Sermons4Kids

[Soldier4Christ]

The Tower of Babel

Genesis 11

When Noah was on the ship to flee away from the flood, there were only eight people in his family: Noah and his wife, his three sons, and three daughter in-law. But over three years after that, when Noah passed away, his family had offspring born every where. From that day on, human beings began to give births more and more, and eventually they were everywhere as before the flood.

Even though there were many people in the world, but since everyone came from one family so all of them talked the same language. One day, some people from the East gathered to explore the strange land. When they came to a wide mainland, they liked it very much because the other places had high mountains that caused difficulty in transportation and one village couldn't see much the other village. Seeing a broad land, some people had thought to build a tall tower there.

Those people met together and planned: "Our families now are already too big; our offspring increases everyday; one day we die, surely, there is no one to remember us any more." Another person said: "Our offspring is too crowded; one day they scatter everywhere; they may not recognize their relatives any more. Therefore, we have to build a real tall tower, tall so that it can reach to heaven to send our name for later generations; and when our offspring has scattered, they also know this tower to find the way home with their relatives."

Everyone thought that idea was good, so they agreed to build a very tall tower to leave a good name for the later generations. Therefore, everyone began working hard. They arranged each person to do one job. One person picked up the materials to make bricks; the other person went to find resin to stick the bricks together. They work hard and were very happy since everyone wanted the next generation to know their names. Because everyone had the same goal, the job succeeded very fast. When some of the bricks were done, people began to look for a broad land to build the tower. Who knew how to build then built, who knew how to make bricks then made more bricks; who didn't know how to make bricks then went to find sand; or some people didn't know what to do, they just took care of bringing the bricks to the builders. Also, there were some women cooked for the builders. All these people worked enthusiastically.

One day, when people were busy to build the tower, the Lord looked down from heaven to see their work. God saw people were very arrogant and forgot fast God's commands. They forgot that God just made a great flood to destroy all the people had sins and were proud themselves. They also forgot that their responsibility was to be thankful to the Lord, not that they should make their offspring to thank them. They began to trust their own abilities and wanted to make a good name for themselves, but they did not want to honor God and serve Him. Looking at the tower people were building, the Lord said: "No, these people are very arrogant, I must prevent their work! All these people, are in one nation so they talk one language, now the only way to prevent their work is to confuse their language."

That day as usual, after a long working day, everyone was tired so they went straight to their houses; they ate dinner, took shower, and went to sleep. The next morning, they woke up early, continued their work in order to finish the tall tower. But when they began working, they noticed a strange thing, that's no one seemed to help sincerely. At first, they thought the people working with them had had something to worry, so they didn't pay much attention to the work; or these people weren't given the right tools needed and their suggestions weren't followed correctly. Eventually, they discovered that not because everyone disagreed with each other, but the problem was no one could understand the others' language. When people began to open their mouths talking, they spoke with the languages that others didn't understand.

You try to imagine that right now in a classroom, suddenly, everyone speak their own language; the teacher says things that no one can understand; the students say things that the teach doesn't know what they means; the teacher gives commands but the students don't follow… If that case happened, the solution would be to dismiss the class and let the students go home. So in this story, the confusing situation happened. The people couldn't continue to build because the person stood below him couldn't understand what he needed. The brick-makers couldn't make more bricks because there was no helper for them. Nobody could understand what others were saying; so they looked at each other astoundingly; and then they had to leave the work and went home. Therefore, building the tall tower to reach the heaven was left unfinished in the middle. God only did very small thing - He only changed people's language so they could not understand each other, and He could prevent their work.

Because of different languages, people didn't understand each other, so they scattered across the world; each person went to one place. People called the unfinished tower, the Tower of Babel. The word Babel means confusion, that is the Lord God confused the language of man. That is the reason why human beings have had many languages as you see today. Today, man has to take a lot of time and strength to learn others' languages.

The story of the Tower of Babel shows us that The Lord is the Great Power. God created man, so He has the power over man. He has the power to let us live and work. But God is also Love, He created this wonderful world with all necessary things, so we can live happily and comfortably. God gives us many blessings, but He wants only one thing from us. God wants us to be thankful to Him and honor Him with all our hearts.

QUESTIONS:

   1. How many people were saved in the flood at Noah's time?
   2. When their offspring had increased more, what did they plan to do?
   3. Did they finish their plan? Why?
   4. Why did God hinder their work?

[Soldier4Christ]

The Kind Uncle

Genesis 13

Once upon the time, there was a man who was very good and kind, named Abraham. Abraham was very rich. At that time, where he lived, people hadn't known how to build a house; therefore, he lived in a tent made by fabric, but his tent was very big and beautiful. Abraham also had many servants, who helped him to take care his home and animals. He bred many kinds of animals such as: sheep, cow, goat, donkey, and camel. In the olden time, the riches did not have money because people hadn't known how to cast or print money yet. Therefore, rich people usually had lot of gold, big flocks of animals and many servants. Abraham's wife was a pretty and talented woman. Their family was very complete, happy, but only that they were old but hadn't had any children yet.

Abraham had a nephew who called him uncle. That nephew was named Lot. Lot didn't have a father when he was little, so Abraham brought him home and raised him. Abraham loved Lot as his own son. Lot lived happily in his uncle's family; he was loved, taken care and provided everything by his uncle.

One day, God appeared to Abraham. God said that he should leave his home, travel to a faraway and strange land God planned for his family and offspring. Abraham followed God's commands, said good bye to his relatives, his village, brought his family and properties and left. He also brought Lot with him. When two uncle and nephew moved, people felt like the whole village was moved because Abraham's family was huge, lot of properties and animals. The people who loved his family, told them not to move to another place. People told Abraham's family to stay so they could help them; otherwise, it's hard to know how life would be at the new place. Abraham also love his relatives and friends in the village, but he decided to follow God's call; therefore, no one could stop him.

Reaching Canaan, two uncle and nephew stopped here, built a tent to live and began to do farm work and raise animals for living. After a while, Lot had his own family and became rich also. Lot also had many servants and a big flock of animals. After living in Canaan for a while, this place had a famine, so two of them had to move their families and properties to another place. When the famine ended, two families came back to Canaan. They went through one road to another, days after days. Finally, they came to a new place, God said to Abraham to stop and let him know that all this land would become his. Abraham then told everyone and animals to stop. They cleaned up a place and set up the tent there. Privately, Abraham built an alter to thank God.

At that time, Abraham and Lot's families became rich. They had too many animals so that there wasn't enough grass for their animals to eat, not enough water for them to drink. The servants of both families began to argue to divide every grass field, every spring. When Abraham knew what had happened, he was very sad. He did not want his family and his nephew's family to argue, so he called Lot and said: "You think, here we don't have anyone, only my family and your family, so we should live in peace to keep our family relationship not broken. Now, to avoid a fight between our families, I think we should be separated, each family should live one private place."

After their conversation, Abraham took Lot outside and said: "You come outside with me, we go up the that hill to see clearly this land and I let you choose first. Whatever part of this land you want is fine with me. If you want this side of the land, then I will go to the other side; if you choose that side then I will go to this side." Listen to what his uncle said, Lot was very happy, and tried to open his eyes bigger to see all the land. Finally, he saw that part of land had a big river running through; trees and green field of grass, so Lot said: "Uncle, I like to choose this part of land!" Abraham knew his nephew had chosen the good land but he was not sad nor angry. He only said: "Good, you like that land, then I will take the other land. I am fine with either side, as long as two families live separately, so we won't fight each other any more!"

