an old sermon for this week. . .

Children’s Sermon
Sunday, July 24, 2005
The Parable of the Leaven—Matthew 13:33

So all week, I have been thinking about rice krispy treats. I think it is because I have been wanting to make something sweet and cookie-ish, but it has been so hot, that I haven’t wanted to warm up the kitchen--so rice krispy treats seemed like the perfect treat to me.

Now, I have also been thinking about today’s scripture and how I was going to talk with you all about it. Today, we get a whole bunch of parables--6 to be exact. I’d like to read you one of them: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.”

Do you know what yeast is used for? It is used to make bread rise. As I was reading this parable, I pictured a woman working really hard at kneading a hunk of dough, working all of that leaven through it.
And because I was hungry for rice krispy treats, I thought about how much work it takes to mix the krispies into the marshmallow.

So here’s what I came up with. . . Without yeast, bread would just be a sticky flat dough. Without the marshmallows, there would be no “treat”--only a bowl of dry cereal. They become a part of each other. I think that is how God works in us as Christians. Can you imagine if someone handed you a rice krispy treat and asked you to take out all of the marshmallow? You couldn’t do it. Maybe it is the same with us. Being a Christian is just a part of us--mixed into who we are so much that we cannot separate the Christian from the rest of us.

In the Presbyterian Brief Statement of Faith, the last line states, “We rejoice that nothing in life or in death can separate us from the love of God Through Christ Jesus our Lord.” AMEN!!

Let’s Pray:

Loving God


We are thankful that you are a part of us

And we pray

That you remain in us--

Now and always.

Amen.

Jacob's Ladder Children's Sermon

Children’s Sermon
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Jacob’s Ladder (Genesis 28:10-22)

Have you ever wanted to walk right up to heaven and ask God a question?
§ Maybe someone you loved was sick, and you wanted to ask, “Why is this happening God?”
§ Maybe you hear a bible story that you can’t really understand, and you’d like to ask God what it means.
§ Maybe you just think it would be really cool to see and talk to God.

In the Bible there is a story about a man named Jacob who had a dream, and in his dream, heaven and earth were connected by a big ladder. This ladder had angels scurrying up and down it, and in his dream, God told Jacob a few things:
§ God told Jacob that the land Jacob was laying on was for him and for his children.
§ God told Jacob that his children and his children’s children and his children’s, children’s children would spread all over the earth and all the families of the earth will be blessed.
§ And this is my favorite part—God said these words to Jacob, “know that I am with you and will keep you wherever you go.”

When Jacob woke from his dream, he knew he had been in a special place, and that a special thing had happened to him.

I hope that you remember God’s words to Jacob. “know that I am with you and will keep you wherever you go.”

We will never have all the answers to the questions that we would ask God if we could, but it might help us with our questions to remember that God is with us, and God will keep us.

Let’s pray: Loving God
Help us to always remember
That you are with us
And you take care of us.
Amen.