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God’s Promise

I pray that everyone had a good 4th of July! I hope you had rest and solid family time! As I sat on the front lawn of Asheville Savings Bank I thought about how amazing it is to have freedom.

Thank you to all of you who have served and those who are currently serving in our nation’s military.

Our promise of freedom is overshadowed by God’s promise of freedom from sin. We get to enjoy Independence Day with our families and watch beautiful fireworks. However, that pales in comparison to our eternal freedom from sin.

On Sunday, we talked about God’s covenant with David. You might be thinking, “What does that have to do with my eternal freedom?” Well, a lot actually.

The covenant that God made with David was a promise that his descendants will always be the king. This alludes to 27 generations down to Jesus! Your goal as parents for this devotion is to help your children understand that God’s promises never fail, and that God loves us so much! Here are the Conversation Starters:

  • What is a covenant? (A promise. It’s different than a contract.)
  • Who else did God make a covenant with? (Abraham, Jacob, etc.)
  • David lived in a huge palace. Do you believe that God deserves a big palace?
  • Do you believe he needs it? (No, he cannot be confined to one place.)
  • Read 2 Samuel 7:16
  • What was God’s covenant with David?
  • Do you think that God kept his promise to David? Why?
  • Who was the most popular king to come from David’s line? (Jesus)
  • Did Jesus live in a palace fit for a king? (No)
  • Was David grateful for this covenant?
  • What was the covenant that Jesus made with us? (If we accept him, he will give us eternal life.)
  • Should we be thankful for this covenant? Why?

As always, adjust where you need to!

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Friends Till The End

Yesterday was the most kids in Kids Worship we have had since I have been here at Grace! To God be the glory! We had 49 in the first service with 18 in the second.

This is very exciting! This reflects solely on our Lord.

We worked on the transitions this week, and everything went much a lot smoother than last week!

We spent our time talking about David’s friendship with Jonathan, King Saul’s son. This was a friendship that was not welcomed by King Saul. King Saul was furious with David because God chose him to be the next king.

The friendship between David and Jonathan survived the hatred King Saul had toward David. This opens up great paths for conversation!

  1. Who are your friends at school?
  2. Who would you say is your “best friend”? (Tell them your best friend, too.)
  3. What are ways that your best friend shows they are your friend?
  4. How do you show them?
  5. Read 1 Samuel 19:1-3.
  6. How was Jonathan being a good friend to David?
  7. Do you think Jonathan disobeyed his father by telling David to hide?
  8. Do you think it was ok for Jonathan to disobey his father?
  9. Should you disobey your parents?
  10. What are some other ways you can show your friendship towards people? (Eventually land on sharing the Gospel with them. This is a great act of love we can show people.)

As always, please adjust where you need! God bless.

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Week 1

Yesterday was our first day going back to a two Kids Worship model. It was awesome!

There are still some adjustments to make with the transitions, but we will adapt and smooth those out.

I preached the 9:30 service, and Joshua Kilgo preached the 11:00 service. He did a fantastic job, and the kids responded well!

Our story from yesterday was about how God chose David to be the next king and how he defeated Goliath. Our main idea was that God gave David power to defeat Goliath. We went through how Samuel went to Jesse’s house and chose David over his seven brothers.

Will Winters came into Kids Worship dressed as Goliath and we had a kid from each service throw a stone (balled up piece of paper) at his head! It was awesome!

God gave David power to defeat Goliath. It was not David’s size, experience, or tenacity. It was God. This is a good start to today’s Conversation Starters!

  • Read 1 Samuel 16:7.
  • Why didn’t God choose one of David’s other brothers? I mean, they were fit to be king, right?
  • Why did God choose David instead of his brothers?
  • Do you believe that the character of the heart is more important than physical appearance?
  • To help answer that, let’s look at Goliath. How big was Goliath?
  • Why did God choose David to defeat Goliath? There were many capable men, right?
  • If God could use a small man defeat Goliath with one stone, how strong do you think God is?
  • What are some ways God can be strong for you? (Parents: tell your kids about a way God can be strong for you as well)

As always, feel free to change whatever! God bless.

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Leftovers

If you were sitting in Fatz Cafe and I walked up to you, would you give me your food? You might give me your leftovers…

What if Jesus walked up to you? Would you give him the whole plate or just the leftovers?

It is so easy to give Jesus our leftovers in regard to worship. Life gets busy, kids have games, and work is stressful.

Jerry preached an amazing sermon that addressed this topic. If you haven’t heard it, please listen here.