Lot chosen a good land and left Abraham the bad land. This showed that Lot was not a nice person. He had forgotten that all his properties he currently owned came from his uncle's help. He was alone by himself without parents, but his uncle loved, raised, and helped him to be a good person; also he was allowed to go with his uncle family until this day. It was supposed that he should let his uncle have the good land, so it would be easier for an old man to live. But Lot only thought about himself and wanted the best land for his family. Lot was too selfish, don't you think? Mean while Abraham was generous and kind. He didn't tell Lot about his merit; he wasn't angry at anything. He was happy to accept the stunted land.

God was happy about Abraham's behave; so from that day on, God continued to bless his family. His flock of animals kept increasing more and more everyday, his farm always produced good harvests. For that he became richer and richer. Nevertheless, the most special blessing God gave to Abraham was he was chosen to be the forefather of a nation set out for Him. He could talk to God and God considered him as His friend.

Are you selfish as Lot or are you generous and kind as Abraham? Do you usually only think about the benefit for you or you also think about other people and willing to give up a good part for them? Do you help your parents, have good conduct to your brothers and sisters, share cookies and candies and toys with your younger brothers and sisters? Remember, God will bless to your generations for who obey His commands, that is for who knows how to love, share, and willing to help others.

QUESTIONS:

   1. What is the name of the kind uncle?
   2. What did he help his nephew?
   3. What kind of person was his nephew? How do we know?
   4. Obey God's commands, what should we behave with people around us?

[Soldier4Christ]

The Bloody Coat


Genesis 37

Once upon the time, there was a family with twelve sons and several daughters. A family that has twelve children must be crowded, don't you think? Among the twelve sons, the tenth son was named Joseph, that means Joseph had ten older bothers and one younger brother. On the year Joseph was seventeen, all his older brothers had grown up; some of them had families, only the little brother was still young. Joseph loved his young brother very much because he and Joseph were the children of the same mother, and their mother had died for a long time.

One day, Joseph's father gave him a beautiful coat of many colors; probably because Joseph was young and good, so his father rewarded him. All his older brothers saw their father loved Joseph, they became envious; eventually, they hated Joseph. They commanded Joseph to do all kinds of different things and even made Joseph angry. One night, Joseph was sleeping, he had a strange and clear dream, so Joseph came to tell his older brothers. Joseph said: "I saw everyone was working on the field. My sheaf stood up, but your sheaf bowed down to mine." After hearing that story, all the brothers hated Joseph even more.

Another time, Joseph had a dream again and he also told his brothers. This time Joseph saw the sun, the moon, and eleven stars all bowed down to Joseph. After listening to this dream, the older brothers told Joseph that he was young but proud, and wanted to have control of them. Joseph's father also scolded Joseph why he dared to say so. Even though he scolded Joseph, but he remembered everything in his heart. The brothers still hated Joseph very much; not only they did not treat kindly to Joseph, but also they began to find way to harm Joseph. Mean while Joseph still loved his brothers, he would tell his brothers everything he had known.

After a little while, the brothers must took their animals out to the fields for them to eat grasses, only Joseph himself and the youngest brother stayed home. After the older brothers had gone for several weeks, their father asked Joseph to bring food to them and find out if they were fine or not, and then let him know about them. Following his father's words, Joseph prepared the food and left. Because he didn't know the roads, so Joseph got lost; he had to ask many people in order to find his brothers. When just seeing Joseph coming from far away, the brothers thought this time was the good chance to pay back; therefore, they planned together to kill Joseph. When the oldest brother heard that, he immediately found way to interfere. He told the other brothers to drop Joseph in the well but don't kill him so that they wouldn't have sin. He said so because he planned that after the other brothers had left, he would come and pull Joseph out of the well and take him home to his father.

When the older brothers just made the plan, Joseph also came. Walking alone during several days, now he met his older brothers, he was so happy, ran toward and hold them. But the brothers stormed toward him, took away the food basket on Joseph's hands, and then took off the colorful coat that their father had given to him. Joseph was too afraid and cried his eyes out, but his older brothers didn't let him go. They carried Joseph to a well near there and dropped him down. Fortunately for Joseph, that was a dry well, so Joseph didn't die.

After dropping Joseph down in the well, the older brothers went back to their place and took the food basket that Joseph brought to them, they opened it and ate together happily as nothing had happened. While they were eating, there was a trading group walking by. These were the salesmen from one land to another. They transported by camels and carried with them a lot of merchandise. So that, the brothers had thought: "Oh, maybe we should sell Joseph to these salesmen to have some money, this way is more beneficial than killing him." With that thought, they called the salesmen and told them that they wanted to sell a boy as a slave. The brothers came back to the well and hauled Joseph out of the well. Joseph was so happy, he thought his brothers stopped their anger so that they let him free. But his happiness became his fear when he saw his brothers took him to a stranger. Joseph hasn't had a chance to ask anything; the stranger came near, hold Joseph's hand, picked him up from the ground, put him on the back of the camel, and then paid his brothers twenty pieces of silver. Joseph was too scared, crying out loud, begging, but no one had pity on him.

Joseph had never met these people, but also he could not understand their language; but now, his brothers forced him to go with them. Joseph didn't know where they were taking him to, and what they would do with him. With that thought in mind, Joseph was too afraid, turned around to look at his brothers to beg for salvation, but no one had pity on him and saved him. Therefore, Joseph was taken to a very far away place, and he would never be allowed to see his father and his little loving brother. When Joseph was sold away, the oldest brother was not present there. A little while after that, he came back to the well to haul Joseph out, but he didn't see Joseph anywhere. He thought his younger brothers had killed Joseph, so he was very sad and worry. He knew that he would be scolded by his father, since he was the oldest and he had to take the responsibility. Feeling too sad, the oldest brother sadly walked away.

Since the brothers sold Joseph away, they now had to find a way to lie about their sin. After discussing together, they caught a goat and killed it, then they spread its blood on Joseph's coat of many colors. They tore and rumpled the coat so it would look like Joseph was killed by wild beast. After that, they sent it to their father and said: "Father takes a look at this, is it Joseph's coat?" Saw the coat with full of blood, the father believed right away that Joseph was killed by wild beast; therefore, he cried with heart-rending.

The older brothers probably satisfied when seeing their father was too sad, moaning, because he had lost the loving son.. These brothers destroyed Joseph so their father couldn't love Joseph more than he loved them. Joseph's brothers had achieved what they wanted, that was: separated Joseph from their family, sent Joseph away from their father's love. All happened because of their jealous and selfish hearts. The older brothers were very jealous and selfish so that none of them thought about their old father suffering miserable and dared to tell the truth to him that Joseph was still alive. From that, Joseph's father lived in sadness, lonely, sorry for the good son had died painfully.

QUESTIONS:

   1. Why did the older brothers hate Joseph?
   2. Because of jealousy, what did the older brothers do to harm Joseph?
   3. Is the sin of jealousy dangerous? Why?
   4. Please tell several cases that you have felt jealous with other people.

