Children's sermon Grace lavished on us

“The Riches of God’s grace that he Lavished on us” Ephesians 1:8 -

Gospel idea: Demonstrate visually what it means for God to “lavish” his grace and goodness on us. Show the children a serving tray with a plate, bowl and cup. Demonstrate how a very stingy person might give a very small portion. Then have fun filling everything to overflowing and explain that is how God lavishes is grace and love to overflow on us, his children.

Objects needed: Plate, bowl and cup (and perhaps a tray underneath to catch any overflow) and some appropriate food items.

Full Children’s Message: God morning children! One of our bible readings this morning is from the book of Ephesians (NIV or ESV). In verse 8 of chapter 1 Paul says that God “lavished” his grace and goodness on us. That is a word you may or may not know. To lavish means to be super generous. It means to give to overflowing. Let me show you what I mean. (Pull out your tray with the plate, bowl and cup). Now, if you came over to my house for dinner and I gave you a very small portions like this (very carefully place a little bit of food /water in the containers.) How would you feel about that?

Now, let’s see what it would look like if I decided to “lavishly” dish out the food. (Have fun pouring large quantities of food out. Make sure you really fill things up till they overflow.) To lavish a plate with food is to make it overflowing so there is more than enough.

Now the bible says God “lavished” his grace, forgiveness, love and goodness on us. He has given us these things in abundance so that they can overflow in our lives.

All of us have times when we feel sad and alone. However, if you are feeling that way remind yourselves that God’s love for us is lavished on us to overflowing. His grace (unmerited favor) towards us full to overflowing too.

Children’s Prayer: Dear God, thank you that you are not stingy with your forgiveness, love and grace. Thank you that you lavish these on us so that they overflow from our lives into the lives of others. In Jesus’ name, Amen! Feel free to use this on Sunday morning but please give credit to Sundaychildrensfocus.com and please "like" this page.

Grace lavished illusration

Children's story - Woman at the Well

**Kids interactive sermon: The Woman at the Well- John 4:5-42 Streams of living water**

Children’s sermon idea:

We get thirsty and need to keep filling up with water. God’s love / life in Jesus is like refreshing water that never runs out. Pretend to go on a hike and explain how you have to keep filling up your bottle with water when you drink it all and get thirsty. Tell them about the life and love of Jesus that never runs out. Give a short overview of the woman at the well story.

Object lesson items: A backpack, water bottle and cup. (Option: a second container to “hold” God’s love)

Full interactive lesson:
Good morning children! This morning our bible reading is about a woman at the well who met Jesus and discovered his love. However, before talking about that I want you to join me on a pretend hiking trip. (You could just stand there and explain things but I think it’s more fun to get the kids to join you on a hike around the inside of the church.) Ok. Here is my back pack. One of the most important things inside is this camping cup and this bottle of water. You need water to live and if you are on a long hot hike you need to keep filling up your cup and filling up your bottle of water when it runs out. (Hike around a bit, ask the kids to pretend they are getting really hot and thirsty. Pour them some pretend water to quench their thirst and then keep going. Stress the idea that you need to find a stream or lake to keep filling up the water bottle when you run out.) When you come to a pretend rest spot pull out another container and ask them if they need to keep filling it up with the love and life of Jesus. Well, we don’t really need to keep filling up a bottle with the love and life of Jesus because his love is always with us and it never runs out. We need to keep getting more water when we are thirty but the love of Jesus never runs out. It is always there with us so we can always enjoy his refreshing life. Today’s bible verse is about a woman who met Jesus at a well where thy used to get their water. Jesus introduced himself and said that she could know his life and love. It would be like a wonderful stream of living water that that would make her life refreshing, full and complete. It would be like a stream of love and life that would never run out.

Children’s prayer: Dear God, thank you that Jesus’ life and love never run out. It’s like an invisible living water this is always there for us. In Jesus’ name – Amen!

Copyright 2014 Feel free to use this story at you morning worship service. Please consider putting a link on your church web site. Blessings, A.H.

woman at the well

John 3;16 For God so loved the world

Kids Sermon: For God so Loved the World John 3:16

John 3:16 (2^nd Sunday in Lent – for those who follow the revised common lectionary)

Children’s gospel message idea:

Bring in a large cardboard sign with JOHN 3:16 in big letters. Get a helper to hold it up and wave it around like the common sight in a football stadium. Discuss the verse and why Christians hope that they can be seen on TV.

