Here's Noah's quote from this morning in the art room, during our discussion on sin and its consequences:
"If people would learn how to not sin, then the world would be so much...BETTER!"
Yep, buddy, you're right :)
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
This month-Sin
This month in Kids we're taking a good, honest look at sin. Last Sunday, one little girl started out our discussion on sin by saying this, "But I don't even know what a sin is!" The other kids were quick to enlighten her with examples of their own "bad behavior", which was a complete list of examples of times they had disobeyed their parents. The same little girl then added her own example, "Like my sister! She lies to my mom all the time!" Sound familiar? Ahh, yes, that would be Adam in Genesis 3, turning the blame on Eve. It's her fault! She made me do it! What she did was worse than what I did! He did it first!
God created people to live in a perfect relationship with Him, to experience a full, happy, and easy life in the garden. But, when Adam and Eve chose to listen to the crafty serpent rather than God, that relationship was broken. It was easy for the kids to connect the sins in their own lives with consequences. Disobey mom, lose tv time. Make a scene in public, get punished when you get home. The consequences for Adam and Eve were so severe that it completely changed the course of human history right there. God ejected them from the perfect garden, and told them that instead they would have to work the ground for food. Nothing would be easy anymore, their lives would be lived in toil. And worse yet, sin had created a terrible separation between God and people.
Wonderfully, that is not the end of the story. At all! While Romans tells us that we have all sinned and fallen short of God's glory, we are also taught in the gospels and epistles that Jesus is the bridge between God and people. Here's a verse I memorized a couple summers ago for a camp I was working. It beautifully explains this.
"This is good and pleases God our Savior. For he wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth. For there is only one God and one Mediator between God and people-he is the man Christ Jesus. He gave his life as a ransom for many. This is the message that God gave to the world at the proper time." 1 Timothy 2:3-6
Because of Jesus, we don't have to live in our sin anymore. He acts as the mediator between God and people, bridging the chasm created by sin. And that is GOOD news!
God created people to live in a perfect relationship with Him, to experience a full, happy, and easy life in the garden. But, when Adam and Eve chose to listen to the crafty serpent rather than God, that relationship was broken. It was easy for the kids to connect the sins in their own lives with consequences. Disobey mom, lose tv time. Make a scene in public, get punished when you get home. The consequences for Adam and Eve were so severe that it completely changed the course of human history right there. God ejected them from the perfect garden, and told them that instead they would have to work the ground for food. Nothing would be easy anymore, their lives would be lived in toil. And worse yet, sin had created a terrible separation between God and people.
Wonderfully, that is not the end of the story. At all! While Romans tells us that we have all sinned and fallen short of God's glory, we are also taught in the gospels and epistles that Jesus is the bridge between God and people. Here's a verse I memorized a couple summers ago for a camp I was working. It beautifully explains this.
"This is good and pleases God our Savior. For he wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth. For there is only one God and one Mediator between God and people-he is the man Christ Jesus. He gave his life as a ransom for many. This is the message that God gave to the world at the proper time." 1 Timothy 2:3-6
Because of Jesus, we don't have to live in our sin anymore. He acts as the mediator between God and people, bridging the chasm created by sin. And that is GOOD news!
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Kids' poetry
Cinquain poems written in the Discovery Studio:
Jesus
Caring, good
Helping, leading, inspiring
Faith that fills me
Leader
- Kasidy
God
Awesome, loving
Life changing, everlasting, believing
Makes me feel loved
Amazing
- Alex and AnnMarie
God
Amazing, everlasting
Ruling, interacting, forgiving
Knowledge that inspires me
Love
- Adrienne
From our 3/4/5 & 6 th grade kids
Jesus
Caring, good
Helping, leading, inspiring
Faith that fills me
Leader
- Kasidy
God
Awesome, loving
Life changing, everlasting, believing
Makes me feel loved
Amazing
- Alex and AnnMarie
God
Amazing, everlasting
Ruling, interacting, forgiving
Knowledge that inspires me
Love
- Adrienne
From our 3/4/5 & 6 th grade kids
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Comments from Kim!
So who would have thunk...yes I said thunk...that walking into a kids' studio with a bunch of kids lying around meant they were having an awesome experience? The K6 kids have been picking up on the ideas that they are created in the image of God from storytelling all the way to music. The kids listed off the characteristics of God from kind, nice, loving to mighty and powerful. The kids could not imagine themselves as powerful when they thought of God. But after some discussion, they began to understand, though they would not be powerful exactly like God, they could be powerful.
From Kim Turbin, a teacher and 1-2nd grade shepherd:
In Discovery as the kids wrote notes and drew pictures for children in Africa, one boy asked for clarification on what he was supposed to do. I explained to him who these children were, what kind of home they may have and how the kind of things we see are different from what they see. I told him the little guy in the picture would feel so special and think it was cool to have someone like him say hi.
I watched this boy who was fidgeting around and was ready to walk away from the table before he started; his eyes concentrated with compassion, then as if trying to think of the perfect gift he looked at me and stated firmly that he was going to draw a tiger (for him).
In the Art Studio the kids were amazed at what Michaelangelo did on the cathedral ceiling. As they went to work on their "ceilings", looking closely the kids were holding the mirrors in their hands, studying themselves...their images... to carefully draw on the sheets. They took their time and really concentrated on these wonderful images God created. Each kid took pride in their creations and who God created them to be.
Wrapping up with rounds of experiencing various music cultures and instruments in the Music & Motion Studio, Kids' Ministry created a great month for the kids to experience being created in the image of God.
Thought I'd pass this along.- Kim T.
From Kim Turbin, a teacher and 1-2nd grade shepherd:
In Discovery as the kids wrote notes and drew pictures for children in Africa, one boy asked for clarification on what he was supposed to do. I explained to him who these children were, what kind of home they may have and how the kind of things we see are different from what they see. I told him the little guy in the picture would feel so special and think it was cool to have someone like him say hi.
I watched this boy who was fidgeting around and was ready to walk away from the table before he started; his eyes concentrated with compassion, then as if trying to think of the perfect gift he looked at me and stated firmly that he was going to draw a tiger (for him).
In the Art Studio the kids were amazed at what Michaelangelo did on the cathedral ceiling. As they went to work on their "ceilings", looking closely the kids were holding the mirrors in their hands, studying themselves...their images... to carefully draw on the sheets. They took their time and really concentrated on these wonderful images God created. Each kid took pride in their creations and who God created them to be.
Wrapping up with rounds of experiencing various music cultures and instruments in the Music & Motion Studio, Kids' Ministry created a great month for the kids to experience being created in the image of God.
Thought I'd pass this along.- Kim T.
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