[Soldier4Christ]

The Baby Basket on the River

Exodus 2:1-10

When you were a just born child, your mother must took care of you day and night, didn't she? At daylight, she look after you, hold you, washed you up, and nourished you. At night, mother still couldn't take rest, because she had to hold and took care of you. Any time you cried, your mother would be ready near by your side to comfort and cuddle you. Parents have sacrificed their lives to take care of you so because they love you. Parents, especially the mothers, always take care of their children with all their hearts; even though they have to sacrifice hard day and night, and though no one would pay them any penny for their labor. Long time ago, there was a mother who was in a special situation, that is, she brought up her child and got paid from another person. This story was happened in Egypt.

At that time, there were many Israelites lived in Egypt. They were the offspring of Joseph's family. Do you still remember Joseph's story? After he was sold to a group of traders, Joseph became a slave in Egypt. From that day, Joseph had to work very hard, then he was accused falsely, and he was arrested to prison. Finally, God saved Joseph and let Joseph to become a mighty prince to save Egypt from a famine. Joseph was a mighty prince for awhile, then Canaan, which was Joseph's home, also had bad crop and became starving. For that reason, Joseph had chance to see his brothers again and had brought his whole family to Egypt and live there.

When Joseph's family came to Egypt, they were greeting by the king of Egypt and were offered many benefits. They lived there, had more offspring, and gradually became a crowded and strong group. However, several years later, when all people who knew the work of Joseph died, and all the kings of Egypt now didn't know who Joseph was any more; then, the Egyptians began to hate the Israelites (Hebrews).

At that time, the Israelites lived in Egypt, they had too many offspring and they were richer than some of Egyptians; therefore, Egyptians hated them. The Egyptians had found a way to repress and destroy Israelites. They wanted the Israelites to do the hard work, work day and night without pay. Every day, the people of Israel were given a little bit of food to have strength to work. Even so, the Israelites were blessed by God; therefore, they became more crowded and stronger each day. Finally, the king of Egypt found out a way to destroy the Israelites. He commanded to kill all the young Israel boys who were just born. When Israelites gave birth to girls, then they was allowed to live; however, if a boy was born, he had to be thrown into the river.

The King's command was said, but there was an Israel family who gave birth to a son. According to the King's command, this family had to throw their son into the river; however, the whole family kept this child. The brothers and sisters of this baby also tried to help their parents to hide him so that nobody knew he was still alive. But one day, the mother said to her daughter: "Daughter, you have helped me to hide your young brother for a long time now. It's been three months now from the day he was born, but now it would be better to give him away because we can't take care of him any more." The daughter was surprised and asked: "Why so, mother? Why can't we take care of him any more? There is nobody knows that we have a baby boy in the house!" But the mother said: "No, my daughter, we can't because it would be too dangerous; if we keep him a little bit longer and if people know, then your little brother will be in danger and our whole family will be sent to prison." The daughter asked: "So now, what would you like to do, mother?" The mother answered: "I have a plan, that is, you should go down to the river, pluck up some reeds so I can knit a baby basket for your little brother." The daughter obeyed to her mother's words and went to pluck up some reeds, so her mother could knit a basket with a cover. The mother plastered gum around the basket so the water couldn't be absorbed inside the basket. The next day, she laid the baby inside the basket and placed it on the river in the middle of reeds so it wouldn't float away. The basket was on the water surface as a little boat.

The whole family was very distressed. Image that you have a young brother, only three months old and now your parents must throw him into the river instead of keeping him in the house; therefore, your whole family must be distressed tremendously. And so, the parents and brothers and sisters of this little boy also distressed very much; but when thinking about the king's command, they had to leave the boy. After placing the basket with the baby on the bank of the river, the mother asked her daughter to stay near the river and watch over the basket. The basket was slowly floating on current of water. The baby's sister was growing along on the banks of the river and watched what was happening to the baby, then she would come home and tell her mother. After a while growing along, the sister heard some people's noise coming from far away, that was the princess of Egypt and her servants. The princess was about to step into the river to wash up but she saw the basket; wondering what was inside the basket, she asked her servants to pick it up. When opened up the basket, seeing there was a baby just born, the princess knew right away that was the son of Israelites, because of the king's command the parents had to throw their son into the river. Seeing the beautiful baby, the princess fell in love with him, so she said to her servants: "What a pity! The baby is adorable, it must be a son of Israelites (Hebrews)!"

The baby's sister hid in the reeds near by, she was worry to see what the princess would do next. Her servants were also quiet to see what the princess would plan to do because the king of Egypt was the one who commanded to kill all the innocent baby boys like that. The baby might be sleeping and was woken up, so he cried, and so the princess picked him up and comforted him. Holding the baby in her hands, she thought: The innocent and adorable baby like this was thrown into the river to die, what a pity. Maybe… I should bring him home and take care of him? Therefore, the princess turned toward her servants and said: "An adorable baby like this was left floating on the river, what a pity! I will bring him home."

The baby's sister was still hiding behind the reeds to follow up what was going on, when she heard the princess said that she would bring her brother home, the sister was too happy and ran out from the reeds and said hi to the princess and said: "Your highness, do you need a nurse to take care of this baby?" The princess responded: "Yes, of course, do you know anyone?" The sister answered: "Yes, princess, I know my mother can be the nurse for this baby." The princess shook her head: "Yes, you go home and invite your mother to come here." The baby's sister was very happy, ran straight home, told her mother the whole story, and took her mother to see the princess. The princess handed over the baby to her and said: "You bring this baby home and nourish him, then I will pay you." Listen to the princess' command, the woman was happy, thanked God silently. Her son was supposed to be died, but now he lived again; therefore, she was happy and hold her son inside. Now she was allowed to bring up her son; she was not afraid anyone any more and also got paid by the princess for nursing her son. Everything happened beautifully outside of her expectation.

The woman brought her son home and nursed him. When the boy had grown up, she took him back to palace and returned him to the princess. The princess adopted the baby, named him Moses, that meant "picked up from the water". Later on, when he grew up, God used him to be the person who liberated Israel from the slavery of Egyptians.

This story remind us two things. First thing is, if we love God and be ready to obey his teaching, God will guide us in His good way. Second thing is, our parents love us unlimitedly, there is nothing can be compared to their work; therefore, as children, we must love and obey our parents to make them happy. There are two things you can do for your parents today, those are to thank God who has given you your parents who love you, teach you, and take care of you everyday; and remember to pray for your parents. You love your parents very much, don't you? Please remember to pray for your parents and always obey their teaching.

QUESTIONS:

   1. Why did the people of Israel live in Egypt?
   2. Why did the king of Egypt command to kill all the baby boys of Israel?
   3. What did Moses' mother do?
   4. Who did God use to save Moses?
   5. When we love and obey God's teaching, what does God do for us?

[Soldier4Christ]

The Secret in the Desert


Exodus 2:11-4:17

When Moses had grown up, his mother took him to the royal palace to return him back to the princess of Egypt. The princess adopted Moses, but she loved him as her own blood child. Moses was taught and trained to become a prince of Egypt. Although he enjoyed all the luxurious things in royal palace, but when he became an adult, Moses never forget that he was a Hebrew. At that time Hebrew people were still slaves for Egyptians, they were treated badly by Egyptians. Even though living in the royal palace, and since Moses knew his people were living utterly miserably, he was not happy. All the time he was thinking to find a way to help the Hebrews.

