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Pentecost Children's Message
Children’s Message
May 15, 2005—Pentecost
“Welcome!” Acts 2:1-18
Sometimes, at big airports, as you are leaving, they have signs on the wall with the word “welcome” on it. . . only, it isn’t just the word welcome like we know it, there are other words like willkomen, bienvenue, selam, karibu, failte--words that mean welcome in other languages.
Do you think that the people who put those signs up might have done it to make people feel welcomed by being able to read welcome in their own language? Raise your hand if this sign makes you feel welcome. (Hold up a sign with Bienvenue on it) How about this one? (Hold up a sign with Karibu) This one?? (hold up a sign that says welcome). Even if a sign might make one person feel welcome, for others, it is just words. It’s nice to see familiar words—I think it makes you feel at home, don’t you?? I think it is pretty cool that airports work so hard to make sure that as many people as possible feel welcome.
There is a great Bible story that made me think of all the different words for “welcome”. It is in the book of Acts, and it is the story of Pentecost. Maybe you remember the story. It was a time shortly after Jesus’ death and resurrection. Early believers were gathered, and the Holy Spirit blew through them like a wind. As they were filled with this spirit, they were suddenly and surprisingly able to speak in other languages, and the gathered people heard their own language being spoken.
I bet that those people who were gathered on that day felt welcomed and amazed because when they heard about God’s wonderful deeds--it was unexpectedly in their own languages. Just like someone visiting a new country, I bet those early Christians were unsure about what this whole new church was going to be like. But because of the Holy Spirit them they were amazingly able to hear in their own language.
May 15, 2005—Pentecost
“Welcome!” Acts 2:1-18
Sometimes, at big airports, as you are leaving, they have signs on the wall with the word “welcome” on it. . . only, it isn’t just the word welcome like we know it, there are other words like willkomen, bienvenue, selam, karibu, failte--words that mean welcome in other languages.
Do you think that the people who put those signs up might have done it to make people feel welcomed by being able to read welcome in their own language? Raise your hand if this sign makes you feel welcome. (Hold up a sign with Bienvenue on it) How about this one? (Hold up a sign with Karibu) This one?? (hold up a sign that says welcome). Even if a sign might make one person feel welcome, for others, it is just words. It’s nice to see familiar words—I think it makes you feel at home, don’t you?? I think it is pretty cool that airports work so hard to make sure that as many people as possible feel welcome.
There is a great Bible story that made me think of all the different words for “welcome”. It is in the book of Acts, and it is the story of Pentecost. Maybe you remember the story. It was a time shortly after Jesus’ death and resurrection. Early believers were gathered, and the Holy Spirit blew through them like a wind. As they were filled with this spirit, they were suddenly and surprisingly able to speak in other languages, and the gathered people heard their own language being spoken.
I bet that those people who were gathered on that day felt welcomed and amazed because when they heard about God’s wonderful deeds--it was unexpectedly in their own languages. Just like someone visiting a new country, I bet those early Christians were unsure about what this whole new church was going to be like. But because of the Holy Spirit them they were amazingly able to hear in their own language.
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I really liked the idea of this children's sermon, and I think it worked well to a point, but I never figured out how to get it to really hang together at the end. It worked pretty well when I did it, but it didn't quite hit the mark. Any thoughts on this one??
posted by Becky @ Thursday, May 12, 2005
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