 11-23:30

Remember Verse: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” Isaiah 6:3

*Monthly Song: “Wherever, Whenever” from I Can Count on You

Dinner Table Discussion
Discuss the following questions as a family during dinner this week.  They’re meant to prompt further conversation about what was experienced on Sunday morning.

Say: Today in The Big God Story, we heard about the first time King Josiah read from the Book of the Covenant that was filled with God’s words. When the king read these words, he knew what was true about God. He wanted to know God more and worship Him.

I wonder … How does God speak to us from His Word, or the Bible?

I wonder … How else does God talk to me?

I wonder … What do I want to know about God?

*The Funky Bunk Band also played this Sunday.

Kindergarten – 4th Grade

Bible Passage:  Acts 9: 1-31  (Paul’s Conversion)

Sunday Summary: This week, the kids learned about the conversion of Paul.  They learned that an encounter with God and His Son can change lives.

Follow-Up: Read the account of Paul’s conversion in Acts 9: 1-18 or in The Jesus Storybook Bible p. 334-341.

Discussion Questions for Younger Kids

  • Why did Saul want to kill people who believed in Jesus?
  • How would you feel talking with Jesus?
  • Why did Jesus talk to Saul?
  • Why did God send Ananias to pray with Saul?

Discussion Questions for Older Kids

  • Why did Saul want to kill people who believed in Jesus?
  • How do you think Saul felt when he was speaking with Jesus on the road?
  • Why do you think God sent Ananias to pray for Saul?
  • Do we still need our community to care for us and pray for us today?  Why?
  • How did Jesus change everything in Saul’s life?
  • Why did Saul change his name to Paul?
  • How does Jesus still change people’s lives today?
  • Has Jesus changed your life?  How?

5th Grade

Grapple Question:  Why Don’t All People Want God?

Kids Learn:  Rebellion Leads Us Away From God

Dig Into the Bible:  Numbers 16:1-11, 23-35; Joshua 24:14-18; Isaiah 53:1-8

When it comes down to it, life is really all about choices, isn’t it? You’ve been giving your preteen the opportunity to make choices since you let your daughter pick her own outfit at age two, or since you gave your son cereal options for breakfast when he was a toddler. Teaching your preteen to make wise decisions isn’t just to prepare him or her for adulthood. It’s also in preparation for eternity. Because God gives us the freedom to choose to follow him, in the end, your son or daughter will have the responsibility of making that choice for himself or herself.

Spend a few moments praying for your preteen. Ask God to help your preteen make wise decisions, and to give you the strength to be a good example as a parent.

 

Everyday, Mundane, Radical, Moments…

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Jul 212011
 

I’m writing this post a little bleary eyed after spending a few days in Chicago.  It was one of those vacations that leaves you physically in need of well…a vacation.  We spent hour after hour exploring the city seeking out a variety of urban adventures, pausing to rest only when necessary.  As tired as I am, my heart and mind are both full this morning.  As a long time baseball fan, it was great to see the ivy of Wrigley Field.  The Chicago skyline both from the city streets below and from atop the Hancock tower at night reminded me of both my smallness and the diverse definition of what makes something beautiful. Countless close quarter trips of being jostled next to strangers in public transportation created plenty of people watching opportunities to ponder the human experience.  Of course enjoying good food and good conversation with a good friend is always good for the soul.

One of the highlights for me occurred Tuesday  as we spent the morning soaking up just a small slice of what The Chicago Art Institute had to offer.  I’ve always been drawn to the works of those involved and influenced by the Impressionist movement and seeing the works of Monet, Cézanne, Van Gogh, Seurat, and others up close was particularly meaningful.

One painting in particular along with the story behind it brought my thoughts back to Columbia and more specifically to you–the many moms and dads attempting the difficult and important task of parenting in light of the Gospel.


Mary Cassatt’s “The Child’s Bath” is consistent with what she’s best known for–intimate, tender, oil on canvas works depicting mothers with their children.   As I listened and read more about her at the exhibit, I was struck by one word–radical.  It appeared not once, not twice, but three times as historians described how her contemporaries viewed her work.  It was radical for her to paint normal, ordinary, every day events.  It was culturally radical for her to depict mothers rather than nurse maids caring for the daily, mundane, physical needs of their children.  It was radical for her to paint what she observed rather than placing idealized images images on to the canvas.

