Do you want to teach your kids the Christian message behind St. Patrick’s Day? Then try this short video from Veggie Tales. It originally appeared on their DVD titled “The Sumo of the Opera.” The clip is also available on the new DVD “Lessons from the Sock Drawer” from Big Idea. It does a great job of telling the story of Saint Patrick in a way that children can appreciate.

The video is about 8:32 minutes long, which may push the attention span of younger children. Most kids will really enjoy the story and love learning about Saint Patrick from this video clip. It is presented in 2D storyboard animation, but has very engaging narration. The story ends with this pronouncement, he was “a great man who loved Ireland and loved God.” This story could easily lead into a talk about missions or loving our enemies.

The people at Veggie Tales did a good job of telling the story of Patrick in a way that all Christian groups could embrace. He is recognized as several Christian traditions. The Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Anglicans, and Lutherans all esteem him officially. Other protestant groups often appreciate him as a missionary pioneer from the early church.

HT: Tony Kummer

Tedd Tripp, Shepherding a Child’s Heart, (Shepherd Press, 1995),  211 pages.

I’ve learned at least two things while in school:
1. You can have a lot of practical expertise and not know anything.
2. You can know a lot and not be able to do anything.

Tedd Tripp writes a book that gives us both. He gives you the theology behind good parenting, and he gives you very practical follow-through to apply this theology.

What I love about this book: (the above paragraph), I love his humility (he and his wife do not have it all together), and his accomplishment of the task at hand – instructing parents how to not only target their children’s actions, but how to reach their hearts – to shepherd their hearts.  He follows through on the intentions for this book.  He does not leave you wondering what should be the main goal in parenting: shepherding your child’s heart toward the Gospel.  “Your concern is to unmask your child’s sin, helping him to understand how it reflects a heart that has strayed. That leads to the cross of Christ. It underscores the need for a Savior.” (p 6)

Tripp spends the first half of the book laying the foundation to parenting, shepherding, Scripture, etc. “You need to direct not simply the behavior of your children, but the attitudes of their hearts.” (p xxi) Then the second half, he gives very practical advice for different stages of child-rearing: toddlers, children, teenagers. I found these extremely helpful – even as I think back about my youth ministry days and think ahead as I volunteer in the church and even babysit. These are great truths and principles to be adopted.  A friend commented to me (she is single, does a lot of babysitting) that she even practices these truths with the children she babysits for, hoping one day God would bless her with own children, but taking every opportunity to reach the heart of children in her life.  I do not have children either, so I’m in the preparing stage…and I can use these truths in ministry, babysitting, or just as a gauge when watching other parents interact with their children.

I went to a Christian school from K-12th grade, only missing one semester. I remember a conversation my mom had when we were talking about one of the trouble-makers in my grade.  She said something to the effect that her parents probably sent her to this school in hopes that they would “straighten her out”. Tripp makes a similar comment in the opening of this book: “They had hoped that school would provide the direction and motivation they had not been able to provide for their daughter.” (p xvii) The school nor the church have been given the role of chief disciple-maker in your child’s life. You have been given that role (see Deut 6).  You must take on the responsibility.  Be bold, be brave, seek advice, read books, but most importantly – live out the truth found in Scripture with your kids in your home on a daily basis.  No one will pick up your slack.

“You must bring integrity to your interaction with your children. You model the dynamics of the Christian life for your children. You must let them see sonship with the Father in you. You should show them repentance. Acknowledge your joys and fears and how you find comfort in God. Live a shared life of repentance and thankfulness. Acknowledge your own sin and weakness. Admit when you are wrong. Be prepared to seek forgiveness for sinning against your children. The right to make searching and honest appraisal of your children lies in willingness to do the same for yourself.” (p 91)

“You must address the heart as the fountain of behavior, the conscience, the God-given judge of right and wrong.  The cross of Christ must be the central focus of your child rearing. God’s standard is correct behavior flowing from a heart that loves God and has God’s glory as the sole purpose of life. That is not native to your children (nor to you their parents).” (p. 120)  “Whatever you do will require patience. It is hard for a family to change its direction. What is ahead of you is a matter of spiritual struggle against the forces of evil. There is more to it than applying some principles. Pray.  Seek God’s help. Wait on God. Study the Scriptures with your children. Try to take them along with you on your spiritual pilgrimage. Share with them what you’re learning and why changes in your family life are important.” (p 158)

With every book there are drawbacks:
1. All the illustrations. They are great, but for some they will try to live out these truths and principles in the exact same way – or they won’t be able to live these out at all because they won’t get past the illustration.  Ask God how you need to apply these truths to your family.  Don’t try to be the Tripps.
2. “God intends parenting to be a temporary task.” (p 210) I disagree with this statement. Yes, you might not discipline them the same or help them make every decision, but my parents are still my parents. They help me in many ways: to make wise decisions, to give me advice, to help financially some, to be friends with; but they are still my parents.