Object lesson items. Large cardboard sign with the words “JOHN 3:16.” You could also where a toque, scarf, noisemaker and football jersey if you want to really look like a fan in the bleachers.

Children’s Sermon:

Good morning children! Tell me if this reminds you of anything you have ever seen. (Hold up and wave around the John 3:16 sign.) That’s right. If you have ever been to a football game or seen one on TV you have probably seen someone in the crowd waving this sign. Do you know what it means? John 3:16 is a bible verse. It says (show them in the bible), “for God so love the world that he gave his only son that whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” It is a wonderful bible verse because it tells us of God’s wonderful love for the world and that Jesus has opened the way for us to have eternal life! By trusting in Jesus we can have a wonderful life now and that goes on for ever and ever! That is a wonderful message that needs to get out to the whole world. Some Christians came up with the idea that by holding up the sign at football games where there are many people. They are hoping that people at the game might become curious and look up John 3:16 in the bible. They are also hoping that it might get on the TV camera and go out to the whole world!

I think it is a wonderful way of helping others discover the wonderful message of God’s in Jesus Christ. However, that may not be our way of telling others about Jesus. Each of us can tell others about Jesus and his love. If we are Christ followers, each of us is a “sign” to the rest of the world of the life and love of Jesus Christ.

Children’s prayer: Dear God, thank you for your amazing love that we read about in John 3:16. Help us to get that message out to the rest of the world. That way they can believe in Jesus and discover his wonderful life that goes on for ever and ever. In Jesus’ name – Amen!

Copyright 2014 Andrew Hewlett and Sundaychildrensfocus.com Feel free to use this kids talk on Sunday morning but please give credit to Sundaychildrensfocus.com and consider linking you web site to this site. Thank you - A.H.

Kids sermon - Jesus healing on the Sabbath

Children's Sermon on Luke13 Jesus heals a woman on the Sabbath

What days are for helping others?

Kid’s sermon idea: Show the children a calendar and explain how it shows the days of the week. Discuss what days might be best for various activities (going to church, getting together with family members, going to school, etc.) Ask them what would be appropriate days for helping someone in need. Explain how Jesus taught that everyday was a good day to heal and to do good.

Object lesson item: A large paper calendar (Showing a week or a month / page)

You might want a felt pen to write in the calendar or draw symbols.

Full Children’s Talk: Good morning children! Do you know what this is? This is a calendar and it has a space here for each day of the week. Can you say the various days of the week? (Get them to say the various days of the week and point to the days / squares on the calendar.) That’s very good. Now, what do you think would be a good day of the week to go to church? Yes, Sunday is the day most people go to church. That’s what today is. When would be a good days to go to school? I agree, those would be good days. What would be a good day to get together for a walk in the park with some friends? Yes, Saturday might be the best day because there is no school on that day. Now, here is a tricky question. When is a day that would be good for helping others? Or, think of this: When is a day that you could not show love to others? (Let the children respond.) I think you are right. Every day is a good day to show love and help others in need. Our bible reading today from Luke 13 explains how Jesus did a wonderful miracle by healing a crippled woman. But unfortunately, some people were very upset and said that he helped and healed this woman on the wrong day. They were mad at Jesus because they felt he was showing love on the wrong day! Jesus told them that even a special day of rest was a good day to help someone in need. He let them know that every day of the week was a good day for showing love to people. Showing love to people could happen on any day. (If you have been using a felt marker you could draw in a cross or a heart in each day of the week.)

Children’s Prayer: Dear God, thank you that Jesus showed love and helped people on every day of the week. Help us to remember that it is important to show love to people whenever there is a need. In Jesus’ name – Amen!

Kids talk - chosen and adopted by God

God chose us and adopted us into His family

Theme: God chose us and adopted us into the family of God

Text: Ephesians 1: 3-14 (Trinity 4) (I usually go with the Gospel but the beheading of John the Baptist doesn't seem appropriate for young kids!)

Basic idea: Demonstrate how a child is chosen and adopted into a family. Show how God has chosen us and adopted us into his family.

--Alternate: Involve the children in choosing some objects. Show some objects that you have chosen for some purpose. Describe that God has chosen us to be a part of his family.