If you’re like me, perhaps the word radical wasn’t among your initial observations.  Words like affection, warmth, home, tender care and concern, perhaps, but radical?

Regardless of our culture’s perception of where children and parenting rank, I think Cassatt’s initial audience might have been on to something. Normal, ordinary, every day events where parents sacrificially care for their children is a radical act.  It’s a radical act that involves laying down your life for another, a radical act that in many ways is a smaller picture of humility and self-sacrifice that points to the ultimate one.

I’m not a parent and realize that my observations of the complexities you experience each day are just that–observations.  Though my vantage point is limited, my appreciation for the radical ways you love, serve, shepherd, and live out the Gospel in both the simple and complex moments of every day life is not.  Here are a few additional blog posts from other authors I’ve recently read that drive home this idea.

“How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.”
- Annie Dillard-

Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”
-Matthew 16:24-25-

Summertime Bickers

 Devotional, Family, Parents  Comments Off
Jul 202011
 

This is a guest post written by Kelley Wampler. Kelley has been married to Ryan for 12 years. They have three children—Ethan (7), Ella (5), and Molly (1). Kelley helps lead the 20-Something Ministry and is a part of our Legacy Team for Crossing Kids.

If your family is anything like mine, then about halfway through the summer something I like to call the “summertime bickers” begins to take over your household. Sure there is some bickering all the time that we have to deal with. But somewhere in the middle of July the arguing, pestering, and annoyance of each other seems to intensify. It seems like not 5 minutes goes by before I hear from someone, “Mom, Ethan did this to me!” or “Mom, Ella wants me to play what she wants but won’t play what I want!” The exasperation is high and the tone is fed up. This morning, after spending a week together on vacation and breaking up a conflict about 5 minutes after we had woken up, I began to think about why all this fighting was happening.  After thinking a bit, I came up with at least three reasons this summertime bickering occurs.  First, I am sure it is partly because we are all around each other a lot more than normal. There are not as many pockets of time for us to do things that only we enjoy or space to be away and take a break from each other. Secondly, I am also sure that the idiosyncrasies of our personalities begin to wear on each other. And finally, and perhaps most importantly, I am confident that our sin and the idols of our hearts begin to clash with one another making it harder and harder to think about what is best for others and begin to consider only ourselves.

But how I am responding to all this fighting? As I reflected more on the state of our family, God began to show me the state of my heart. I noticed that as the frequency of conflict increases my desire to just shut it down increases. I start off the day willing to talk through the issues with the kids, but by the third round before 9am I often want these problems to just not exist. I begin to say as few words as possible to stick a band-aid on the problem by saying things like “I don’t want anyone to touch anyone else in this household for the rest of this morning” or “Everyone needs to go to your rooms until you decide you can play nicely” or “I don’t want to hear any more of this. The two of you go and work it out.” All of this usually said with a tone of frustration. I noticed that my desire to handle these situations in a godly way wanes, and aggravation begins to take over my heart. My response had shifted away from wanting to train my children, help them to recognize and deal rightly with their sin, learn to forgive and ask for forgiveness, and grow in the grace of the gospel. And that is not how I want things to be.

There are a few verses that have come to my mind that are encouraging me in my fight to keep on working hard at training the kids in these summer months.

Hebrews 5:2 says that “He (the High Priest) is able to deal gently with those who are ignorant and going astray, since he himself is subject to weakness.”

Galatians 6:9 reminds me to “not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”

Romans 2:4 encourages me to remember “It is the kindness of God that leads us to repentance.”

Isaiah 55:10-11 (NLT) states “The rain and snow come down from the heavens
and stay on the ground to water the earth. They cause the grain to grow,
 producing seed for the farmer 
and bread for the hungry.
 It is the same with my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to,
and it will prosper everywhere I send it.”

These verses have been renewing me and urging me to remember that I want to be responding to these situations with kindness and gentleness since I myself am weak and need God to handle me with gentleness. They are giving me a long-term perspective that as I sow seeds of truth and spend time (and energy) trying to point the children to Jesus and teach them right responses in relating to one another that it will reap a harvest by God’s grace in the future.