In Kids Worship, we talked about giving God our entire plate of food because he gave us the food in the first place. Here are the Conversation Starters:

  1. Have you ever served someone else?
  2. Read Joshua 24:15
  3. What does it mean to serve the Lord?
  4. How can you serve the Lord?
  5. Have you ever been mad because you weren’t allowed to play video games?
  6. Have you ever been mad because you missed a game? (Baseball, basketball, etc.)
  7. Is it a sin to play video games, baseball, (or some other hobby)? (No)
  8. Can we still serve God while we play these things? (Yes)
  9. How can we do that?

Enjoy and adjust if you need to!

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Brainwashed

It is a difficult time to be a Christian. It is not because we find ourselves under persecution, but because we are considered extremists for having traditional beliefs.

It is so important that we teach the truth and authority of Scripture to children. I such felt a huge burden yesterday to teach the kids this, that I actually preached it twice! (Kids Worship and Grapple). As you sit down with your children and use these Conversation Starters or just your own devotion, please help them understand that the Bible is our only standard.

Yesterday’s sermon was about Daniel and his three pals. If you missed Jerry’s sermon, you can listen to it here.

Although they were young, captured, taken from their families, and spent three years learning about a culture that was unfamiliar and pagan, they never lost their faith in God.

Science project: Yesterday I took celery and placed it in water with food coloring. After letting it sit all night, the veins of the celery began to change. Because of that, the celery looked different. (If your child was not in Kids Worship, please do this project with your kids.) (The celery is us. I used red dye for worldly things, and I used green dye for God. The green dye helps the celery become the color it is supposed to be, and therefore looks healthier.)

This project shows that the celery (us) will begin to soak up whatever is around it (colored water). This relates directly to us. So, here are the Conversation Starters:

  • Ask them about the story of Daniel and his three amigos. If they don’t remember the story, then help them out.
  • What did King Nebuchadnezzar try to give Daniel and the three amigos? (Meat and Wine)
  • What did Daniel do then? Read Daniel 1:8.
  • If Daniel was ok with them changing his name and teaching him about their culture, why don’t you think he would eat with them? (Because if he eats with them, he is saying that their pagan beliefs are ok.)
  • Did Daniel get really mad at them and start screaming?? (No. He remained faithful to God without causing a ruckus.)
  • When someone at school is doing something wrong, should you participate in whatever they are doing? (Examples: bullying, cheating, not sharing, cussing, etc.)
  • If you participate in whatever they are doing, what does that show them about what you believe?
  • Should you scream at them and tell them they are awful people? (NO!) What should you do instead?

 

Enjoy and tweak the questions to fit your needs!

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Walk The Walk

I pray that every family had a blessed Mother’s Day!

It was another great day in the house of the Lord yesterday. The spirit really moved, and it was great to worship together with brothers and sisters.

If you didn’t hear Jerry’s sermon, click here. In our time together yesterday, we jumped into Titus who was on the island of Crete. Paul had great instructions for Titus as he led this church.

In Kids Worship, we did not focus much on the instructions for older women…However, we did talk about what it looks like to live for Jesus. Here are the Conversation Starters:

  • If they play a sport, ask them what position they play. If they play an instrument, ask them what instrument they play. Pick a hobby that they like and ask them about their role (baseball: pitcher, play piano: musician, drawing: artist, etc.).
  • Take whatever role they play, and ask them if they would call themselves something different. (Say something like this: “If you are a pitcher, would you call yourself a right fielder?” The answer should be “no” to this question.)
  • Did you know that as a Christian, you have to Talk the Talk and Walk the Walk?
  • To Talk the Talk means that you must tell the truth about what you are. If you are a Christian, you must say you are a Christian. Have you ever had the opportunity to share the Gospel with someone? (If so, ask them about this experience. If not, that is ok. Encourage them to talk to someone this week.)
  • To Walk the Walk means that we must live in a way that shows what we are. If we say we are a Christian, you must do what? Live like it, right?
  • How do you live like a Christian?
  • Read Titus 2:11-14
  • Did you know that the Gospel has changed us???
  • What is the Gospel? (Have them explain it to you. If they can’t, then you can explain it to them.)
  • How do we live like the Gospel has changed us?

Enjoy! Also, feel free to adjust these questions to best fit your situation!

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I Will Sing My Song

Habakkuk was such a rich book to go through these past few weeks. We have really seen God work through His word.

As a storm passed through yesterday afternoon, I felt it was fitting to sing in the middle of it!

Kids Worship was a lot of fun yesterday! We had a great time finishing up Habakkuk. If you missed Jerry’s sermon yesterday, click here. Here are the Conversation Starters for this week:

  • What is your favorite song?
  • If you didn’t say a Christian song, then what Christian song is your favorite? (If you as a parent don’t know their song, go listen to it.)
  • Do you know every word to that song?
  • Did you know that you can sing that song even when it’s hard to?
  • Habakkuk was in a storm, but he said he would rejoice in the Lord. What does it mean to rejoice in the Lord?
  • Can you rejoice in the Lord even when you are scared?
  • Habakkuk says that God is his strength. What does he mean?
  • Is there anyone stronger than God?
  • Let’s practice singing our song!!! (Yes, you have to sing their favorite song with them!)