This book can benefit everyone who reads it.  If you have children, it gives you hope for the journey because there is hope in the Gospel.  If you are about to get married (with the intent of having children), it gives you solid truths to work through in pre-marital counseling.  If you work in childrens’ or youth ministry at church or in your community, this will help you better relate to parents and how to shepherd the children/teens while they are in your care.  Take every opportunity, no matter where God has you, to shepherd a child’s heart.

Kings sit on thrones in palaces. Kings wear royal clothes and crowns, and enjoy the best things the world has to offer.  Kings make laws and command kingdoms.   Kings don’t live and work among their people.  The Gospel of Matthew is about a king, but he is a different sort of king.  His family tree is traced back to the great king David, but he is born to an unknown young couple.   Rather than a palace, he has nowhere to call home.  He wears a crown, but it is made of thorns.  He commands obedience, but loving obedience that comes from the heart.  Matthew’s king doesn’t sit on a throne surrounded by a royal court; he spends time with sinners and outcasts.  Matthew wants his readers to know one thing above all: Jesus is the King.  He is the king who guides his people like a shepherd into his kingdom.   He forgives them, offers rest to their souls, and promises never to leave them.  Though he calls his people to follow him in suffering and the cross, he promises that this is the way to eternal life.  Matthew also shows that Jesus is King through his actions.  Storms are silenced by his voice.  Evil spirits are cast out with a word.  The sick are healed by his touch.    The day is coming when he’ll return revealed in all his power and glory—the reigning and ruling, eternal King.  Matthew wants his readers to know, follow, and be like the King.

Ideas for Following the King as a Family

• Ask your children what it means to be a king or, for young ones, have them draw a picture of a king.  Affirm the things they’ll probably mention—like crowns and thrones —but then talk to them about how Jesus describes himself in Matthew 8:20 and 11:28-30.  Tell them the story of Jesus entering Jerusalem from Matthew 21:1-11.     
• Read the parable of the Unmerciful Servant (Matthew 18:21-35).  Talk about what the servant in the parable should have done and why.     
• Read the parable of the Workers in the Vineyard (20:1-16).  Read it slowly, and before reading verse 9, ask your children which workers deserve to be paid more money.  Then read verses 9-16.  Use this as a way to talk about grace, which is getting more than we deserve—though sometimes less than we think we deserve.
• Read Matthew 5:3-12 together as a family.  These “blessed are” statements are commonly called “the Beatitudes.”  Talk about what it means to be “blessed” in the kingdom and how different it is than the kinds of behavior and attitudes we typically value.  If your children are believers, ask them to share about difficulties they may have in living as Christians at school or with other kids in the neighborhood.    
• Followers of Jesus are called to share the gospel.  Read Matthew 28:18-20 together.   This passage is commonly called, “The Great Commission.”  Intentionally befriend the parents of your children’s friends (or a family in the neighborhood with children) who aren’t believers.  Take time to get to know them and let them get to know you.  Let them see the King through the way you live. Look for opportunities to share Jesus with them, and invite them to Sojourn gatherings.  There’s no set time-line for this one.       
• Have your children write down—or say—three things that come to mind when they hear the word “obedience.”  Save their comments and then begin reading through the Sermon on the Mount over a few days paying special attention to the difference between obeying just to follow rules or keep from getting in trouble and obeying from the heart.   
• Memorize the Lord’s Prayer together.  Use it as part of family devotionals or as part of bed-time prayers.

“Children who have learned to worship at home will not find it difficult to worship in the church. Children from worship-less homes cannot be led easily to appreciate the meaning and the value of church worship. A mark of the decadence of our civilization is the decline of family worship. Its revival would be one of the most significant signs of spiritual recovery. The use of one of the popular aids to family devotions, with suggestions for daily Bible readings and prayer, would prove of inestimable value in the promotion of worship in the home, where the best of all training in worship may be received.”

