God Offers Contentment

Transcription

1 God Offers Contentment BIBLE PASSAGE Philippians 3-4 (Letter to the Philippians) REMEMBER VERSE Heal me, O Lord, and I will be healed; save me and I will be saved, for you are the one I praise. Jeremiah 17:14 SCHEDULE Anticipate 5 10 minutes Celebrate & Respond Large Group minutes Respond & Bless Small Group minutes Environment: COURSE CORRECTION This environment flows out of Hebrews 12:11 13 and is the direct opposite of punishment. Instead, biblical discipline for a child encompasses a season of pain, the building up in love, and a vision of a corrected path for the individual with the purpose of healing at its core. 1

2 Equipping Volunteers July 21/ 22 God offers contentment. One way we see this is through Paul s letter to the Philippians, which glows with joy, love, peace, and strength. When Paul wrote this letter, he was most likely in Rome, during the imprisonment detailed in Acts 28. Though his life lay in the balance as he awaited trial, his words shone with the contentment he had found in Christ. We gather from 2 Corinthians 8:2 that the Christians in the church of Philippi were poor and persecuted. But unlike other early churches, this church wasn t overcome with serious problems of doctrine, heresy, or sin. This church dealt with the problems of everyday life within community and within their own hearts. Paul s letter to the Philippians overflows with expressions of praise, confidence, and most of all, rejoicing. For Paul, joy was not a feeling but an action. It was something that did not come and go with circumstances but came from the influence of the Holy Spirit and true fellowship with one another. By focusing the Philippian church on joy in the Lord, he called them to focus on God instead of their circumstances to actively praise God. Though Paul continually called the Philippians to rejoice, he ended his letter with a statement about contentment, writing, I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation I can do everything through him who gives me strength (Philippians 4:12 13). In Paul s letter to the Philippians, we see that to live contentedly is to have the ability to rejoice every day, to know the peace that passes understanding, and to stay the course on the path toward Jesus, following the lead of the Holy Spirit every day. God offers contentment. Because of this, we can rejoice. 2

3 Anticipate// (Small Group) 5 10 min 1. Letters SUPPLIES- paper (different colors, sizes, and patterns), envelopes, stamps and stamp pads, pens, letter facts and images printouts SET UP and ENGAGE- Set out the supplies on the tables. The New Testament includes many letters Paul wrote and sent to the first churches some of which he wrote while in prison. The letters traveled hundreds of miles to reach these churches! They re beautiful letters, and we re blessed today to be able to read them in our Bibles. Encourage the kids to read the letter facts aloud and look at the images of ancient letters. When they re done, show them the supplies and ask them to write or draw real or imaginary letters to friends, family, or even people who might have lived during Paul s time. After they re done with their letters, encourage the kids to put their letters in envelopes and decorate and stamp those envelopes. 2. Earning Rocks See if any children have earned any rocks for the Rock Wall today. Children who memorized last week's memory verse, children who brought their Bible, or those who brought a friend. Pass out the rocks and let the kids write on the rocks their name, or the verse they memorized. (kids add rocks to rock wall at beginning of next section). Last week s memory verse: Heal me, O Lord, and I will be healed; save me and I will be saved, for you are the one I praise. Jeremiah 17:14 3

4 Celebrate// (Large Group) min 1. Welcome & Traditions ROCK WALL CELEBRATION- Open up Celebrate time by celebrating all of the rocks that the kids have earned this week! Let them add them to the rock wall and encourage everyone to keep working on their verses, remembering their Bible and bringing friends! WELCOME VISITORS- Use this time to also welcome any new visitors. Give them a big round of applause for coming! And have a nearby leader give each visitor a high five! CONNECT- To finish up welcome time, let kids engage in today s connect question! Show Connect Slide for kids to view. Encourage them to ask someone they might not know yet. After a minute or two, ask several kids to tell their friends answers to the group- You have 60 seconds to share with a new friend as many things as you can that make you happy. 2. Remember Verse Pass out Bibles to any kids who don t have one to use during today s lesson. Introduce kids to this week s Remember Verse. Open your Bibles and read it together. Heal me, O Lord, and I will be healed; save me and I will be saved, for you are the one I praise. Jeremiah 17:14 3. Prayer of Release Next, pray a Prayer of Release. This is a time for kids and leaders to pause, be still, and ask God to quiet their hearts and minds. Encourage kids to quiet their voices and take a seat. Then ask them to pray with you. 4. The Big God Story- God Offers Contentment SUPPLIES- Butcher paper, paper and pen, video: time passing, image: Paul handcuffed to a guard, volunteer to play Paul s guard; props: clothes for Paul, rope, sword for the guard SET UP- Though this part of The Big God Story can be delivered verbatim, read it before the lesson, so you can personally interact with the material. Before teaching, point out that what they are about to hear is true and is recorded in the Bible. Open your Bible, and encourage kids to do the same, to the passage and leave it open and visible throughout The Big God Story. Encourage adult volunteers to keep an eye out for kids who need help finding the Scripture passage. You may even want to write the reference in large print on a whiteboard. ENGAGE- Today s entire Big God Story will be told from Paul s perspective, so the Storyteller should either prepare to be Paul or ask someone else to play this role. Ask a volunteer to play the part of Paul s guard. Have the guard tie Paul to himself. Lay out a long sheet of butcher paper in the storytelling area to act as a path, set the pen and paper near the path, and place the basket or box of items near the end of the path. Cue the video and image. Hi, kids! You might remember me from last week. My name s Paul (wave the arm attached to the guard). Last week you saw me write a letter to the church in Galatia. The members of that church were being told they had to follow Jewish Law in order to be a Christian. But that s not true! In Christ we re new creations filled by the Holy Spirit, able to follow His lead every day. Let s think about it this way: The churches in Galatia were walking on a straight path toward Jesus (start walking on the butcher paper path), but they started to get off the path (pretend to wander off the path). So God used me to write a letter to them, to help correct their path and to encourage them that they only need a relationship with Jesus to walk a Christian path. Oh, yeah. You might be wondering why I m tied to this guard. Well, kids, some people aren t happy about God using me to preach the good news, so here I am in jail, handcuffed to a guard until my trial (show image of Paul handcuffed to a guard). That means I can t go visit the churches, especially the one in Philippi. Who remembers 4