One day, Moses went out to see how the slaves were working. He saw an Egyptian hit a Hebrew slave. Moses couldn't take it so he tried to save the slave and over hit the Egyptian to death. Moses hid the body in the sand. The next day, Moses came back to see the Hebrews working. This time He saw two Hebrews fighting together. Moses then tried to make peace between them. Seeing that, one of those people said to him: "Who made you judge over us? Do you want to kill us like you did to the Egyptian yesterday?" Moses was very afraid when he heard that, because he knew there was someone who saw he killed the Egyptian yesterday.

When the King of Egypt knew what Moses had done, he became very angry; he ordered his servants to find Moses and kill him. Therefore, Moses had to fled far away from the royal palace. He feared to live in Egypt any longer; therefore, Moses went to a desert, which called Midian desert. After several days tiredly walking on the streets, Moses saw a well-water beside the road, he came to the well-water, drank some water, and rested there. A while after that, there were seven sisters - from a family coming home after tending their sheep - also came to drink water at the well-water. Right at that time, there were some shepherds came along and drove them away. Moses got up and came to their rescue and watered their flock. These sisters were touched by Moses' good heart; therefore they invited him to their home and introduced him to their family. The sisters' father invited Moses to stay with his family. Because of that deserted and wild place, Moses didn't know where to go, so he accepted this offer. Moses stayed there, helped that family to take care of their flock. Later, he got married to one of the sisters in that family.

From that day on, Moses felt comfortable with his current life. He didn't fear the king of Egypt to look for and kill him any more. Also, no one knew that he was the prince of Egypt. Moses thought, from now on, that he would be a shepherd, live quietly in this desert until he died. Yet, Moses didn't know that God had a special plan for his life.

One day, Moses was tending the flock in the desert as usual. Suddenly, he saw a bush burning by itself. The bush kept burning and never stopped. It was strange to him, so Moses came near to see. But when he just came near, he heard a person's voice coming out from the bush. Moses was scared but still tried to be calm and listen to the voice. That voice called his name and said: "Moses! Don't come near here. Take off your shoes because the place where you are standing is the holy ground." Moses hurry took off his shoes. That voice continued: "I am the God of your ancient." When hearing that was the God, Moses was too afraid, so he covered his face by his hands because he knew that no one could see God since whoever saw the glory of God would die. While Moses was afraid, God said: "I have chosen you to go and save My people. You must go back to Egypt, see Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and ask him to free My people; then you will lead them to the land flowing with milk and honey."

When Moses heard God commanded him to go back to Egypt and see Pharaoh, he was afraid even more. How could he dare to go back to Egypt? Surely, the king of Egypt would kill him right away. Therefore, Moses said: "Dear Lord, who I am that I should ask the king of Egypt to free Your people." God said: "Don't be afraid, I will be with you and help you. I will give you the power to do miracle. The king of Egypt will believe you and let My people go. Even though God promised Moses those things, Moses still didn't want to go back to Egypt, he said: "Dear God, the Hebrews will not believe that You have sent me to bring them out. What should I use for the proof that You have sent me?" God also gave more power to Moses so he could do more miracles, but he still didn't want to accept the job that God assigned him to do.

Moses tried to find some other reasons to refuse. He said: "Dear God, I don't have a good way of speaking, my mouth and tongue usually halt, so no one will listen to me." God patiently asked Moses: "Who created human's mouth? Is it Me who created your mouth and tongue? Go, and don't worry! I will be with your mouth and teach you what to say." Although God has promised Moses everything like that, but Moses still didn't want to go back to Egypt to help the Hebrews. He said: "O Lord, please send someone else to do it."

Seeing Moses kept refusing, didn't want to do what He said, so God became angry. He asked Moses: "Is Aaron your brother? I know Aaron who can speak well, and Aaron is coming to meet you. You will tell him what I have said to you. Your brother will go and speak to the people, and you, go and use the staff in your hand to perform miraculous signs." Now, Moses didn't have any reason to refuse the job that God wanted him to do, so he silently accepted. From then, Moses and his brother, Aaron, obeyed to God's Words and came back to Egypt, to meet Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, fight and bring the Hebrews out of the slavery of Egypt. Moses became the great leader of Hebrews.

QUESTIONS:

   1. Why did Moses leave Egypt?
   2. Where did God appear to Moses?
   3. What did God command Moses to do?
   4. Did Moses obey God's Words?
   5. Finally, who did God send to go with Moses and help him?

[Soldier4Christ]

The Country Girl Met an Angel

Luke 1:26-38

Once upon a time, in the village of Nazareth, at Bethlehem, there was a girl who was kind, obedient, and loving God. That girl was named Mary. In the village, everyone loved Mary because she was very sweet and lovely. Mary just got engaged with a young man named Joseph. Even though Joseph was only a poor carpenter, but because of knowing Joseph was a moral person who also loved God, Mary accepted to be married with Joseph. It's very soon that they would have a wedding. Mary didn't have any more wish than to have a husband who loved God so she could be with her husband to worship and live for God.

One day, Mary was busy to take care some housework, suddenly there was a voice talking: "Hello Mary! You was blessed by God; may God be with you!" Waking up, Mary looked outside the door and saw a human shadow with a bright nimbus. Mary was afraid but just thought that might be an angel; therefore, she kneed down right away. It had been a long time that God's angels didn't appear to His people. Mary was worry and didn't understand why an angel came and blessed her so. Seeing Mary was afraid, the angel said: "Don't be afraid because you are blessed by God. You will be pregnant, will give birth to a Son and name Him, Jesus. That Son is great, and will be called the Son of God. God will give him the throne of King David. He will govern Israel forever, and His kingdom will never end."

Mary was less afraid now, but she still didn't understand all the things the angel just said. She asked herself: "I haven't had a husband yet, but why You said I will give birth to a son?" The angel responded: "The Son who you will have is the Son of God, not the son of the world. The Holy Spirit will come over you, so the Son of Spirit will be called the Son of God. You know your relative, Elizabeth, who is very old and hasn't had a child yet; but now she has been pregnant for six months. Remember that, there is nothing that God cannot do." Even though Mary didn't understand all the things the angel said; but she believed the angel's words, and so she said with her head bowed: "I only a servant of the Lord. May all things will happen to me as You said."

When the angel left, Mary was silently thinking. At first she was a little bit worry, but the more she thought the more she felt happy inside. Mary wasn't sure how all things would happen, but she believed that God would act on His words. It had been several hundred years passed, God promised to give a Savior to save His people. Israel nation was still waiting but they hadn't seen the Savior to appear yet. Now Mary knew for sure that Savior was coming soon, and she had the honor to give birth to Him. It's truly a great honor.

Mary came back to do her work that was left in the middle, but her mind was still thinking continuously. She thought: how would my wedding happen? What would Joseph think about me if he heard that I was pregnant? He must be very sad. Don't know if Joseph still wanted to process the wedding and willing to take care the Son of God?… Thinking to here, Mary felt worry inside, not peaceful; so, she kneed down and prayed. Mary asked God to help Joseph to believe her words and still love her as before.

Not too long after that, Joseph knew Mary was pregnant. He was sad and disappointed very much. He believed Mary was a good, moral girl; he didn't expect that she was that bad. With long thinking, Joseph still didn't understand why there could be something disgraceful like that happened. According to the tradition at that time, if a girl without a husband was pregnant, she would be killed by throwing stones to her; because that was the shameful thing for both the community and relatives. Because of his love to Mary, Joseph didn't dare to share this shameful thing to anyone. But even he didn't want Mary to loose her life, Joseph also didn't want to marry a girl like that to be his wife. Therefore, he planned to drop the marriage silently.