Gaines Dobbins’s, The Churchbook: A treasury of materials and methods, (Nashville, TN: Broadman, 1951), p. 157

HT The Children’s Hour

HT:Doug Wolter

This past Sunday at 1 pm, I posted a need on The City.  We needed someone to do childcare for our community group at 6:30 that very evening, and posting a need on the City was sort of a last-ditch effort.  After I posted, my husband and I were hopeful that someone would respond and prayed they would, but we were fully prepared and half-expecting for me to watch the kiddos during group.

A couple of hours later, just about the time that I was thinking, “If nobody has responded by now, nobody ever will,” a sister in Christ whom I had never met emailed to say that she was happy to watch our kids.  This dear woman, who has a very young child of her own to care for, saw the need and stepped in to fulfill it.

How thankful we are for the Lord’s provision for us!  It was a very simple thing – childcare for our CG – but he showed such care for us by moving one person’s heart to serve us.  He gave us exactly what we needed.  And he continues to provide.  We have an ongoing need for CG childcare, and a couple of people have offered to serve us in that way as a result of the post on The City.  See how God cares for his children? He is so good.

I am so thankful for opportunity we have through The City to serve the body of Christ and to allow others to serve us.  I admit, I am not a huge fan of web-based social networking or anything that encourages, even inadvertently, surface-level relationships, but what a gift it is for our body to be united in this way!  I have often struggled with how we as a church are to live out the example set before us in Acts 2 without resorting to setting up a commune, and The City is a great answer to that.  We can so easily find out what needs are out there that we can help meet, and we can put our own needs before our church family.  What a blessing to have this resource at our disposal!  (And now we won’t flood SEED and our benevolence funds with requests that could likely be fulfilled by more-than-willing brothers and sisters who are looking for opportunities to serve!)

Thank you, leaders, for making The City available to us.  May the Lord continue to use it to show us how he richly supplies for our needs through his body, the church.

Sign up for Sojourn’s City network here.

This week is our last in the book of Psalms as a church.  I thought I’d bring our attention to some new books out by Carine Mackenzie.  The latest books in the “Bible Alive” series for ages 4-11 are David the Shepherd, David the Soldier, David the Fugitive, and David the King. This is an addition of four little books to her “Bible Alive” series, which already includes six Jesus titles and four Moses titles.  Each of the books engages children as the stories are retold from key biblical texts.  A distinctive of the series is its strong focus on salvation.  In David the Shepherd children learn lessons of courage, and in David the Soldier, about trusting God in times of waiting.  David the Fugitive tells of God’s faithfulness and David the King presents God’s forgiveness.   These are great resources for talking to your kids about the man behind many of the psalms.

Sojourn’s Student and Family Ministry is offering class for children and their parents called “Ask Class: For Kids & Parents with Questions about Salvation & Baptism.”  The goal is to answer the questions of kids and their parents who are seeking to understand the gospel, salvation, baptism, and assurance.  We want to partner with parents, who have been commanded to teach their kids about God.  The class will be led by Pastors Jared Kennedy and Gary Almon.  Our hope is that this class will be a catalyst for more gospel conversations between parents and their children.  The two-week class is on March 21st & 28th during the 11:00 AM service at the Midtown Campus, The 930 Art Center, on the third floor.  The first session will cover issues related to Jesus and salvation.  The second session will cover issues related to baptism and assurance.

When coming up with new liturgies for Kids’ Worship, we try to keep the subject matter centered on the Christian calendar and relevant to the children’s lives.  Most of the time we can accomplish both goals by using major holidays as a launching point. Building liturgies around holidays also gives us the opportunity to correct skewed worldly perspectives on biblical themes that are so prevalent in our increasingly post-Christian culture. We can take concepts the kids are familiar with and explain the truth about them, exposing the thoughts of the mind fixed on the flesh and teaching the perspective of the mind fixed on the Spirit.

With Valentine’s Day being a prominent holiday in the culture around us and in elementary schools, the month of February provides a great opportunity to talk to children about love. In this month’s liturgy we discuss God’s love in a general sense, His revelation of His love in the Bible, the sacrificial love of Jesus’ death for us, and our need for love toward God and other people. This month, really pour love on your kids as you help them understand just how big God’s love is for them.