Enjoy!

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You Can Sing In The Storm

The Holy Spirit was evident at Grace yesterday. It was amazing to see the Holy Spirit moving. The only person who receives glory is our good, good Father.

Little Pike Jr. brought the message to the kids in Kids Worship yesterday. I heard only great things about it! After reading his sermon, I truly believe that he did awesome.

The Conversation Starters are based off of Pike’s sermon in Kids Worship. It goes directly with what I preached in Adult Worship. If you missed the sermon yesterday, please listen to it here. Please adjust these questions to fit you and your kiddos!

 

  • What is something that you are scared of?
  • Are you scared of thunderstorms?
  • If not, what is something you are scared of?
  • Have you ever found yourself in the middle of a thunderstorm (or whatever you are scared of)?
  • Have you ever sung a song in the middle of it?
  • Habakkuk was in the middle of a storm and sang a song. How did he do that?
  • He did that because he had to Remember What God Had Done. What is something God has done in the past to help you feel safe? (Ended the thunderstorm? Got you through a scared time?)
  • Habakkuk also had to Remember Why God Did It. (Read Habakkuk 3:13). Did you know that God helps you in the storm because he loves you?
  • Habakkuk also had to Anticipate What God Will Do. (Read Habakkuk 3:16).
  • Habakkuk was clearly scared, right? He knew that God would get him through the storm because he had done it before.
  • Choose a song that you love. The next time you are scared, sing that song. And remember that God has protected you before, and he will do it again.

Enjoy!

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God Will Have His Way

What an awesome day to worship our Lord yesterday! It is comforting to know that even in the midst of evil God will have his way.

God is never not sovereign over us.

In Kids Worship, we used different “woes” than adult worship did. If you did not hear Jerry’s sermon from yesterday, please listen here. I will give my five woes compared to Jerry’s five woes so that you can know how to ask the kids:

  1. The Robber Robbed / The Pillager Pillaged
  2. The Protected Destroyed / The Fortified Dismantled
  3. The City Disrupted / The Civilized Demoralized
  4. The Rude Dishonored / The Shameless Defamed
  5. The Pagan Powerless / The Pagan Idolator

This is just so you (the parent) know what we talked about. Here are the Conversation Starters!

  • Have you ever had a player on your team to never came to practice, but they played in games?
  • Have you ever had a friend in class who’s parents did their homework and they made better grades than you?
  • Is that fair?
  • Is God in sovereign even though they prosper?
  • King Nebuchadnezzar was evil. Was God sovereign even though he was destroying nations?
  • Nebuchadnezzar did many bad things to people, what did God say would happen to Nebuchadnezzar? (He would get what he deserved.)
  • What does the cup represent? (God’s wrath.)
  • If Nebuchadnezzar would have to receive God’s wrath because of his sin, who took God’s wrath for us? (Jesus.)

Enjoy!!

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Live By Faith, Die By Pride

 

For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end–it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay. Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by his faith. (Habakkuk 2:3-4 ESV)

How amazing has it been studying Habakkuk? I have received so much encouragement by studying and preparing my sermons from this book.

Live By Faith, Die By Pride. The righteous shall live by faith.

This is essentially the slogan for all of Scripture. This is what God wanted Habakkuk to write plainly on tablets. In Kids Worship, we discussed this very sentence.

If you haven’t heard Jerry’s sermon from Sunday, please listen here.

Here are the Conversation Starters for you and your kids:

  • Can you tell me some slogans that companies use? (Use Nike, McDonalds, etc.)
  • Read Habakkuk 2:2
  • God told Habakkuk to write on tablets. Why on tablets? (Permanence, durability, etc.)
  • Read Habakkuk 2:4
  • What was the Main Idea in Kids Worship on Sunday? (The Righteous Shall Live By Faith)
  • If you commit a crime, are you guilty of that crime?
  • If you commit a sin, are you guilty of that sin?
  • What does righteousness mean? (A gift of forgiveness)
  • Are you righteous without God? (NO)
  • Scripture says we have been given righteousness and we are to live by faith. What is faith? (To trust all of the time)
  • Do you trust your parents?
  • Do you trust the God who made your parents?
  • If you are guilty of sin, but been given righteousness, then who received the punishment for the sin? (Jesus)

 

As always, adjust what need! Enjoy and God bless!