I want to see these interactions as opportunities to help my children learn to respond in kindness, love, and patience with one another. I want to see these as opportunities to help them learn not to only think of themselves but to put others before themselves. It is amazing to me that these wonderful godly fruits of the Spirit can all be practiced and learned in the small everyday situations of life such as these. And I am praying that dealing with these commonplace irritations would help them in the future as they deal with co-workers, spouses, and someday children of their own. May God give me grace and sustain me to teach and train my children in a way that is pleasing to Him.

Kelley Wampler

 

 

Crossing Kids: Sunday, July 17, 2011

 5th Grade, Elementary, Family, Little Ones, Parents, Preschool, Sunday Morning, Volunteers  No Responses »
Jul 172011
 

Little Ones

Big Idea: God protects us.

Bible Passage: The Fiery Furnace—Daniel 3:1-30

God rescued Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from the fiery furnace after they refused to worship a statue.

Remember Verse: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” Isaiah 6:3

Monthly Song: “You Are With Me” and “The Big God Story” from Forever/Home

Activity: God Is With Me
Teach your children this finger play. Practice it with them several times.
God is with me (Point to heaven.)
When I sleep. (Lay head on hands as if sleeping.)
God is with me (Point to heaven.)
When I play. (Run fingers of one hand across the palm of the other.)
God is with me (Point to heaven.)
All the time. (Stretch arms out wide.)
Every night, (Lay head on hands as if sleeping.)
And every day. (Join hands about heave as a rising sun.)

Remind the children that God was with the three friends, even when they were thrown into the fiery furnace.

Preschool

Big Idea: God Is My Safe Place

Bible Passages: Elijah Flees from Jezebel—1 Kings 19:1-18; Context: 1 Kings 18-19:18

Remember Verse: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” Isaiah 6:3

Monthly Song: “Wherever, Whenever” from I Can Count on You

Dinner Table Discussion

Discuss the following questions as a family during dinner this week.  They’re meant to prompt further conversation about what was experienced on Sunday morning.

Say: Today in The Big God Story, Elijah got afraid and ran away even though he knew God was mighty and powerful. While he was alone, God met with him and showed Elijah that God is our safe place.

I wonder … Why is God a safe place?

I wonder … What do I want to tell God?

I wonder … What do I want to hear from God?

I wonder … How does God speak or whisper to me?

Kindergarten – 4th Grade

Bible Passage: Acts 3: 1-10

Sunday Summary: This week, the kids heard about Peter healing the Beggar.  They learned that God’s power is just as real today as it was back then.

Follow-Up: Gather your family together this week, take a blanket, and find a gate or a fence to sit by.  While there, have your children close their eyes and imagine how it would feel to sit in a place for a long time and not be able to move.  Tell them you are going to read about a man who couldn’t move his legs and had to sit by a gate and beg.  Read Acts 3: 1-10.

After you have finished reading, ask your children what kind of healing this man needed.  Discuss together what the man did once he was healed.  Now have them get up and walk around.  Ask them, “How do you think you would feel is you were walking now for the first time?”  “Where is the first place you would go?”  and “What would your response be to God?”

5th Grade

Grapple Question: How Can So Many People Ignore God?

Kids Learn: Pride Makes Us Ignore God

Dig Into the Bible: 1 Samuel 3:1-11; 2 Chronicles 33:10-13; Job 33:14-18; 2 Corinthians 5:21–6:2; James 4:4-10

People ignore God for so many reasons—they don’t believe in God, they don’t know how to listen for God to speak, or they’re so used to God taking care of them that they take God for granted.
Is there an area in your life where you’re ignoring God? Take a minute to pray and ask God to reveal himself to you. Then talk to your son or daughter about the lessons God is teach- ing you, and listen to what your preteen is learning, too!

The Power of the Word

 Devotional, Elementary, Family, Parents, Preschool  Comments Off
Jul 142011
 

Yesterday I was reading next week’s lesson for preschool large group.  The story recalled when King Josiah came across the Book of Law.  It is amazing how much a child’s lesson can influence the heart of an adult.  In case you don’t remember this story, King Josiah became King at 8 years old and let’s just say the track record for his famiy was not great.  His father and grandfather reigned before him and were the type of kings that shed blood on their people, built idols, and practiced sorcery and divination. I’m probably the biggest Harry Potter fan ever, but even I know that practicing sorcery or divination in real life is probably frowned upon by the Lord.

