Catch of Fish

AIM: To teach kids that Jesus can do anything. We can only so what our little hands allow us to do. Our parents can do little more than us - but God - He can do wahtever He wants and anything - because our Our God is Big and Powerful. He commands the oceans, the seas and all the fish in it!!

Catch of Fish 

If a child puts his or her hand in a BIG bag of sweets - how many sweets can they pull out 5? 6? but,  If I put my hand in a bag, how many sweets can I pull out?  I could pull out more, because my hand is bigger than yours.  What about if Jesus decided to put His Hand in the bag? He can remove maybe all of them or maybe even more than what the bag had in the first place!!  Because Jesus is God, He can do anything.  He can do miracles that we can’t explain or understand. 

One day, Jesus was standing on the shore of a Lake. A lot of people were coming closer and closer to Jesus to hear what He had to say. 

As He was standing on the shore, He saw 2 boats at the shore. They belonged to fishermen who were washing their nets after along night out at sea. 

Jesus got into one of the boats. this boat belonged to a man named Simon. He too was a fisherman. 

Jesus asked Simon to take the boat a little way into the shore. As Simon, did so- Jesus sat down in the boat and began to teach the people who had gathered to hear Jesus preach and teach. After He finished teaching, He asked Simon to lower their nets into the deep water to catch fish. Simon answered, "Master, we have worked all night, but caught nothing. Yet, if you say so, I will let down the nets."  Simon and the fishermen, must have been very tired after working all night. They really did not expect to catch anything at this time, but they chose to obey the Master, Jesus. 

Obediently, Simon let down his nets to catch some fish. And miraculously, their nets were filled with fish. 

Their nets were so full that it was going to break. Imagine their surprise - when they tried to lift the nets and found that they could not. It was so full that they had to call their friends from the other boat to help them. They slowly managed to lift the nets and even then they found they had so much fish that one boat was not enough to hold it all. The used the other boat to fill the fish too. The 2 boats were so full of fish that they were about to sink!!!

 Simon was a good fisherman, but he didn’t catch anything that night.  But when Jesus was with Simon, they caught more fish than they could even carry back!  Jesus did this miracle to show Simon that He was the Son of God and that He could make anything happen.  You can only do what our small bodies can do.  I can only do what my big body can do.  But Jesus can do anything because He is God!

That was a miracle that Jesus performed. Simon, the fisherman , immediately came to know that Jesus was a Holy man. He fell down in his knees and said, "master, Go away from me for I am a sinful man" . 

The Jesus said to Simon, " Do not be afraid, from now you will be catching people." Jesus was preparing Simon for bigger things for him to do in the future. 

This story tells of Jesus's great power over fish of the sea as well. Only God can fill us with good things that we work so hard to get. 

Prayer: 

Dear Jesus,
I thank-you for loving me. Help me to remember to come to Uou when I have problems or troubles in school or at home or at play. You are a Big and Kind God, who can make my hard work look easier only if you are with me.
Dear Jesus, stay with me always, especially when i find things hard.
I love you, Jesus.
Amen

Bible Passage

 Lk Chapter 5: 

Once while Jesus was standing beside the lake of Gennesaret, and the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, ²he saw two boats there at the shore of the lake; the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. ³He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little way from the shore. Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat. ⁴When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.” ⁵Simon answered, “Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.” ⁶When they had done this, they caught so many fish that their nets were beginning to break. ⁷So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both boats, so that they began to sink. ⁸But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!” ⁹For he and all who were with him were amazed at the catch of fish that they had taken; ¹⁰and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. Then Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching people.” ¹¹When they had brought their boats to shore, they left everything and followed him.

Christmas story

The Story of the Birth of Jesus

(Images from    wallcoo.net)

Long, long ago,  about TWO THOUSAND years ago - (that's a BIG number)- there lived a young woman. Her name was Mary. She was a good lady who was kind and sweet. She was polite to all who met her and was always willing to help in any way she could. Above all, she loved God deeply.

As was the custom of the time, she was engaged to be married to a kind and good man named Joseph.

Joseph was a carpenter.

(A carpenter is one who makes furniture of wood.) Joseph and Mary lived in a place called Nazareth.

God used to notice the goodness of Mary and decided she should give birth to His Son Jesus. So he sent His faithful Angel Gabriel to meet her.

(Angels are Messengers of God- they do as God asks them to do. They are pure and holy Spirits living with God in Heaven - they are always singing God's praises in Heaven.)