One night, while Joseph was sleeping, an angel came to his dream and said: "Joseph, don't be afraid to take Mary to be your wife, because the Son who she's carrying is born by the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a Son and you name Him as Jesus, because this Son will save our nation from our sins. Everything happened like that, according to God's words promised from a long time ago: A virgin girl will be pregnant and give birth to a son. Then people will name him, Emmanuel - means, the Lord be with us."

Joseph woke up, and thinking perplex: "Is it possible that I just saw an angel? But how the angel knew I didn't want to marry Mary any more? Well, this thing is just a God's miracle! If it's so, Mary is not a bad person. Mary is blessed by God." Joseph was very happy and couldn't go back to sleep. He was thinking that some day he would be a daddy of the Son of God; Joseph was happy and worry because that was a big responsibility.

Although he did not know clearly what God would do, but like Mary, Joseph believed in God perfectly. Although he didn't know what the future would hold, how his family life would be, but Joseph just believed in God. He forgot about dropping his marriage, instead, he decided to marry Mary and take care her to the day the Son of God was born. Joseph felt much happier inside when he thought: The Savior is coming and I am the honorable person who can take care of Him. Joseph silently prayed and asked God to give him the wisdom so that He can bring up the Son of God.

Mary and Joseph believe in God and obey His words perfectly. Two of them could give many excuses to not accept this plan from God. They could say: "Dear God, I don't deserve it; that plan is hard for me to do; I don't think I can do it, etc…" But no, they were both happy to accept God's plan and obey His words.

Do you obey God's words? God wants us to obey His words in all situations. You probably say: "But how can I know it was God's words to follow?" Through God's words in the Bible, we can know what God wants us to do. First of all, God wants you all believe in God and surrender your life to God and let Him be the leader of your life. Second of all is God wants you to obey your parents. Have you ever not obeyed your parents? Surely, yes. Many times, your parents ask you to help out in the house, but because of your laziness, you give this excuse or that excuse to avoid not doing the work. The things, that your parent don't want you to do, you want to do them.

The Bible teaches us, children must obey their parents in all cases. Whoever doesn't obey their parents' teaching is the one who also doesn't obey God's word. Hope that you all follow to Mary and Joseph's images, and obey God's words with all your heart.

QUESTIONS:

   1. When seeing the angel, who was Mary already engaged to?
   2. What was the message the angel sent to Mary?
   3. How did Mary react?
   4. When Joseph hear that news, what did he plan to do?
   5. In the end, how would Joseph and Mary decide?

[Soldier4Christ]

The First Christmas Eve

Luke 2:1-21

When a baby is about to be born, the mother has to go to the hospital or invite a doctor to her house for help. Other family members should be anxiously waiting, and they have ready had everything needed for the baby. There may have a cradle with the new soft pillows and new cloths; if there is no cradle, there must be a warm and soft place for the baby to lay down.

Once upon the time, there was a Baby born. This Baby was not a regular person as us because He was the Son of the great King. This special Baby was not born at a hospital, or at a royal palace as other kings' children. He was born on the way of a far away journey. A journey from Nazareth, a town in Galilee, down to Bethlehem, in Judea. This traveling distance was about 75 miles, that was about 120 kilometers.

You maybe think, 120 kilometers is not that far! That is true; if you travel by car or by train, this distance is short. However, if you walk, it must take 3 to 4 days. The way from Nazareth to Bethlehem was hard to walk. Not only they had to travel over the mountains, but they also had to walk in the unpleasant weather of the desert: at daylight, it was hot as fire; at night, it was chilled to the bone. The Baby's mother was named Mary, and His adopted father was Joseph. Joseph was only an adopted father because the Baby was the Son of God.

At the beginning of this journey, Mary was very tired because it was near to the baby due day; and Joseph didn't plan to go anywhere. However, at that time, the King of Rome commanded everyone had to go back home to register for a population check. Joseph and Mary very hesitated to travel far at this time, but because of the king's command, they had to continue on the road back to Bethlehem, which was Joseph's home town.

At that time, there was no car; therefore, whenever people had to go somewhere, the poor had to walk, and the riches used horses or camels. Joseph was a carpenter, so he was not rich at all. Even so, he had tried to take all his money and a young donkey to take his wife back home. On a rough road, Mary had to sit on the back of the donkey, stayed out in the sun during several days, but she still hold on until coming to the place.

Finally, the couple came to Bethlehem. Mary wished to have a quiet place to rest. Joseph was also very tired, but he took his wife to the village and looked for a hotel. They walked for a while and saw a hotel in front of them. Joseph was very happy, ran fast, and hoped to find a place to rest through the night. But when he stepped inside this hotel, he was disappointed because there was no more place available for them. Joseph walked the donkey to another hotel, and this hotel was also full. The reason was many other people also had to go back to Bethlehem to register and they had come before him; therefore, they had filled up all the rooms of these hotels.

Joseph was too disappointed, so he took his donkey to a small hotel at the end of the village. How sorry for this couple, this small hotel was also full! Joseph talked to the hotel owner: "My wife is having a baby and it is near to the labor day; however, she has been seating on the back of the donkey during several days, and she is very tired now. Please, find a place for us to rest tonight, any place should be fine." The hotel owner looked at this couple with a worry eyes. Finally, he said: "There is really no more room in this hotel, but behind the house there is a place contains the straws for cows to eat, it's also warm and clean. If you don't mind, you both can rest there tonight and we will see about tomorrow." Because there was no more place for them, Joseph had to take his wife to the sheep-house to rest. That night, Mary gave birth to her first son, she took a tower to cover the baby and put him inside the manger.

And so, The Son of God, The Savior of the world, was born in the manger of the sheep-house, the poorest place in the world. Bethlehem was very crowded, and there were many people who were waiting for the Savior, but no one knew that The Savior just came, near by beside them. Only Joseph and Mary knew, because the angel told them before. As usual, when a baby was born, his parents must name him. There are many people who have to find, and think for a long time to choose a name that they want for their children. However, only Joseph and Mary didn't have to think or choose any name, because the angel told them, when this Baby was born, they should name him as Jesus, because He came to save the world from the sins.

That night, on the hill outside Bethlehem, there were several shepherds who still awoke to watch over their flock at night. They were sitting by a fire, warming up and talking together. Suddenly, the sky above them was flashing, an angel appeared with bright nimbus. These shepherds were so scared, so they took their hands to cover their faces and found a place to hide. But the angel said: "Don't be afraid, I came here to tell you a good news, that is also a great news for everyone. That is tonight, in the town of David, the Savior was just born. And this is the sign to acknowledge Him: You will see a Baby born, wrapped in cloths, and lying in a manger." These shepherds were surprised, didn't know what to say, there were thousands of angel appeared with the first angel and sang: "Glory to God in the highest! And on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."

After singing, the group of the angel disappeared. The darkness came back to the whole place. The shepherds still scared and shaken, so no one said anything. After awhile, when they had come back to normal, one of them said: "Maybe we should go to Bethlehem, to see what the angels told us." Therefore, together they left right away and not waiting until morning. When they came to Bethlehem, they looked for a sheep-house and saw a baby just born, wrapped in cloths, and lying in a manger, as what the angel said. The shepherds knew right away that this Baby just born was the Savior who everyone was waiting for. Therefore, they came back home, praised to the Lord and told everyone about what they just heard and saw.

