Monthly Worship Songs: He Knows My Name
This month In Preschool...
CNX Kids will learn: I can love like Jesus!
This month, preschoolers are learning
that they can love like Jesus. Wow! What a hard concept for a little person! Or
is it? What are we teaching preschoolers when we teach them to share? to take
turns? to take care of those who are hurt? to help? to show affection? Aren’t
we teaching them every day to love like Jesus? We’re teaching
them, yes. But are we modeling it? Children learn more by observation than we
ever realize (or want to admit). Do they see us loving like Jesus as they watch
us? Do they see us sharing? taking turns? caring for those around us? helping?
loving? Do they see us loving like Jesus? Take advantage of a few opportunities
this month to love like Jesus with your preschooler. Deliver a meal to a sick
friend. Send a card to a grandparent. Let the person with fewer groceries go in
front of you in line. Whatever you do, know that you are a making a lasting
impression on your preschooler, and he will learn to love like Jesus, too.
This month in elementary…
CNX Kids learned: Jesus gives us everything we need and wants
us to meet the needs of others
As followers of Christ, “I can trust God
no matter what”
is a phrase we all say. And for the most part we sincerely believe it and live
it out. We trust God to provide for our basic needs, for our safety, even for
our health and well-being. But there are certain moments when trusting God
seems just a bit more difficult—often those are the times when we’re
forced to wait.
Throughout our life, we will face times
when we’re
not where we once were, but we’re not yet at our final destination.
Instead, we’re
somewhere in between. Put simply: we’re waiting.
And it’s in the
waiting that our faith is tested.
Which is why allowing God to develop
patience in us is important. Not only is patience a Fruit of the Spirit, it is
a foundational way that we can reflect God’s character.
From the very beginning God has shown patience with people. When Adam and Eve
broke God’s
rule, He could have killed them on the spot. Rather, He showed them grace. Yes,
there were consequences, but God had a plan for their rescue. All throughout
the Bible we see God showing patience in order that more people could come to
know and believe in Him.
God’s patience is
continually focused on relationships with people. Even after we sinned, He
still pursued us. He sent Jesus, His own Son to make a way for us to be with
Him. He waited time after time for people to repent and make things right.
Something He still does today.
When we demonstrate patience, we are less
likely to hurt our relationships with others. We are more likely to trust that
God has something better for us in the future. And when we trust God with our
future, even when we’re
“in-between”
on life’s
journey and asking Him “Are we there yet?” we can have
patience knowing that
His plan and His timing are always better
than our own.
The Bible is full of stories and
principles that help us realized the importance of discovering how to be
patient.
We’ll start the
month with one of the best examples of what
happens when you’re
not patient; you lose something of value.
In Genesis
25:24-34, we discover the story of Esau sacrificing his
birthright for a bowl of stew. Because Esau was impatient, he lost something he
could never get back.
Bottom Line: When you think
you can’t wait, think twice. Don’t let your
lack of patience cause you to make a decision you’ll regret.
Think twice about what really matters and wait patiently.
For week 2, we head over to Exodus 32:1-35 and
find the Israelites at the foot of Mount Sinai. Instead of obeying God and
waiting for Moses to come down off the mountain, the entire nation of Israel
grew impatient. They built a golden calf and began to worship it instead of
worshiping God. Their lack of patience had some severe consequences.
Bottom Line: When you think you can’t wait, think about what’s true. It’s
easier to wait when you remember all the times God has helped you before. You
can trust Him, knowing that He’ll help you wait.
For week 3, we’ll
discover an important patience principle King Solomon wrote in Proverbs 14:29.
“Anyone who is patient has great understanding. But anyone who gets angry
quickly shows how foolish he is.” How we respond
to waiting shows others our character. Getting frustrated and angry doesn’t
make the wait any less, it just makes us look foolish.
Bottom Line: When you think
you can’t wait, don’t lose your cool. Sometimes
when you’re
waiting, it’s
too easy to get frustrated and become angry with others. Don’t
make yourself look foolish when you have to wait.