So one day, while Mary was at home, she saw a bright light - and got afraid. The light was infact the Angel Gabriel.

He greeted her  saying, "Hail Mary full of Grace"

Angel Gabriel told her not to be afraid and told her that God loved her very much and she would have a son - God's son and she would name Him Jesus. Jesus being God's Son would always be special and would save the world. Mary accepted God's wish for her life peacefully and happily.

She told Joseph the news but he already knew. An Angel had told Joseph all about Jesus in a dream.

Soon after that Joseph and Mary got married and they prepared for the Birth of Jesus.

When it was almost time for Jesus to be born -Joseph had to take Mary to his hometown of Bethlehem , so Joseph put  Mary on a donkey and began their journey to Bethlehem.

When Joseph and Mary got there, they could not find any place for Mary to rest. All the inns were full.

Wherever Joseph went - the story was the same. They all told him there was no room in the inn.

Mary was very tired and really wanted to rest. Eventually, one kind inn keeper saw Mary and told Joseph that he had no room in his inn but could let Joseph use his Manger. This was where he kept his animals. They were welcome to stay there and rest.Mary and Joseph were both grateful and happy for getting a place to give birth to their baby.

And so, Mary gave birth to Jesus. The King of Kings was born to save the world - and for company he had animals and his dear parents. Mary wrapped Jesus in swaddling clothes and laid him in a Manger.

At the same time  in a hillside - an Angel appeared in the night sky to some shepherds who were watching their sheep.

The Shepherds got scared - but again the Angel told them not be scared as He brought them good news. He told them , " A Saviour is born". He told them that they would find him in Bethlehem. Soon a multitude of Angels appeared in the sky and started singing " Gloria, Gloria, In Excelsis Deo"

After this they were eager to meet the King of Kings and hurried to meet this Special Baby. When they saw him, they knelt and were filled with awe and amazement.

Some of Jesus' first visitors were the shepherds. They knelt down and worshiped Him. It was indeed a very special night.

Far, far away in the East were some very wise men. They used to read a lot of books and read the stars.

 One day, they saw a Special Star shining in the sky. these men were very intelligent and used to study a lot so they knew this was special star. They began to follow the star.

This special Star led them to Bethlehem to the place of Jesus' Birth.                            

They too were amazed at what they saw in Bethlehem.They brought gifts for Jesus. They brought gold, frankincense and myrrh.

    They all worshiped their new King. 

This was the first Christmas ever in the world!!!

May the Christ Child be born in your lives anew this Blessed Season !!

God Bless you!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector

AIM: To teach us to be humble. God does not like proud people. If we humble  ourselves, God will exalt us.  Jesus tells us a story of two people, one a pharisee and the other was a tax collector.  Jesus addressed this parable to those who were convinced of their own righteousness and despised everyone else. "Two people went up to the temple area to pray; one was a Pharisee and the other was a tax collector. The Pharisee took up his position and spoke this prayer to himself, 'O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity -- greedy, dishonest, adulterous -- or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week, and I pay tithes on my whole income.’ But the tax collector stood off at a distance and would not even raise his eyes to heaven but beat his breast and prayed, 'O God, be merciful to me a sinner.' I tell you, the latter went home justified, not the former; for whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted." First of all Who was a Pharisee? Pharisees were people from Jesus's times, who followed the Law of God very strictly. In fact  they followed them so strictly that they forgot the original purpose of the law. They were so caught up with "following the law" that they forgot to be human  good and kind.They thought they were very "holy" and were careful not to mix with anyone who may make them "unholy". They were also very proud and rarely cared for others. Who was a Tax Collector? Tax Collectors were Jews who used to work for the Roman Government. they used to collect taxes on behalf of the Romans. They were very unpopular with the Jewish people , because often the taxes were rather hard to come up with. Many tax collectors were also dishonest and would collect extra money in the name of taxes and kept the extra money for  themselves. This story is very simple, but what does it really mean?  Jesus clearly says that the prayer of the tax collector was more acceptable to God than the Pharisee!! But how can that be? The Pharisee used to follow God's law while the Tax collector was by nature not good!! What Jesus was telling us was that God hates pride. He does not like a boastful look. God can read our hearts and our minds. He knows what our thoughts are. We must not judge by outer signs or by what we see of a person from the outside. So even though visible a Pharisee was a good man, his heart was not good. While the Tax Collector seemed bad to others but in his heart he was God loving and God fearing.  The Moral of this Parable is  1) Be humble. God loves a humble heart.  2) Never judge a person by appearances. God can see his heart.