Do you know why God didn't come to the world in the picture of a respectful king but instead He came with a picture of an innocent baby? It's because God loves us so much. God wants to come with everyone, including the poorest people. God also wants to be a weak baby, and grows up as us, so that He can understand us in every situation. Finally, God died for us because of our sins. God loves the world so much; He gave everything for human beings; however, there are many people don't love Him. How about yourself? Do you love God? If you love God, you should accept Him; you should learn from what the shepherds a long time ago had done, that is to praise God and tell everyone who the Savior is.

QUESTIONS:

   1. Where was the Savior born?
   2. Who was the first person(s) the angel told about the good news?
   3. What were the signs to find God?
   4. After finding the Savior, what did the shepherds do?
   5. Have you "met" the Savior yet? If you have "met" Him, what should you do?

[Soldier4Christ]

The Wise Men Found God


Matthew 2

When Jesus was born, there was not many people who knew and looked for Him. However, far away, in the lands to the East, there was a group of people who long wanted to find God. People usually called them the doctors, but they should be called as the wise men. These wise men were the intelligent and knowledgable men. These wise men studied the stars on the sky to find the answers for everything happened in the world. They believed there was a powerful God in the whole universe and believed that by studying the stars, created by that powerful God, they could know His will.

One night, the wise men were outside and looked at the stars, God showed them a special star. They saw this star was brighter than all other stars that they had studied ever since. Looking at that special star, the wise men knew there was a King born. Not only that, they also knew that this King was greater and more special than all the other kings in the world. The more they were studying the bright star, the more the wise men wanted to go and find the King just born to worship Him. After several days discussing together, they agreed to stop their work aside and go on the road to find the new King. Even though they didn't know where that King was and they knew that the journey would be far away and dangerous, they still decided to go on.

In the drawings, we usually see there are three wise men because the Bible said that they presented to the Savior three gifts. In fact, we don't know exactly there were how many people. The wise men's journey might be very noisy; there were the camels carring food and things, and there were servants followed to help them. This journey was farer and harder than Mary and Joseph's journey.

Finally, the wise men came to Jerusalem. They thought the city would be greeting the new King, but there was nothing going on. Not only so, when they asked about the King, no one knew anything about that new King. These wise men were very surprised. Later on they said to each other: "King should be born in a palace". Therefore, they came to King Herod's palace to ask about the new King.

When hearing the news about the new King of the Jews was just born, King Herod was scared and worry. He called the teachers of the laws, who had knowledge about history and Bible, and asked them: "Where was The King of the Jews must born?" The people's chief priests and the teachers of the law read in the Bible and let King Herod know that, a King of the Jews would be born at Bethlehem, in Judea. The people's chief priests only read in the book and let King Herod know, they didn't pay much attention and didn't need to go to Bethlehem to verify that information was correct or not.

Mean while King Herod was very worry. King Herod was one of the most wicked kings in the history of mankind. He had killed many people in his family. In those people, there were his sons and wife who he loved; the reason he killed them was because he's afraid that they might take his throne some day. The news about the new King was born made Herod alarmed and worry; but he hadn't had a plan to delude the wise men yet. He told them: "You all go and find, ask for sure about the new King; when you have found Him, come back and tell me so I can worship Him too."

After said good bye to Herod, the wise men continued on their way. The bright star that they saw from the East was still in front of them. Happily, they followed the star and went toward Bethlehem. The bright star still went in front of them until it came to Joseph and Mary's house, then it stopped. The wise men were very happy, they commanded their servants and camels to stop. They came into that house and met the King who they longed looking for. This King was not in a palace, didn't wear the king's cloths, didn't have soldiers on two sides of him. However, the wise men knew right away this was the great King who was just born. They bowed down before Him and praised Him. After that, they presented the valuable gifts to Him. The gifts they presented to God included gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

That night, while the wise men were sleeping, they dreamed and saw God. In the dream, God told them not to go back to King Herod's palace. Therefore, when they woke up, they went back home by another way. When the wise men left, an angel appeared to Joseph and said: "Wake up, take the Baby and His mother to the land of Egypt, and stay there because King Herod is finding a way to kill Him." And in that night, Joseph and Mary hurried up, took their things and went on the way to the land of Egypt.

King Herod long waited but he didn't see the wise men com back. Knew that he was cheated, he was furious, and commanded his soldiers to Bethlehem, and killed all the baby-boys who were two years old and under. It was a wicked order. That day, everywhere in and out Bethlehem, people could hear the mourning of the mothers who their babies was killed. A while after that, King Herod died. An angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in Egypt and told him to bring Jesus back to Isreal.

Today, we don't have to go far with the difficulty to find God as the wise men did, because God is beside us. In fact, all the time God is wating for us to come to Him. Do you want to come to God and worship Him? You only need to say a prayer to God. Praise God to forgive your sins, and ask Him to come to your heart and be the Leader of your life. God will be the King to reign your life and be the Savior, who saves you from the sins. The wise men a long time ago presented God the valuable gift to show their respect to Him. Today, the best gift you can present to God is your own life. Are you ready to present your own life to God?

QUESTIONS:

   1. Who were the people looking for God in this story?
   2. What did they based on and where did they go to find God?
   3. When King Herod didn't see the wise men come back, what did he do? And why?
   4. What did the wise men present to God?
   5. In order to respect God, what should you do for Him?

[Soldier4Christ]

The 5 Ws of Prayer

Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.  James 5:16 (NIV)

Every morning I read the newspaper to keep up with what is going on in the world.  Do you ever read the newspaper?  Did you know that the people who write the stories for the newspaper have a special way of deciding how to write their story?  Well, here is what the reporter does.  To make sure that the facts of the story are complete, a reporter makes sure that the article answers five important questions.  Those five questions are: Who, What, When, Where, and Why.  When we read a story, it is good for us to ask ourselves those same questions to help us fully understand the story.

Today, we are going to read some verses from the Bible.  These verses were written by James, the brother of Jesus.  In these verses, James is teaching about prayer.  After we finish, let's see if we can answer the who, what, when, where, and why questions about prayer.  (Read James 5:13-16)

Well, let's see if we can answer the five questions about prayer.

• Who should pray?  Anyone!  These verses tell us that anyone who needs God's help or anyone who has received God's blessing should pray -- and that is all of us.

• What should we pray about?  Anything!  We should pray for healing when we are sick and for forgiveness from sin.  We should offer prayers of thanks when we are happy, and ask for help in times of trouble.

• When should we pray?  Anytime!  If we should pray when we are in trouble, when we are sick, when we are happy, or when we have sinned, that is just about any time time, isn't it?

• Where should we pray?  Anywhere!  These verses don't come right out and tell us where we should pray, but I figured it out. If we should pray any time we need God's help, then I guess it just makes sense that we should pray anywhere we are, because wherever we are, God is there!

• Why should we pray?  Because God answers prayer!  These verses tell us that prayer is powerful and effective and that if we will pray, God will hear our prayers, heal the sick, and forgive our sins.

The five W's of prayer.  Who?  Anyone.  What?  Anything.  When?  Anytime.  Where?  Anywhere.  Why?  Because God answers prayer.

Dear Father, thank you for hearing and answering our prayers.  Help us to remember that you want to heal us when we are sick, help us when we are in trouble, forgive us when we sin, and rejoice with us when we are happy.  Amen.