Full Story: (Find a family that is known to have adopted a child recently and ask them prior to the service if they can be used as an object lesson. Otherwise, carefully choose “actors” from the congregation.)

Good morning children. One of our bible readings for this morning says that God has chosen us and adopted us into his family – the family of God. Do any of you know what it means to be adopted? That’s right. If there is a child who needs parents and is alone, a family can have that child become a part of their family. The mom and dad become the child’s parents and the child becomes a new member of that family. It is a very wonderful thing. I’ll show you how that works. Let’s pretend that Sally is alone and doesn’t have a family to live with. To demonstrate that we will ask her to sit up here all alone on this bench. Now over here we will ask Bob and Carol to stand up with their children. They have lots of love to share and they begin looking for a child that could join their family. (Walk the family over toward the child “Sally” that is alone on the bench.) Then they choose this child who will become part of their family. They need to sign some official papers promising to look after the child. (Pull out a clipboard and a pen and hold it in front of the parents as if they are signing a document). Now, family members I’d like you to open up your arms like this (extend your arms to the child) showing that you are choosing this young child to join your family. Now Sally, come off the bench and join this family. (Lead the child into the family’s arms.) Now Sally is been adopted into this family and is a real member. Thank you for helping me act this out.

TRANSITION: In the same way that someone can be chosen and adopted into a family the bible says that God chose us and adopted us into his family – the family of God!

We may have our own family that we belong to, but as followers of Jesus we have been chosen and adopted into the family of God as well. Now, I would like all the members of the congregation to stand up and extend your arms to us (the story teller and the children up front) just like the family members we had up here. Great. Let’s all walk down into the congregation (the family of God) to show that we have been adopted into this big part of the family of God. Well done. We are going to pray now but I would like the members of the congregation to keep standing with your arms extended in welcoming love.

Pray: Heavenly Father, thank you that even though we have our own family, you have also chosen us and adopted us into the family of God – the Church. Thank you for your great love and for making us a part of this wonderful family. In Jesus’ name – Amen.

Copyright Andrew Hewlett and Sundaychildrensfocus.com Feel free to use this story on Sunday morning but give credit to Sundaychildrensfocus.com and please consider linking your web site to this site. Thank you.

Sermon for kids Widow of Nain

Widow of Nain Luke7 - Waking up the dead -

Children’s sermon idea: Have a volunteer come up, sit on a chair and pretend to be asleep (They can have some fun snoring, talking in their sleep etc.) Have the children try and wake them up. We can wake up sleeping people by speaking loudly or by touching them. Read the passage about the widow of Nain. When Jesus walked on this earth he was able to wake up the dead!

Objects needed: Chair or recliner

Full interactive kid’s story: Good morning children! Do you find it easy to wake up in the morning? Who makes sure you wake up? How do they wake you up? Let’s look at some of the ways to wake people up. I’ve asked Mr. Jones to come up and pretend he is sleeping the way he normally sleeps. So, Mr. Jones, please just sit here, relax and show us how you sleep. (Give some time for him to doze off, snore, etc.) Wow kids! Do you make noises like that when you sleep?! Let’s see how easy it is to wake him up. Betty, try whispering in his ear. No, that didn’t wake him up. Mike, try saying “wake up” loudly. Hmmm. Let’s give him a shake. (Mr. Jones wakes up – give him a cheer and thank him for helping out.)

Well, he was certainly sound asleep. It was a little hard but we were able to wake him up. It’s usually easy to wake people up. But we can still awaken people who are sound asleep. Now, listen carefully because I’m going to tell you something truly amazing. When Jesus walked on this earth he could wake up people who were sleeping but he could also wake up people who had died! It’s almost impossible for us to do something like that. But Jesus was God’s son. He could do amazing things. He could even bring dead people back to life! Listen to this account in the Gospel of Luke. (Read the story of the Widow of Nain) Jesus just said “get up” to the widows son and he got up. To Jesus, bringing someone back to life was as easy as waking up a sleeping person.

Children’s Prayer: Dear God, thank you for sending Jesus to be the Saviour of the world. Thank you for the great love he has for each of us. Thank you that he even has the power to bring dead people back to life! In Jesus’ name – Amen!

Grace