Prayer: 

Lord, help me to be a child- pure and kind. 

Help me to tell wrong from right. 

Make my heart like yours dear Lord - Big and good. 

Keep me from pride and vice. 

May I be close to You and Do what Your Heart tells me to do. 

Amen.

Action Song: 

Give me oil in my lamp. 

Give me oil in my lamp, keep me burning, burning, burning

Give me oil in my lamp, I pray - Alleluia!!

Give me oil in my lamp, keep me burning,burning, burning

Keep me burning 'til the break of day

Come on and Sing hosanna, sing hosanna

Sing hosanna to the King of Kings

Come on and Sing hosanna, sing hosanna

Sing hosanna to the King of Kings

Give me joy in my heart, keep me praising, praising, praising

Give me joy in my heart, I pray - Alleluia!

Give me joy in my heart, keep me praising, praising, praising

Keep me praising 'til the break of day

Come on and Sing hosanna, sing hosanna

Sing hosanna to the King of Kings

Come on and Sing hosanna, sing hosanna

Sing hosanna to the King of Kings

Parable of Dives and Lazarus

AIM: The aim in this parable is to make children sensitive to the sufferings of others, even though we enjoy many pleasures and good things. God wants us to share and care. Sharing is Caring.

















Jesus told a parable to his followers:

"There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores and longing to eat what fell from the rich man's table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. "The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried. In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So he called to him, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.' But Abraham said, " Remember  when you were alive- you had lot of luxuries and comforts while Lazarus suffered, but now in this life he is comforted but you are suffering" 

It is not wrong to have a comfortable life.It is not wrong to have food , a house , clothes. But anything, that is excess and without a care or thought for those who have nothing is not right. Like us, even the poor and suffering are God's children.  God gave us these comforts - but at the same time- we must remember that God gave us all this not for us to hoard for ourselves but to care for those who are less fortunate than us. 

Prayer: 

Dear God, I love you. I love you with my whole heart. Help me to love you more and more. 

Thank-you dear Lord for blessing me and my family. Help dear Lord to have a caring heart. 

Teach me love and compassion.Help me help those in need. 

Bless all  the children around the world today who need help and care. 

Amen. 

Action Song: 

 This little guiding Light of mine. 

This little Guiding light of mine, 

I'm gonna let it shine, 
This little Guiding light of mine,
I'm gonna let it shine, 
This little Guiding light of mine, 
I'm gonna let it shine, 
Let it shine all the time, 
Let it shine.

Hide it under a bushel, oh no. 

I am gonna let it shine. 

Hide it under a bushel, oh no. 
I am gonna let it shine. 

Hide it under a bushel, oh no. 
I am gonna let it shine. 

Let it shine all the time, 
Let it shine.

The Good Samaritan

AIM: Our whole lives will be spent in actually putting into practice this Parable. We are to love our neighbors especially those who are most in need. We need to be sensitive to the needs , requirements of others - both materially and emotionally. As kids, we teach the children to recognize situations where they can help in any way they can. We also teach children to care.

This Parable begins by a young man asking Jesus a question, "Teacher, what must I do to have Eternal Life? " , he was asking Jesus what he could do to reach heaven and be with God and the Angels.

Jesus asked the man, "What does God's law tell you to do? "

This man was very well versed with the Scriptures of Jesus's time and had a ready answer.

He said , " Love the Lord your God with all your heart , with all your soul, with all your strength and with all your mind and love your neighbour as yourself"

Jesus replied, " You are right!! Do this and you will live in Heaven"

This young man was not convinced. He asked Jesus, " Who is my neighbour? "

Jesus decided to answer his next question with a parable.

Once there was a  Jewish man who was travelling from Jerusalem to Jericho. The road to Jerusalem was rocky with small hills all around. It normally took about 1-2 days to walk that distance. Since he was walking that distance he must have had some clothes, food, water and some money or valuables with him.
The man was probably enjoying his solitary walk and enjoying the views. All of a sudden a group of thieves jumped from nowhere and attacked this man. They attacked him and stole all his belongings before running away.

The poor man must have not been prepared for such an ambush and was lying, abandoned on the road - helpless.They not only stole his belongings , they even tore his clothes while hurting him. They made sure he would not be able to follow them by hurting him pretty bad. He was wounded and bleeding as well. The only way he could be saved was if some kind passerby helped him out. He was too weak to move and help himself.