[Soldier4Christ]

 All Bent Out of Shape

On a Sabbath Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues, and a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all. When Jesus saw her, he called her forward and said to her, "Woman, you are set free from your infirmity." Then he put his hands on her, and immediately she straightened up and praised God. Indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, the synagogue ruler said to the people, "There are six days for work. So come and be healed on those days, not on the Sabbath." Luke 13:10-14 (NIV)

Look at this spoon. It is all bent out of shape. I just hate it when that happens. If I tried to scoop some ice cream with this spoon, it would be hopeless. The spoon would just get even more bent out of shape and wouldn't scoop up a bit of ice cream. If I tried to eat soup with this spoon, the soup would surely run down the front of my shirt. A spoon that is bent out of shape isn't much good for anything.

People sometimes get bent out of shape too. Old age, disease, or an injury may cause a person's body to get bent out of shape. Perhaps you know someone who can't straighten their back when they stand or walk. Their bodies are bent out of shape -- like this spoon.

Sometimes, a person gets angry about something. Many times it is something unimportant. When that happens, we call it getting bent out of shape. Have you ever heard someone say to a person who was angry, "Don't get all bent out of shape?"

Our Bible lesson this morning is about two people who were all bent out of shape. The first person in our lesson had a body that was bent out of shape. One Sabbath day, Jesus was teaching in the Synagogue. As he was teaching, he saw a woman there who had been crippled for eighteen years. The Bible tells us that she was all bent over and was unable to stand up straight.

What do you think Jesus did when he saw this woman? You guessed it! He healed her. When Jesus saw the woman, he said, "Woman, you are set free from your sicknes!" Then he touched her, and instantly she could stand up straight. She began to praise and thank God for her healing.

Well, that is when the second person in our Bible lesson got all bent out of shape. The Bible tells us that the leader of the synagogue became very angry because Jesus had healed the woman on the Sabbath. "There are six days for work, so come and be healed on those days, not on the Sabbath" he said.

Jesus answered the leader of the synagogue, "You hypocrite! Don't you untie your donkey on the Sabbath and lead them to get a drink? Even so, it was necessary for me to heal this woman who had been suffering for over eighteen years."

You see, Jesus was always more concerned with helping people than he was about keeping rules. Rules are good, but people are more important. We should remember that the next time we start to get all bent out of shape when someone bends the rules a little bit to help someone who is in need.

Dear Jesus, help us to remember that you taught us that helping people is more important than keeping rules. Amen.

[Soldier4Christ]

A Twinkle in the Dark

    Barbara lay on her back at the foot of her bed so she could soak in the awesome beauty of the star studded sky from her bedroom window. Not long ago, she and her family had moved from the pollution of New York City to the woods of northern Maine. It was hard to sleep, thinking she might miss seeing another shooting star. Just being able to SEE the stars - away from the bright lights of the city - filled her heart with wonder and amazement.

    Girl by window"Where did all those stars COME from? Have they BEEN there ALL this time? How come I never could SEE them before? Has the moon ALWAYS been that bright?" Questions shot through her mind like shooting stars. She decided to stay up all night long, just so she could watch the summer sun come up over the horizon in the morning.

    **A TWINKLE IN THE DARK**

    Once there were no stars, no moon, no sun - not even an EARTH. There was not even a twinkle of light. All was dark - so dark you could almost FEEL it, except there was nothing to FEEL either. Because nothing was out there. All was empty space - SO empty that there was not one thing that could bump into another thing. So empty that not even one SOUND could be heard, not even a whisper. Because no one was out there...except GOD. And THAT'S when it all began - a long, LONG time ago.

    The Bible tells us, "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth," and this is exactly how He did it.

    light The first sound that was ever heard was when God opened his mouth on that first day and said, "LET THERE BE LIGHT." As soon as He spoke those words, there was a powerfully bright flash and all the darkness fled away into a corner. God saw how good it was. It must have made Him VERY happy...but not happy enough. Because then He decided to separate the light from the darkness, by calling the light "day" and the darkness "night." And so ended the first day.

    He must have known how difficult it would have been to rest if it were bright ALL the time, so he fixed it so it would be dark just PART of the time - at nighttime - so we could find it easier to sleep.

    **But God wasn't finished yet.**

    The second day, God said, "Let there be a sky," and, oh, how BEAUTIFUL it was! There was day and there was night, and now there was a beautiful blue sky. And still God wasn't done. Do you know how come? Because everywhere you looked there was nothing but water. The day, and the night, and the sky, and the water were so BEAUTIFUL...

    **But God wanted MORE.**

    So, on the third day, the Bible says God gathered the water together in one place. He said to the oceans, "You stay here." And you know what? They obeyed Him! And to the rivers, He said, "You belong over there." And they listened, too. And to the lakes, "You stay in this place." And they obeyed Him, too.

    Can you imagine what would happen if they DIDN'T obey him? Why there would be utter CHAOS! Things would be floating when we'd least expect them to and whenever we turned our back, we could be run over by a wave. I'm so glad they LISTENED to God, aren't you?

    And God named the dry land "earth" and the water he called "seas." So now there was day and there was night,

            **and there was a beautiful blue sky,**

                **and there were oceans and rivers and lakes.**

    God saw how good the third day was. It must have made Him VERY happy...but not happy enough. Because then he made the grass and plants and fruit trees with seeds inside them that could grow MORE plants and fruit trees. Some plants and trees He made just to make everything look pretty. Others he made so we would have fruits and vegetables to eat.

    Most plants grew UP - like apples and pears and corn and broccoli. Other plants grew DOWN - like potatoes and turnips and carrots. And some plants grew SIDEWAYS - like cucumbers and watermelons and squash. And God was VERY pleased with all He did on that third day.

    So now there was day and there was night, and there was a beautiful blue sky, and there were oceans and rivers and lakes, and there were grass and plants and trees.

    **But STILL He wasn't finished!**

    **There was yet more work to do!**

    On the fourth day, God said, "Let there be lights in the sky to separate the day from the night, and for Winter, Spring Summer, and Fall, and for days and years." And you know what? That's exactly what happened! Just like God said.

    God made two really BIG lights. The larger one we call the "sun," He made to shine in the day and a smaller one we call the "moon," He made to shine at night. He also made the stars and put them exactly where He wanted them. God put all these beautiful lights in the sky to give light to the earth. The sun gives light to the earth during the day and the moon and stars give light to the earth during the night.

    **And God saw that it was good.**

    So now there was day and there was night, and there was a beautiful blue sky, and there were oceans and rivers and lakes, and there were grass and plants and trees, and there were the sun, moon and stars.

    Next time you see a star twinkle in the night, stop and think about this: God put a twinkle in the dark so we would remember how very important it is to obey Him just like the stars do.

[Soldier4Christ]

 Left Out

Then Jesus said to his host, "When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous." Luke 14:12-14 (NIV)

Look what I have! I received an invitation to a party. It is going to be a really great party. Listen to this, "You are invited to a party at the (name of your church) this Friday at 6:30 PM. There will be games and fun for all and plenty of delicious food."

Did you receive one of these invitations? You didn't? I wonder why you were left out? How does it make you feel to know that you were left out of what promises to be a great party? Were your feelings hurt? Did you wonder why I got an invitation and you didn't? It isn't a very good feeling to be left out, is it?

