In many ways this is the last
Sunday of the Lectionary Year. Next
Sunday (Christ the King or Reign of Christ Sunday) is rather a hinge or bridge
between the two years. At some point
during the service, point out the green paraments and other signs
of this season, recall their meaning, and alert worshipers to coming changes in
colors and other worship props.
HOPE HOPE
HOPE HOPE
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Hope is the theme that
underlies all today’s texts. The Old
Testament texts proclaim that God has a wonderful plan and that in the end that
plan will be realized. The New Testament
texts take the darker side of the theme warning that though God’s good plan
will one day be realized there will be some tough times before that
happens. It is in such times that we
need to live on hope.
On
the first Sunday after the presidential election in the USA, this theme insists that no matter who won or lost
this particular election there is a larger arc to God’s history and God is
planning toward good ends. Because many
children are just learning how to deal with won or lost elections, this
information delivered at church can help them get perspective.
>
One way to introduce the theme
is to remind worshipers what it is like to see a movie for the first
time and the fifth time. Recall
your frightened, worried feelings the first time you watched the scary parts of
The Lion King or Frozen. You wanted to
warn the characters of the dangers. Then
describe watching the same scenes for the second, third, even fifth time when
you knew the ending. Note that once you
knew the ending you sometimes wanted to tell the hero not to worry during the
scary parts and sometimes you want to warn the heroine to be careful when
everything is going well. The Old
Testament texts tell us the ending. The
New Testaments texts advise us on how to live until the ending comes.
The Texts
for the Day
Isaiah 65:17 -25
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This is a long passage. To help children keep up with all God’s
promises have each promise read by a different reader. Readers could come from one class, one family
or be drawn from the congregation at large.
There can be as many as 7 readers plus the narrator or readers could
read several promise – none in immediate sequence.
! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * !
Isaiah 65:17-25
Narrator
I am creating new heavens and a new earth;
everything of the
past will be forgotten.
Reader 1
Celebrate and be glad forever!
I am creating a
Jerusalem, full of happy people.
I will celebrate with Jerusalem and all of its
people;
there will be no
more crying or sorrow in that city.
Reader2
No child will die in infancy;
everyone will live
to a ripe old age.
Anyone a hundred
years old will be considered young,
and to die younger
than that will be considered a curse.
Reader 3
My people will live in the houses they build;
they will enjoy
grapes from their own vineyards.
No one will take away their homes or vineyards.
Reader 4
My chosen people
will live to be as old as trees,
and they will enjoy
what they have earned.
Their work won’t be wasted,
Reader 6
and their children
won’t die of dreadful diseases.
I will bless their
children and their grandchildren.
Reader 6
I will answer their
prayers before they finish praying.
Reader 7
Wolves and lambs
will graze together;
lions and oxen will
feed on straw.
Snakes will eat only
dirt!
They won’t bite or
harm anyone on my holy mountain.
Narrator
I, the Lord, have spoken!
From CEV
! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * ! * !
>
Another way to help worshipers listen
to this list of God’s dreams is to give them one clue and a set of questions
with which to listen to the passage before reading it. The clue is that Jerusalem is a code word for
the whole world. That means this is
God’s wish for the whole world. The
questions are.
How long will people live?
What does God wish for people and their houses?
What does God promise people with gardens and orchards?
How often will people talk to and hear from God?
What does God say about the wolf and the lamb?
It would be possible to repeat and
answer the questions together after the reading or simply to let the questions
help worshipers of all ages pay fuller attention to the reading. In the latter case, you might want to refer
to one of the questions and discuss it early in the sermon.
> Desmond Tutu’s children’s
book God’s
Dream parallels Isaiah’s presentation of God’s dream. To keep it focused, start with “Do you know
what God dreams about?” Skip the section
that starts “But God does not force us to be friends or to love one
another.” Pick up with “God dreams that
everyone of us will see that we are all brothers and sisters” and read through
the end of the book.
> If you have been displaying quotes
from the prophets this fall, conclude the series with Isaiah’s final
words, “I, the Lord, have spoken.”
Review all the other quotes and recall that these are not the words of
people but messages God gave to one person (a prophet) to share with the rest
of God’s people. Conclude with a prayer
thanking God for all these prophets and for those who speak for God today.