For week four, we’ll
look at 1 Samuel 1:6–2:1 and the story of Hannah. She had waited
years for a child. Rather than become frustrated and angry toward God, she
prays and tells Him all about it. When God answers her prayer, she gives her
son back to God. He honored her waiting and blessed her with even more
children.
Bottom Line: When you think
you can’t wait, talk to God about it. It’s important
for us all to remember that talking to God about how we feel about waiting will
help us stay patience through whatever circumstance we might face. He may not
change our circumstance, but He’ll give us the strength to keep waiting
well.
We’ll close out
the month with Mark
11:1-11; 14:43 –
15:47. The
world had been waiting for a Messiah, a rescuer. And when Jesus had finally
shown up on the scene, His disciples were ready. They figured this was it.
Jesus would be the King and their waiting would be over. When Jesus was found
guilty and crucified, they must have felt so defeated. They didn’t
know at the time that God had something different in mind, something better for
the whole world.
Bottom Line: Remember that God’s plan is bigger than yours. When
you’re
having a hard time waiting, remember that God has a plan for you life bigger
and better than you could ever imagine.
While we’re
discovering what God has to tell us about patience, we’ll
be memorizing Psalm 27:14: “Wait for the Lord. Be strong and don’t
lose hope. Wait for the Lord.”
Thankfully, we don’t
have to wait in our own power. Our hope is in God. He will give us the strength
to remember that it’s
worth the wait.
It’s important
to remember that learning patience doesn’t happen in a
moment; it takes time. As we talk to kids about how they can reflect God
through how they show patience, it’s important
to remember that this is something they’ll be
developing for the rest of their lives, and something we, as adults, can
probably use some work on ourselves.
Hey Parents,
Want to explore this
week’s lesson with your child at home?
Here’s
how!!
Preschool
Play Time…
Play a game of
“Hide and Seek” with your child. When you’re done, grab a snack and take time to tell your
child that no matter where we go or what we do, God will always look for us.
God loves us that much!
Car Time…
As you drive, point out the many people you
see along the road or in the stores you visit. When you see a person, say, “There’s
my neighbor!”
Talk about how every person we see is our neighbor. That means if we love like
Jesus, we will love every person we see. Why? Because Jesus loves everyone!
Bath Time…
Add four action figures or plastic doll
figures to bath time. Pretend they are the man who was hurt, the two men who
passed by and didn’t
help, and the Good Samaritan who stopped to help him. Act out the story, along
the side of the tub, as your child takes his bath. Talk about how the Good
Samaritan loved his neighbor like Jesus because he stopped to help.
Cuddle Time…
Cuddle
up with your child and pray. “Dear God, thank You for giving us Jesus to show
us how to love our friends. Help us to love like Jesus and be willing to do
anything to show our friends we love them, even if it’s
something we don’t like doing—
things like helping them clean up or giving them our last cookie. Those kinds
of things are not fun, but they sure do make people feel really loved. Thank
You for loving us, God. We love You. In Jesus’ name, amen.”
Elementary School:
WEEK 1: Ask a kid: What are some things
that you have to wait for?
Ask a parent: Why is patience important for us?
WEEK 2: Ask a kid: What can you do while
you wait for a dream to come true?
Ask a parent: Do you have any dreams you gave up on because it seemed to be
taking too long?
WEEK 3: Ask a kid: Is there a time when
your impatience got you in trouble?
Ask a parent: How can we stay patient when we don’t know our patience will be rewarded?
WEEK 4: Ask a kid: Imagine you’re putting together a “patience kit” for those times you have to wait. What would you put
in it?
Ask a parent: Why do you think commitment and patience often go together?
WEEK 5: Ask a kid: What are some ways
that your patience might be rewarded?
Ask a parent: Share about a time when you or someone you know thought you were
waiting for one thing, but God revealed an even bigger plan at the end.