In this story, the high priest finds the Book of Law and brings it to Josiah as an adult. I am so encouraged by how much the word influenced him and I think it is a picture of how scripture is meant to influence us as well.  The Bible tells us that when Josiah heard the words from the Book of Law, he tore his clothes (2 Kngs 22:11), something people would do to show that they were grieving.  Josiah was so heart broken by the way his people were disobeying the Lord and living lives that were not pleasing to Him.  He called together all the people from his land from the greatest to the least and read the Book of Law.  He then renewed the covenent with the Lord and vowed to follow the Lord and keep his regulations.

When I read this, I was reminded that scripture is meant to pierce us; we are meant to love it and obey it.  I know I fail miserably at following the Lords commandments and grieving from my lack of obedience.  The word of God is perfect and we are meant to follow it.  Psalm 19 tells us that “the word is perfect and true, used for training and righteousness”.  Without the word of God, we are just a bunch of lost people.

We believe this to be true in Crossing Kids and make sure that every lesson is tied to scripture.  In addition, kids spend an entire month (or workshop unit) memorizing scripture.   Memorizing scripture is a great way to teach kids about the importance of the Bible. It is a beautiful thing when a parent dicplines their child using scripture to help guide them back.  It is a wonderful thing when a child hears a story from the Bible and remembers where it is found.  And it is beautiful when a child chooses to follow God’s word with all their heart and strength, just like King Josiah, just as the Bible calls us to do.

In Children’s Ministry Magazine, author Gail Kabacinski has a great idea for how families can be learning scripture together: Chalkboard Prayers.  Simply get a small chalkboard for your family to keep in the kitchen (available at any dollar store).  Either choose scripture for your own family or use the scripture your kids are learning in Crossing Kids.  Write the verse on the chalkboard (or have your kids write it) and keep it there to review over the breakfast or dinner table each day.  Ask your kids what this verse means to them and practice memorizing it with them.  You can even allow them to decorate it with stickers and ribbon! I have seen lots of families do this and have loved it!  I hope you find it helpful for you as well.

Wrong Way, Jonah!

 Devotional, Parents, Volunteers  No Responses »
Jul 122011
 

About two weeks ago I started reading through and studying the book of Jonah. It’s one of those “Bible’s Greatest Hits” books. Jonah runs from God, God causes a storm, Jonah gets thrown overboard and swallowed by a fish, Jonah repents, fish vomits him up, etc. I’ve heard this story dozens of times. I’ve read the book dozens of times. I’ve even read it in the Jesus Storybook Bible, The Rhyme Bible Storybook, and in Read Aloud Bible Stories: Vol.4. If you ask me, I know Jonah.

Still, the Bible is a living Word. It never stops speaking truth into our lives. And as I continue to study Jonah, I continue to have hard truths spoken into my life. Since I do not have the knowledge, wisdom or space to unpack all the truths found in this book, I will simply share the first thing God is pressing upon my heart from Jonah 1.

Although he claims to fear the Lord, Jonah is actively fleeing from the presence of the Lord.

But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish. So he paid the fare and went on board, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the LORD.

Jonah 1:3

And [Jonah] said to [the mariners], “I am a Hebrew, and I fear the LORD, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.” 10Then the men were exceedingly afraid and said to him, “What is this that you have done!” For the men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of the LORD, because he had told them.

Jonah 1:9

The book of Jonah begins with God calling him to go to Nineveh to tell the people there to repent. God is speaking to Jonah, and he actively disobeys His commands. In verse 3, Jonah pays to get on a ship and flee to Tarshish. He is “getting away from God”. In verse 9 he even tells the men on the ship that he is fleeing God. Every time I read this chapter I can’t help but think, “Duh, Jonah! We all know the outcome here. You can’t flee the presence of the Lord. You can’t hide from the Creator of the universe!”  Psalm 139 says it perfectly (and without sarcasm):

You have searched me, LORD,
and you know me.
You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.
You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.
Before a word is on my tongue
you, LORD, know it completely.
You hem me in behind and before,
and you lay your hand upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.

Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,”
even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.

Psalm 139: 1-12

As I examine my own heart and my own life, I see that I spend a lot of time like Jonah. I have my sins that I confess and struggle through, but I always seem to have some unconfessed sin that I assume God hasn’t noticed yet. Things that I’ll get to a little later when I have more time. But I’m not fooling anyone. God knows my heart, God knows my sin, and God knows that I am a fool to try to hide anything from Him. We have a Savior who has already paid the price for our sin. He died so that we don’t have to. Who am I to take my sin back and try to handle it myself?