In a little while a priest was passing by the same way. Thank God!! at least now, this Jewish man would get to safety and out of harms way. Well atleast that is what we would expect of him. sadly, the priest just continued to walk by and pretended he did not even see this helpless man!
A little while later, another man passed by. he was a Levite. Levites are people who used to work i God's temple and would sing praises to God. So yes, you could call them good and holy people after a priest.
So maybe the priest earlier was in a big hurry to attend a very important meeting and could not help this poor man, but now a Levite has come!! Good man that he is, surely he will help this poor man stranded helpless on the road!
But he too, saw this man and continued on the other side of the road - as though he did not exist!! How terrible - to be abandoned like that by the people you would have otherwise trusted!

In a little while a Samaritan man was passing by. You see, you must know that Samaritans and Jews were not exactly the best of friends in those days. In fact  they did not like each other at all! The Jews used to treat Samaritans quite bad - so they never ever really mingled at all. 

I do not expect the Samaritan would help a Jew!! After all, they were enemies! But the strangest thing happened. Humanity took over. The Samaritan saw not a Jew but a human being. He saw a man like him, wounded, hurt , helpless, bleeding and in need of quick help or he might die. 

He felt compassion. He stopped. He saw the extent of the hurt and began to bandage the man's wounds. He then kindly lifted this man and put him on his own donkey. He took him to an Inn (it was like what hotels are these days)In the Inn he cared for this Jewish man the whole night. 

The next day, he removed sufficient money, about 2 silver coins or 2 dinari and gave it to the Inn keeper. he asked the inn keeper to take good care of him and also promised to pay whatever extra money he might spend afterwards on this man. 

Jesus ended his parable by asking, " Which of these three men do you think was a neighbour to the man? " 

"The man who took pity on him" , answered the man. 

" Go and do the same" answered Jesus. 

Likewise, we too must care for others. We must ask Jesus to give us a kind heart and courage to help everyone, friends and others when they need our help. Only then can we be God's friends - and go to heaven.





Image Courtesy : Sermon4kids

PARABLE OF THE LOST COIN

AIM: To teach children how much God values us - and how much he wants us to be with Him always.
Teach them the value of saying sorry to God and being with Him at all times.

Revision:
What are Parables?
Parables are stories that Jesus told with examples to teach us special lessons. Parables were short and simple but had very good (read deep, moral and spiritual ) lessons behind them.

PARABLE OF THE LOST COIN: 

Images from here 

Bible Passage: Lk 15:8-10

Jesus was talking to a lot of people. He liked people and liked to listen to what they say. He enjoyed spending time with them and while He was at it, He loved talking to them about God,His Father in Heaven.
One day, while He was about His Father's work, some Pharisees and teachers of the law (Very interlligent people who studied a lot, taught others and followed laws very strictly) saw Him and started to grumble amongst themselves.
They wondered why Jesus, such a good man who never did anything wrong wanted to be with "sinners" or people who always disobeyed what God asked them to do.

Jesus wanted to tell them that God loved everyone, especially those who wanted to go far from God by disobeying them. He wanted to tell them that God eagerly waited His "lost " children's return and always kept looking for them.

He told them a story about a woman who had 10 silver coins.

In the time when Jesus lived, women used to wear a headband made of silver coins on their forehead. It was the "fashion" of those days. Like many women of her time, this lady too had a similar band. She was extremely fond of it, and never missed an opportunity to wear it. 

One day, as she was working, she noticed one coin missing. 

She was very upset. She could not rest till she found it. She began to search for it everywhere.

She swept her house.

 She searched every corner.

 She looked in different rooms.












She bent and searched the floor.

 As it grew darker, she lit a lamp and searched all over the place.
 High and low she searched, and could not rest.

Finally, in the end - she found her coin.

  What joy!! What happiness!

She found her lost coin!!She ran to tell her friends and neighbours about her find!!

She tells them , "Rejoice with me. I have found my lost coin" 

 And so it is with God our Father. Just like this woman did not rest till she found her lost coin and ultimately rejoiced when she found it, so are we precious to our Lord. He wont rest till he seeks us out and are re-united with Him.

Jesus went on to say, "In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of Angels of God over one sinner who repents."

Remember: 

God Loves You very Much.
He thought of you when He made the world.
How special you must be in God's eyes!!
God wants you near Him in your thoughts and in prayers.
He wants to love you and wants you to love Him.
When we wrong God by our actions, all we need to do is say "I'm Sorry, God" , that way God finds us even more easily.
All Angels in Heaven join God in celebration when we do that.


Action Song: 

Jesus Loves me.