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Choose from the following Children's Sermons:

• Be All You Can Be, Luke 14:25-35,
  by Rev. Randy Quinn

• Forgiveness, Philemon 1-21
  Paul Weary

• The Play Dough Potter, Jeremiah 18:1-11
  by Jennifer

• Yielding to God, Jeremiah 18:1-11
  by Rev. Frank Schaefer

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Be All You Can Be
Luke 14:25-35
by Rev. Randy Quinn

 Have any of you thought about what you want to do when you grow up?

Ø      How many want to be a teacher?

Ø      Does anyone want to be a doctor?

Ø      What about an airline pilot?

Ø      What else could you be?

Ø      How many of you want to become a preacher?

You know, when I was a kid, my parents told me I could do anything I wanted to do.  Have you ever been told that?

But you know what?  I learned that that’s not exactly true.  It’s only true if I’m willing to work at it.

Ø      You can’t grow up and play baseball with the Kansas City Royals if you don’t practice playing baseball – and keep practicing no matter what.

Ø      And I can’t decide next week that I don’t want to be a pastor anymore because I want to be a doctor.  To be a doctor, I would have to go back to college.

But something we can all be is a disciple of Jesus.  It doesn’t matter if we are going to be a doctor or a scientist or a truck driver.  We can be a disciple of Jesus no matter where we work or where we live.  We can all learn how to follow Jesus, no matter what we do when we grow up – but just like everything else, it means we need to start practicing.  And we can start practicing today.

Let’s pray:

God:  help us be faithful disciples.  Help us always do your will.  Help us to show people your love by the way we love them.  We pray in Jesus’ name.  Amen.

 

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Forgiveness
a children's sermon based on Philemon 1-21
Paul Weary

In a little while we're going to hear a reading from a letter that St. Paul wrote to a man named Philemon. It's a really short letter in the Bible and in the letter Paul writes about another man named Onesimus, whose name means "useful." Now Onesimus was Philemon's slave. In those times some people owned slaves. In some parts of the world it still happens. We don't allow it because we believe that people aren't property for other people to own. But back when Paul wrote this letter it happened a lot. Now Mr. Useful, Onesimus, had run away from his owner Philemon and ended up living with Paul. According to the law, if Philemon found Onesimus, he would have the right to kill him for running away.

Now Philemon was a Christian. He heard Paul preach the good news about God's love in Jesus Christ, was baptized, and even let the other Christians in his town use his house as a church. Paul reminds Philemon that we're all set free through God's love for us. According to God's law we should all die a death like Jesus did because of our sins. But instead Jesus died in our place because he loved us so much, and set us free. When Onesimus ended up with Paul he heard the good news about what Jesus did for us and was baptized and became a Christian too. He was a forgiven sinner just like Paul and Philemon and all of us.

Well, Paul wrote this letter to Philemon but do you know who he sent to deliver it? It was Onesimus himself, the slave who ran away, the one who could be killed if his owner Philemon ever caught him. He was probably pretty scared to be delivering this letter, but the letter asked Philemon to welcome Onesimus back into his home, but not as a slave, as a brother. See, when God saves us we're changed and we're freed to love each other. And if we love someone we want what's best for them. The law of Rome told Philemon that he could kill this runaway slave, but the law of love told him that he was a new brother. The good news that set them both free from punishment for their sin also set them free to treat each other and everyone they met with love.

The Bible doesn't tell us what happened after Onesimus delivered this letter. If the result was bad I don't think the letter would have ended up in our Bibles. But in a book written about 50 years after Paul wrote this letter it talks about a bishop named Onesimus and if he's the same guy then maybe he's the one that saved the letter that saved his life and that we have now in our Bibles.

Let's fold our hands, bow our heads, and pray together: Loving God, thank you for your Word, the Word of promise, the Word of love, the Word of forgiveness. May we learn from Onesimus and Philemon about the love and forgiveness we can have for each other because we're loved by you. Amen

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The Play Dough Potter
a children's sermon seed based on Jeremiah 18:1-11
by Jennifer

I am going to focus on the Jeremiah text. Each child will be given a piece of model magic clay (less mess) and invited to create during the service. I will talk with them about being centered, never leaving the creation and about reworking, not destroying it, when it is not right. 

That's how God works with us--never abandoning us, but reworking us when we mess up.  Each piece can be imperfect and yet glorious in the eyes of the Potter.

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Yielding to God
a children's sermon based on Jeremiah 18:1-11
by Rev. Frank Schaefer

props: a toy yield sign or a picture of one.

It's good to see you all again.  Today, I thought I give you a little driver's education.  Who of you would like to drive a car some day?  Is any of you driving already?  What are you driving?

When you are driving in traffic, you'll see a lot of signs like this one (show your yield sign or picture).  What are signs for?  Does any of you know what this particular sign means?  What do you have to do if you see this sign?   I'll tell you: it is a yield sign.  When you see this sign, you need to look around and when there is any other car on the road you must stop.

In one of our bible lessons, God tells the prophet Jeremiah to yield.   Jeremiah was supposed to yield--not to cars, but to God.  What does it mean to yield to God?  It means that we need to slow down, and stop, and pray.

Yielding is a hard thing to do, especially for people who like to drive fast.  The same with praying.  It is so hard to slow down sometimes and stop what we're doing and just focus on God and pray.  And yet, praying is so important, isn't it?

Let this yield sign be a reminder to us.  Every time we see one of these, let us think about slowing down and let us think about how important praying is--yielding to God.

Why don't we do that right now?  Let's close our eyes, because that helps us slow down and focus on God.  Let us pray: "Dear God, thank you for the yield sign; thank you for giving us little signs on the way that remind us that we need to slow down and pray and ask you for directions.  Amen."