5 hearing a few weeks ago about how the Holy Spirit led me and my friends to the city of Philippi? (Encourage the kids to raise their hands.) Once we got there, the Holy Spirit led me to speak with a woman named Lydia. Then Lydia, her household of women, and some other believers in Jesus formed a church there. Things have been hard for the Philippian church. They ve suffered because of their faith and belief in Jesus. But the Philippian church hasn t been confused by others or wandered from the path toward Jesus. I praise God for the Philippian church, and I love and miss them so very much. You know what? I m going write them a letter right now! (Grab the pen and paper and pretend like you re writing furiously, and play the video of time passing.) All right, I m done! Whew. Thanks for waiting for me to finish that letter, kids. Do you want to hear what it says? (Encourage the kids to answer.) Okay! Well, the first part talks about how much I love them, how thankful I am for them, how much I miss them, and, well, about my situation here in Rome (look over at the guard). I felt God leading me to help the Philippian church understand what it means to be content. Do any of you know what the word content means? (Encourage the kids to answer.) Contentment means being satisfied or happy with what you have. To be content is to be filled with the hope, joy, peace, and love that comes from the Holy Spirit. It means being joyful about life and happy about what you have, because in Christ we have everything! Now that doesn t mean it s always easy to be content. The Holy Spirit helps us to be content when we walk with Him every day. (Pause for a moment, look up, and toss your letter into the air.) You know what? Instead of explaining to you what I wrote in the letter, I m going to show you. (Stand on the path and start walking.) Okay, so let s pretend I m the Philippian church, and I m walking on a straight path toward God. As I m walking (walk in place), people come and make fun of me (ask a few child volunteers to silently act like they re yelling at Paul), which makes me tired and sad. I just want to sit down (sit down on the path). This happens sometimes in life, right? Well, as long as we have a relationship with the God of heaven, we have every reason to be happy and content and to rejoice! What are some of the reasons we can rejoice? (Encourage the kids to answer.) Right, all of these are great reasons! So I say, instead of giving up, we should Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! (Philippians 4:4). With the Holy Spirit s help, rejoicing can make our hearts content and keep us walking on the path toward Jesus. (Stand up and continue walking down the path.) Okay, so you re walking on the path again, but then something difficult happens. Let s say you get into an argument with a friend, or you start worrying, which makes you lose sight of the path. What can you do? Well, you can pray! Through prayer with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which [goes beyond] all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus (vv. 6 7). (Stop walking, pick up the pen and another piece of paper, and pretend to write prayers. Then put the pen and paper next to the path again.) Sometimes it s hard to rejoice, especially when we don t feel like it. But we can pray, and God will listen to us and fill our hearts with peace so we can rejoice again. (Continue walking in place on the path.) All right, so you re walking again but then you start thinking of sad, hard things again, and you want to give up. But you know what? God is still with you, and you can think about all of the good things He s made and given you things such as (Ask the children to name things that God has made and given us). So, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable if anything is excellent or praiseworthy think about such things And the God of peace will be with you (vv. 8 9). (Stand up and face the kids). You see, kids, I ve spent a lot of time with Jesus, and I ve walked on this path toward Him for a long time. Because I ve walked with Him, God s Holy Spirit has taught me the secret of being content whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in [need] (v. 12). Because He lives inside of me, He helps me rejoice, pray, praise Him, thank Him, and think about good things. Without God s help, I d be pretty upset to be here in jail (look over at the guard and have him shrug his shoulders and say, Hey, I m just the guard ). God gives me the strength to keep walking straight toward Him. No matter what happens in your life, I want you to know this: My God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:19). When things get hard at school or at home, He will be your reason to rejoice. When something happens that doesn t make sense, He will give you the strength to pray. When you worry, think about the good things He s given you. In your daily life, He will show you that you can do everything through him who gives [you] strength (v. 13). He will give you the strength to keep walking on a straight path toward Him. Respond// (Large Group) min. 1. Worship Response Stations Spend 5-10 minutes in Worship Response Stations, letting children respond to the lesson they just heard in their own way. Assist younger children and guide when necessary. 5