Before this past Sunday’s sermon, we sang Christ is Risen. It is one of my favorite songs, but the lyrics hit me in a new way as I reflected on what I had been learning through Jonah’s life. I am always in need of the reminder of Christ’s death for my sin on the cross. I am just as foolish as Jonah was when he got on that ship to Tarshish, but I have a Savior who did not let my sin go unaccounted for. He bore my sin on the cross so that I might have eternal life.  I’m thankful for this reminder of the Gospel of grace in the Old Testament.  If you haven’t read Jonah, I encourage you to do so in your own Bible, or in your child’s Bible with your family.

Crossing Kids: Sunday, July 10, 2011

 Sunday Morning  Comments Off
Jul 102011
 

Little Ones

Big Idea: God protects us.

Bible Passage: The Fiery Furnace—Daniel 3:1-30

God rescued Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from the fiery furnace after they refused to worship a statue.

Remember Verse: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” Isaiah 6:3

Monthly Song: “You Are With Me” and “The Big God Story” from Forever/Home

Activity: God Is With Me
Teach your children this finger play. Practice it with them several times.
God is with me (Point to heaven.)
When I sleep. (Lay head on hands as if sleeping.)
God is with me (Point to heaven.)
When I play. (Run fingers of one hand across the palm of the other.)
God is with me (Point to heaven.)
All the time. (Stretch arms out wide.)
Every night, (Lay head on hands as if sleeping.)
And every day. (Join hands about heave as a rising sun.)

Remind the children that God was with the three friends, even when they were thrown into the fiery furnace.


Preschool

Big Idea: Remember and Celebrate–Tabernacles: A Feast to Remember and Celebrate God’s Blessings

Bible Passages: Joshua & Jericho—Numbers 13; 14:26–33; Joshua 5:13— 6:27; Deborah— Judges 4-5; Ruth— Ruth 1-4; God Speaks to Samuel— 1 Samuel 3; God and the Stone of Help— 1 Samuel 7:3-13

Remember Verse: “The Lord causes His miracles to be remembered.  He is kind and tender.” Psalm 111:4

Monthly Song: “Wherever, Whenever” from I Can Count on You

Dinner Table Discussion
Discuss the following questions as a family during dinner this week.  They’re meant to prompt further conversation about what was experienced on Sunday morning.

Say: Each time the people of God would gather to remember and celebrate God, they would share a meal. As they ate, they would share stories about the good things God had given them in their lives. So, today we’re going to do that very thing. We are going to share good food and great stories of some of the ways you’re thankful to God.

I wonder … What is your favorite thing that God made? Why is this your favorite?
I wonder … What is one thing you love about God? Why?
I wonder … What is one thing God has given you that you’re thankful for? (Give reasons if possible.)
I wonder … What are some things you would like us to pray for together?

K-4th Grade

Bible Passage: Luke 24, Matthew 28, Acts 2

Sunday Summary: This week, the kids heard about Pentecost and the Holy Spirit.  They learned that God can now comfort, lead, teach, and love His people through the Holy Spirit.

Follow-Up: Look with your children at an item in the house that comes from another country (picture, vase, book, clothes, food, etc).  Read about the Great Commission and Pentecost in Matthew 28:16-20 and Acts 2: 1-11.

After reading, explain that on the day God sent His Spirit, there were people from every nation and every language present.  Today, there are lots of countries and languages in the world too, and Jesus wants people in every one of those places to hear about Him.  What can you tell them about the item you found and the people it represents?  Encourage your children to share what they know about other nations.

5th Grade

Grapple Question: Why Aren’t Other Religions OK?

Kids Learn: Jesus Is the Only Way

Dig Into the Bible: Matthew 7:13-23; Galatians 1:6-9; 2 Timothy 4:1-5; 1 John 5:1-12

With hundreds of different religions in the world (not to mention all the different denominations and beliefs there are even among Christians!), sometimes we forget the main foundation of our faith: Having a relationship with Jesus is the only way to salvation.

It’s important to know about other religions so we can discuss our beliefs intelligently. With your preteen, write down five questions you have about other religions. Then together type “compare religions” into an Internet search engine, and find a site that answers some of the questions you have.

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