Children's sermon - Free the Prisoner

Well last week was my turn to do children's sermon, and as I was looking over the verse and the sermon title for that Sunday, I couldn't think of anything.  The verse was Isaiah 61:1~

The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon me,

    for the Lord has anointed me

    to bring good news to the poor.

He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted

    and to proclaim that captives will be released

    and prisoners will be freed.

The title was "Setting Prisoners Free."  Sometimes when I look at the verse and/or the title of the upcoming sermon, I immediately start coming up with ideas and things to talk about.  This was not the case this time.  It's not that that verse isn't inspirational.  It totally is!  I love the message and the sentiment it conveys.  It's just relating that message to a group of kids from preschool up to 5th grade is not an easy task.  I went to my trusty Google to search other children's sermons on that verse and the topic of setting prisoners free to build some inspiration.  No luck.  Apparently not many children's sermons have been derived from this verse.  Finally I was able to find a sermon about Martin Luther King Jr. which gave me a little spark, especially since MLK Jr. day was the day after I was giving my sermon (sometimes it's just a God thing).  After that I started brainstorming different ways to convey what prison must feel like, and I thought about how we may not be prisoners in the sense that we have committed a crime and gone to jail, but in the way that we create our own prisons everyday.  I thought of how I feel when I create my own prison when I let the things of this world become more prominent that God.  Trapped.  How could I show this to the kids though?

Sunday morning, I ran up to the Sunday School supply closet (because it has EVERYTHING!) and grabbed my supplies.  I went back into the sanctuary and set them down where I would be speaking.  When it came time for children's sermon, I had my son sit in front of me, so I could use him for my demonstration.  I asked the kids about why they would be out of school the following day, and they excitedly told me about Martin Luther King day.  I asked why he was important, and they spoke about how he fought for civil rights.  I told them yes, that he like many others in this world fought for freedom for everyone, no matter what you look like.  I asked them if they knew about prison, then I asked them if they knew that you could be in prison without actually going to jail.  I had my son stand up and hold a piece of yarn that I had grabbed.  I asked the kids how we might create our own prisons, and they called out things like - lying, saying not nice words, being mean to your dog, hurting others, etc.  Everytime that they called something out, I would have my son spin around holding the yarn thus wrapping his body and arms up in the circles of yarn.  The pastors and I called out a few more things to help them out, like unforgiveness (who me?), fear (yep), and getting a bad case of the "I wants" (ouch).  AT the end I asked if he could get out, and he said "no."  We talked about how he was trapped in this "prison" and how he felt trapped.  I also tried to show that even if I tried to help him by pulling on the yarn, I couldn't set him free. Then I brought out my scissors, and I told the kids that the scissors represented Jesus.  As I easily cut through the yarn, I explained that Jesus is the only one who can set us free when we create these "prisons," and we need to turn to him for help when we are feeling trapped.  We finished up with a prayer thanking God for Jesus and all the others who fought for freedom.  

Not exactly something based on the scripture, but I felt it was a success.  Kids stayed interested and engaged, and I am pretty sure they got the point.  It also made me realize some of the prisons I have created for myself recently, and now that I am aware, I can begin to turn to Jesus to set me free.  :)

Advent Fail

The title really sums it up.  I had such great intentions this year.  Even my last blog post was about how I was trying to make more room for Jesus this year, more studies, more Christ-centered moments with my family, and it was going so well....until the week before Christmas.  I had to follow up b/c I felt guilty leaving that last post, and people reading this thinking that I had done so well.  Reality hit, as did the craziness of last minute Christmas stuff, and I had to post about that as well because from the beginning I said this was about the good and the bad.
I have to say, our Jesse tree devotional was going great, and the kids really enjoyed reading the stories starting with creation and leading to the birth of Jesus then hanging the ornament.  To be honest this was the one advent activity that lasted the longest for us.  Don't be fooled though.

On Christmas Eve when I took this picture of our completed Jesse Tree, we had done the last 4-5 all at once.  I thought, well at least we did it.  We limped across the finish line, but we finished it up.  Our family advent calendar, was for the most part done, just lacking in a few days, but one of them was our RACK (Random Act of Christmas Kindness), which bothered me.  Oh well, 3 out of 4 aren't bad, and we did get our cookies delivered the local fire station on Christmas Day.  Don't even get me started on my Advent Study I was to be reading.  Ugh, fail,
I was thinking the other day about what went wrong, where the distraction came in, and I realized that maybe it was too much.  Maybe simple is better.  We try and fill our holidays with so much magic and perfection that it can't possibly reach our own expectations.  I think about the first Christmas.  Mary and Joseph rode into Bethlehem on a donkey...a donkey!  Ladies can you even imagine?  Even sitting in my car which has shocks and comfy seats was no fun at that point in pregnancy.  Then they get to stay in a stable (translation - barn).  Once again, 9 months pregnant, just rode in on a donkey, and she gets to not only sleep, but also GIVE BIRTH in a barn on some hay (if she is lucky) with all kinds of animals around her.  It's a far cry from the deluxe suites and birthing rooms we have here.  Then Joseph is not only her lamaze coach, but also her OB and her nurse.  I would have been in so much trouble as my husband would have been passed out on the floor with some animal licking his face I am sure.  Pretty sure there wasn't any sterilized tools in the stable or ice chips for her to crunch on.  Once Jesus is born, he is wrapped in cloth and laid in a manger.  A manger where animals typical eat out of.  Just the thought makes this germaphob shudder.  She didn't even have any wipes to wipe it down with first (gasp)!  It's truly amazing that both Mary and Jesus (and possibly Joseph) even survived the whole experience!  Yet that is how our Savior entered the world, and that is all the magic and perfection that Christmas really needs.  We can try and fill it with activities, visits to Santa, making cookies and treats, gift buying, parties and such, but really all we need is the baby in the manger.
I am going to try (repeat try) to remember this next as I plan our Advent season.  Keep it simple. Yes we will still have fun, but not put so much stress upon myself to create this "perfect" Christmas for my family.  I can't because someone already did many.many years ago.  You cannot create what already exists.