6 If the kids need an idea of where to start off for worship response stations, encourage them to write a Thank you card to God, praising Him for all the things He has made and given you, or His blessings in your life. *Today, for Worship Response, use the butcher paper from the Storytelling and write What I m Thankful For on it and place markers by it. Encourage the kids to write things they want to thank God for on the paper. Play the Worship Response Song (Hymns of Majesty) and allow the kids to spend that time in stations. Then after that song, play Here I Am To Worship and use that song as the transition cue for children to finish up what they are working on and come together as a large group to Worship Through Music. 2. Worship Through Music Finish large group Celebrate with a time of singing music. 1. Good News 2. Found 3. Your Grace Is Enough Then exit Large Group to spend time applying the things from today in a small group setting. 6

7 Respond// (Small Group) min. 1. Reflect: God Offers Contentment Paul encouraged the Philippian church to rejoice, think about good things, pray, and walk daily with Jesus. He encouraged them to do this with the help of His Holy Spirit, who could lead them toward contentment and keep them on the path toward Jesus. (Leaders: Encourage the kids to open their Bibles and read the suggested passages.) Questions for Younger Kids Where was Paul when he wrote the letter to the Philippians? (Philippians 1:7, 12 14) Why did Paul write the letter? (Philippians 1:3 11) What does the word contentment mean? What are some things we can rejoice about? What are some good things God has given us? Do you have any prayer requests? What are they? Questions for Older Kids Where was Paul when he wrote the letter to the Philippians? (Philippians 1:7, 12 14) Why did Paul write the letter? (Philippians 1:3 11) What does the word contentment mean? What does being content have to do with being in a relationship with God? (Philippians 4:11) Why do you think Paul encouraged the church to rejoice, pray, and think about good things? How do you think it might change your life if you chose to rejoice, or pray, or dwell on good things when life is hard? (Philippians 4:4 9) How does it make you feel to know that the Holy Spirit will help you to do all of these things? What are some things we can rejoice about? What are some good things God has given us? What are some prayer requests you have? 2. Engage: Soaked With The Holy Spirit SUPPLIES- Bibles, sponges, bucket, pitcher (filled with water), permanent markers SETUP- Fill the pitcher with water ENGAGE- Today we heard all about Paul s letter to the Philippians. In this letter God used Paul to tell the Philippians how to keep walking on the path toward God. He told them to rejoice, pray, and think about good things. The cool thing is, though, Paul also told them that God s Holy Spirit would give them the strength to do these things and fill them with peace. God wants to be part of our everyday lives. He wants us to praise Him for the good things He s given us. He wants us to come to Him with our worries. He wants us to rejoice in our relationship with Him. He wants us to be completely soaked with His Holy Spirit, in every single part of our lives. That way we can be content just like Paul was content. With God, we have everything we need. Many parts of God s Word encourage us and help us stay on the right path. A couple of these passages are Psalm 23 and the Lord s Prayer, in Matthew 6:9 13. Let s read these passages together. Read the passage over the kids, or have the older kids read them. Show the kids the dry sponges and ask them: What are some things we do every day? Maybe it s playing soccer, hanging out with friends, walking to school, etc. Have the kids write those answers on the sponges. (For younger kids, write their answers on the sponges for them.) Then put the sponges into the bucket. Show the kids the pitcher filled with water, and tell them the water represents the Holy Spirit. Pour the water into the bucket and let it soak into the sponges. Talk about how God wants to be a part of every single thing we do. He wants to be in our lives. He wants us to be soaked with Him until our lives overflow with Him, every day. He wants us to have the peace, joy, love, and contentment that only comes from Him. Note: Put the sponges away right after the object lesson so kids aren t tempted to throw them or create a mess. Save the sponges to be displayed during the next Remember & Celebrate lesson. 7

8 3. Bless: SETUP AND ENGAGE- Encourage the kids to hold their hands in front of them, palms up. This posture is meant to symbolize a willingness of heart to respond to God s Holy Spirit and receive what God has for them. Open a Bible, and read Psalm 103:1 5: Praise the Lord, O my soul praise his holy name. Praise the Lord who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things. May the Holy Spirit give you the strength to rejoice, pray, and think about the good things God has done. May you know the joy, peace, hope, love, and goodness that comes only from knowing and following Jesus. HomeFront Weekly: Be sure to send home the HomeFront Weekly for next week s lesson! This preteaching tool for parents encourages families to spend time in God s Word together before children arrive at church. 8