>
Peace or Shalom are the words that are not in this reading but are
what the reading is all about. Isaiah
insists that God’s plan is working toward peace or shalom for everyone. Point out the pictures of Shalom/Peace that Isaiah
paints with words, e.g. in God’s new world there will be no crying (not because
people will demand that you not be a cry baby but because there will be nothing
to cry about), no one will get sick and die young, and the wolf and the lamb
will feed together. Then challenge
the children to draw pictures of what they think shalom/peace looks like. They might draw pictures of Isaiah’s words or
draw pictures from their own experiences with peace or from their
imaginations. When the congregation is
gathering prayer concerns, invite children to place their pictures on a large
map of the world or tape them on a globe as a way of sharing God’s dreams.
>
If you speak about knowing the
end of the movie, introduce this text as the ending of the story of God’s
world. Since there is a lot of poetic
imagery that will be hard for children to grasp, pick one to unpack especially
for them. One of the easiest is verse 21
and the first half of 22. Give
worshipers apple slices to eat.
Talk about how good they are and describe the work of the migrant
laborers who tend and pick them. Note
that those people often do not have enough money to buy good food for their
families. Read the two verses. Point out that when God completes creation,
this situation will change. Tell about
one way your congregation is working with God to help bring this change, e.g.
food pantry, migrant ministries, etc.
This
could be presented as a time for children.
It would be even more effective if included in the sermon with ushers
passing bowls/baskets of apple slices to the whole congregation.
Isaiah 12
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The second verse of this poem
about trusting God is key for children.
I
will trust in the Lord and not be afraid
For God is my strength and power.
What it needs is a story that
illustrates its abstract truth. David
facing Goliath is one good choice.
Rather than tell the whole story, focus on David’s conversation with
Saul (1 Samuel 17: 32-37) and his response to Goliath’s taunt (1 Samuel 17: 45
and 47). Because David trusted God’s
power, he was able to do something about Goliath while others cowered in fear.
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Being able to do something
scary because you trust in a power greater than yourself is like a child jumping
into a parent’s arms in the swimming pool or attempting a dive off the
diving board with that parent watching from the side.
>
Older children will be
interested in the trust expressed in the “Eternal Father Strong to Save.” Before singing it, introduce it as a hymn
loved by sailors and as the Navy Hymn (if appropriate). Point out the repeated last line and note
that the first verse remembers that sailors can trust God because God made the
sea. Other verses recall that Jesus
calmed the storm at sea and once slept through a storm that scared his
disciples badly. Encourage children to find all the ocean and sea words on the
hymn word sheet and to add pictures of the ocean – maybe some boats to the
page.
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| This may be reproduced for non-commercial purposes. |
Malachi 4:1-2a
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The expectation that God will
take vengeance on all the evildoers (easily heard as all my enemies) here makes
the Isaiah text a better Old Testament reading for the children.
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The fact that this comes from the
last chapter of the last book in the Old Testament is of interest to
some children. Show them it’s location
in the Bible. Read the 2 verses. Reread the last phrase about God bringing
healing and briefly list all the different kinds of healing God promises. Then, note that people had to wait a long
time for God to act. Point out that
between that page and the first page of the New Testament when Jesus is born
there were 400 long years. Cite an example
of something about 400 years ago to help them feel how long 300 years is. Then, tell them the secret we know that the
people living during those 400 years did not.
Jesus was coming. If you wish,
connect it to Christ the King/ Reign of Christ Sunday next week and Advent that
follows. This could be done as a Time
for Children. Or, invite the children to
gather around you and the Bible for the reading of this text for the day.
Psalm 98
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This psalm of praise and
thanksgiving was suggested for last week and seems to fit better there than
here. I’d use the Isaiah psalm today.
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Or, go to last week’s post HERE for a reading with rhythm instruments, a coloring sheet with which
children illustrate this psalm, and a script for a responsive congregational
reading of this.
2 Thessalonians 3:6-13
The writer of this letter has
two bits of advice for people waiting for God’s new creation to be realized.
1.
The first is that we are to work
while we wait. Work is described
as a blessing and a good way to be God’s partners in creating the new
creation.
> If
you develop this theme extensively, remember that school is children’s work. Cite illustrations from children at work at
school among others about adults at work in a variety of jobs.
> People
often ask children “what do you want to be when you grow up?” Use this as an opportunity to urge children
to choose work that makes the world a better place. Point out that they are called not to do
something just because they like to do it, but to do something that will make
life better for everyone around them.
Describe ways a variety of jobs do that.