Do you ever leave someone out when you are having a party or doing something special? Do you only invite your very best friends? Do you perhaps leave out the child who doesn't have much money and wears old and ragged clothes? Or maybe you leave out the child who is physically handicapped and has to get around in a wheelchair. Maybe you leave out the child who isn't very smart and the other kids make fun of him. Maybe you leave out the child whose skin is a different color. How do you think those children feel when they are left out?

Jesus said that when we are having a party, that we shouldn't just invite our best friends. In fact, he said that we should be sure to invite the very ones that we might leave out--the poor, the crippled, and those who are less fortunate than we are. He said that if we only do good things for those who can do good things for us that we already have our reward, but if we do good things for those who cannot do good things for us in return, that we will receive our reward in heaven. Would you rather have your reward here, or in heaven?

You know this invitation that I told you about? It isn't a real invitation. I just made it up to help us to understand how it feels to be left out. It feels pretty good to know you haven't been left out, doesn't it?

Dear Father, help us to be loving and caring toward those who may not have as much as we have. Help us to include them in the special things that we do. Amen.

[Soldier4Christ]

Counting the Cost


And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. "Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him, saying, `This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.' Luke 14: 27-30 (NIV)

How many of you would like to play the piano? Wait! Not so fast! Before you raise your hand and say "yes" to that question, let's see what it would cost to be able to play the piano and see if you are willing to pay the price.

First of all, you would have to buy a piano. It would be rather silly to say that you wanted to play the piano if you weren't willing to go out and buy a piano, wouldn't it? So the first you would need to do is look for a piano. I found a used piano in the classified section of the newspaper for $700. The ad said it needed some repairs, so it probably isn't a very good one, but it's a start. Hmm....$700, do you still want to play the piano?

Next you need to find a teacher. After all, you can't teach yourself. Not if you really want to play well. I looked in the newspaper again to find a piano teacher. I found one for $25 a week. Let's see, that's $100 a month, do you still want to play the piano?

What else do we need? Oh yes, we will need some music! I went to the music store and found out that most of the music books cost $10-$15 each. If you want to buy a single copy of sheet music, they usually cost around $5.00 each. Do you still want to play the piano?

Now that you have a piano, a teacher, and some music you must be willing to practice. Most piano teachers require their students to practice at least one hour every day. That means that there will be times when other children will be out playing while you must stay in and practice. Hey boys, one thing I forgot to mention, when other boys see you carrying your piano books, they may make fun of you. They might even call you a "sissy." Do you still want to play the piano? If you want to play the piano, you have to count the cost and make sure you are willing to pay the price!

Did you know that Jesus said that same thing to some people who said they wanted to be his disciples? Jesus told them that if they wanted to follow him, they had to count the cost. He said they had to be willing to take up their cross daily and follow him. To follow him, they might have to be willing to give up their family and friends. Jesus also said that people might make fun of them and call them names and that some people might even want to hurt them. They had to count the cost and make sure they were willing to pay the price.

A lot of people today say that they want to follow Jesus. They join the church and for a while you will see them every week, but when they find out how much it is going to cost, they fall away. Being a true follower of Jesus is not always easy, but it is always worth it, if you are willing to pay the price.

Dear Jesus, it is easy to say that we want to follow you, but it isn't always easy to do. Help us to follow you, whatever the cost. Amen.

[Soldier4Christ]

The Lost Sheep

Then Jesus told them this parable: "Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.' I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent. Luke 15:3-7

I have a very nice collection of Beanie Babies. I know that they are not quite as popular as they were a couple of years ago, but I still think they are cute. I have been collecting them for several years and brought some of them to show to you. (Show the children the Beanie Babies commenting on each as you show it to them.)

Oh, my! I seem to have lost one of my Beanie Babies. I know I had it when I got here this morning. Would you help me look for it? (Lead the children in a search for the lost toy. When it is found, continue the lesson.) Thank you so much for helping me find the lost Beanie Baby. Even though I have a very large collection, every one of them is very important to me and I would be very upset if one of them was lost.

That reminds me of a lesson that Jesus taught to a group of religious leaders one day. The religious leaders were very upset that Jesus was often seen associating with sinners. He was even sometimes seen eating with them. The religious leaders didn't like that at all and were very critical of Jesus. Jesus told them a story to help them to understand.

"Suppose one of you had a hundred sheep and you lost one of them," Jesus said. "Wouldn't you leave the ninety-nine who were safe, and go and search for the lost sheep? And when you found the lost sheep, wouldn't you joyfully put it on your shoulders and carry it back home? Wouldn't you be so happy that you would tell all of your friends about finding the lost sheep?" I imagine that all of the religious leaders had to agree that they would do just as Jesus had suggested. Then Jesus said to them,"In the same way, there is more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent."

The Bible teaches us that we are like sheep and sometimes stray away from God. That makes God very sad, but he never gives up on us. He keeps searching for us and calling to us. He wants to draw us back into his arms. He even sent Jesus, his Son, to save those who are lost. Aren't you glad that God doesn't give up on his lost sheep? I am, because "I once was lost, but now I'm found!"

Dear Jesus, you are the Good Shepherd. We are thankful that you came to save those who are lost. Amen.

[Soldier4Christ]

 Do the Right Thing

"Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much." Luke 16:10 (NIV)

What would you do if you were walking by your teacher's desk at school and you saw a dollar on the floor? Would you pick it up and give it to your teacher, or would you look around to make sure no one was watching then slip it into your pocket?

What would you do if you were walking home from school and found a bag like this one -- and when you looked inside, you discovered that it contained a lot of money? Would you tell your parents and report your find to the police, or would you say, "Wow! This must be my lucky day?"

This morning I am going to tell you three true stories about people who found a large amount of money and chose to do the right thing.

Hector Rodriguez is a 15-year old high school student. One day, Hector found a bag of money containing $120 on top of the Coke machine. He took it to his teacher the two of them went to the principal's office to turn in the money. When asked why he turned in the money instead of keeping it, Hector said that he was concerned that the employee who left the bag would get in trouble if he lost this money.

Eddie McLaughlin was walking home one evening when he found a bag on the sidewalk outside of a store. He picked up the bag, looked inside, and saw that it contained a large amount of money. When Eddie got home, he told his wife about finding the bag of money and together they counted it. There was over $4,000 in the bag. Eddie called the police and told them about the money. The manager of the store had dropped the bag while closing up, and without a doubt, he was happy that it was Eddie McLaughlin who found the money.

Driving home from work one night, Jason Baxter crossed a well lit intersection and saw what he thought was a book lying in the road. He stopped and picked it up. It turned out to be an appointment book with zippered pockets. Looking in the first pocket, Jason found six dollars and a driver's license. When he opened the second pocket, there was a big wad of cash! When he arrived home, Jason counted the money. There was more than $9,000 in cash. For some, the decision might have been difficult, but not for Jason. He called the police and reported his find. When asked why he turned the money in, he answered, "It was just the right thing to do."

When we hear stories like these, it may make us stop and ask ourselves, "What would I have done if I had found all of that money?" To find the answer to that question, ask yourself, "What would I do if I found a dollar on the floor beside my teacher's desk?" You see, honesty is not a question of how much money is involved, it is a matter of doing the right thing.

Jesus said, "Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much." If we make sure that we are honest in the small things, then we can be sure that we will be honest in the big things. If people know that they can trust us in small things, they will know that they can trust us in the big things too.

Dear Father, help us to remember what Jesus taught about honesty -- and help us to be honest in every situation -- big or small. Amen.