Here’s February’s liturgy:

What do we celebrate in February? (Allow children to answer.)  That’s right, we celebrate Valentine’s Day!  Valentine’s Day is a chance to make or send cards to tell others that you love and appreciate them. It’s fun to get cards in the mail.  Did you know that God has sent you a “love letter”?  What is God’s love letter to you? (Allow children to answer.) The Bible! What is the Bible? The Bible is God’s written word.

Who wrote the Bible? (Teach the children this answer exactly. It is from their children’s catechism.  Have them repeat it after you.) “Holy men who were taught by the Holy Spirit.”  You know we think about sending love letters and telling people we love them SOME times, but God thinks about you and loves you ALL the time. His love is the BIGGEST LOVE in the universe. Even while you were sleeping last night, God was loving you and thinking about you all night long.  We are going to sing some songs this morning about God’s HUGE love for us.  Let’s (STAND UP and) sing a love song to God!

1. “Your Love,” words and music by Bob Kauflin, © 2004 Sovereign Grace Praise (BMI). Sovereign Grace Music, a division of Sovereign Grace Ministries. From Awesome God.

Who loves you the most in the world?  You might instantly think of your Mommy or Daddy, because they do love you so much.  But God loves you even more than your parents. God made your parents, so their love is His gift to you too.  Even though others let us down, God’s love is completely pure and never fails.  How has God shown us that He loves us? (Allow children to answer.) God has shown us that He loves us in JESUS. God has shown us his love in that while we were still sinners, He sent Jesus Christ to die on the cross for our sins. God loves us so much that He sent Jesus Christ to take the punishment for our sin. We are going to sing this truth as a Bible memory verse.

2. “Romans 5:8,” words from NIV translation, © 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica. Music by Mark Altrogge, © 2004 Forever Grateful Music. From Hide The Word 2.

Jesus told stories to teach us something. One time Jesus told this story. There was a shepherd who had 100 sheep. That’s a lot of sheep! He was counting them and realized one was missing. Does anybody know what the shepherd did? He left the 99 and went looking for the one missing sheep until he found it. What was Jesus teaching us? That we are like little sheep and God loves each and every one of us. You are like the missing 100th sheep. You are special to God and He wants you to come to Him and be close to Him. Let’s come to God this morning and sing about His Love.

3. “You Are Always With Me,” words and music by Mark Altrogge, © 2004 Sovereign Grace Praise (BMI). Sovereign Grace Music, a division of Sovereign Grace Ministries. From Awesome God.

The Bible says in John 15:13, “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends” (NIV). The greatest love is laying down your life for someone else. That means to die for someone. Jesus has the greatest love because He died for our sins. We do not naturally love Jesus. Jesus first loved us. We do not love others like Jesus. We need Jesus to change us to love Him and to love others. We are going to sing about loving Jesus in our next song.

4. “Because You First Loved Me,” words and music by Doug Plank, © 2009 Sovereign Grace Worship (ASCAPI). Sovereign Grace Music, a division of Sovereign Grace Ministries. From To Be Like Jesus.
We are going to pray. Fold your hands and be still and talk to God. Let’s pray.  “Jesus, you are wonderful! You’re love is amazing! We want to love you too. Help us to love each other like you love us. Thank you for coming to earth to save us from our sins! In Jesus name we pray. Amen.”

5. “God’s Love Goes On Forever,” words and music by Chandi Plummer, © 2009 Chandi Plummer/Sojourn Music.

If you haven’t had a chance to look over the materials presented by Mark Prater and Andy Farmer on Children’s and Student Ministry at Sojourn’s 2009 Counseling & The Church Conference, you should take a look.  This session sought to answer the following questions: What is the role of the local church in coming alongside of parents as they seek to raise their children? How should theology drive the ministry structures and the methods used in serving parents in your family ministry? Parents often feel helpless and alone in raising their children from birth through the teen years, so the church must step up and serve a crucial role in coming alongside parents.  In these tracks, Mark and Andy looked at how parents are equipped to help their children and teens understand and live out the gospel with the help of their local church community.  Mark and Andy are pastors at Covenant Fellowship in Glen Mills, PA.

Download:

Children’s Ministry Session led by Pastor Mark Prater

Youth Ministry Session led by Pastor Andy Farmer

via Children’s Ministry/Parenting Track Session Counseling & The Church Conference | Sojourn Community Church.