> “Earth
and All Stars” describes ways
people work and praise God together as partners with God to realize God’s
dream. Before singing it point out some
of those examples in verses 2 and 3.
Also point out the repeated phrase and the chorus, practice the chorus
once, and challenge even no readers to sing along. (And, yes, the chorus comes straight from
Psalm 98 which was suggested for last week as well as this week.)
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| Give children copies of this word sheet which highlights the repeated parts of the hymn and invite them to surround the words with pictures of all the things we call on to sing praise to God.This may be reproduced for non-commercial purposes. |
2.
The second is don’t be weary of doing what is
right. When God’s new creation
is complete, it will be easy to do what is right. Everyone will do it every day. But, now it is often not so easy. Doing the right thing is not always wildly
fun or exciting or cool. Sometimes
people look at you funny or laugh at you.
(Choose keeping one or two of the Ten Commandments or keeping Jesus’ two
great commandments as illustrations.)
Reread verse 13 and identify it as something to remember when we get
tired of doing what is right.
We
are not always forthright with children about this fact. They appreciate our honesty when we are. It also encourages them when they are
choosing to do something they know is right, but that they definitely would
prefer not to do.
It
takes a full 10 minutes to read Horton Hatches the Egg, by Dr.
Seuss, which is too long for most worship services. But the story and repeated use of the word
faithful are too good to leave on the shelf. The story is also fairly well known, so read
only the first four pages ending with “’Toodle-oo!’ sang out Mayzie and
fluttered away.” Then summarize the story using the pictures of Horton propping
up the tree, sitting patiently, sitting through a rainstorm, sitting through
the cold winter, being laughed at by his friends, even refusing to run from
hunters who decided not to shoot him, but to sell him to a circus because an
elephant sitting in a tree was so funny.
Simply recall each event or after each one point to children/all
worshipers to respond,
I
meant what I said
And
I said what I meant…
An
elephant ‘s faithful one hundred per cent.
Skip the confrontation with
Mayzie bird. Finish reading the book by
starting with “But at the very instant, the egg burst apart!” Finally reread 2 Thessalonians 3:13, “Brothers and sisters, do not be weary in doing what is
right.”
> The
Little Red Hen Makes a Pizza,
retold by Philemon Sturges, tells of a hen who decided to bake a pizza, called
repeatedly on neighbors to help her, kept on working when the neighbors
declined to help, then shared the pizza with the neighbors. Stop before the neighbors do the dishes to ponder
why the hen shared her pizza with the neighbors who refused to help make
it. In a way this goes against Paul’s
“anyone unwilling to work should not eat,” but it is also an example of keeping
on working no matter what is going on around you and setting an example like
Paul did. It would be possible to end
the discussion there or to follow it by reading the last two pages on which the
neighbors do the dishes. If you do the
latter, ponder the effect of the hen’s sharing example on those around her – even
when it might look a little crazy.
Luke 21:5-19
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The basic message of this
passage is that there will be tough times and that the only thing to do during
tough times is to endure them trusting that in the end God will win. The other readings for the day offer more
specific help for sharing this message with children.
>
Luke’s insistence that no
matter what awful things happen God is still in control of the whole world is
an opportunity to highlight “thine is the kingdom, and the power and the
glory” at the conclusion of the Lord’s Prayer. Use it as a congregational response to
prayers about scary, bad things that happen and make us wonder if the bad guys
are winning. Describe these things with
“When…., it seems that evil is in charge.
Help us remember that….”
>
Late addition from November 2010 that is still worth remembering: Yesterday, it
seemed like “the world is going to end” talk is not currently floating
through the world of children. But, this
morning the fifth and sixth graders brought up something they are hearing about
“we’re all going to die and the world will end with natural disasters in
2012.” I did not get all the details,
but apparently there is such talk around – at least in this area. The easiest way to address this with children
is simply to read them Jesus’ statement that no one knows this date, then to
restate to them “anyone who tells you when the world will end is wrong
PERIOD.” Be emphatic. Put yourself on the line, telling them that
if anyone tells them that the world is going to end on a certain date they can
tell them that their pastor/teacher says Jesus says that is not true. A blatant conversation like that will linger
in the back of minds until it is needed.
(Since posting this we have passed the dreaded 2012 end of the world
date. Again I know of no widely
discussed end of the world dates in the immediate future, but they are always
around. So, it remains important to
prepare children for encounters with such predictions.)
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