Five Finger Prayer

1. Your thumb is nearest to you. So begin your prayers by praying for those closest to you. They are the easiest to remember. To pray for our loved ones is, as C.S. Lewis once said, a "sweet duty."
2. The next finger is the pointing finger. Pray for those who teach, instruct and heal. This includes teachers, doctors, and ministers. They need support and wisdom in pointing others in the right direction. Keep them in your prayers.
3. The next finger is the tallest finger. It reminds us of our leaders. Pray for the president, leaders in business and industry, and administrators. These people shape our nation and guide public opinion. They need God's guidance.
4. The fourth finger is our ring finger. Surprising to many is fact that this is our weakest finger; as any piano teacher will testify. It should remind us to pray for those who are weak, in trouble or in pain. They need your prayers day and night. You cannot pray too much for them.
5. And lastly comes our little finger; the smallest finger of all. Which is where we should place ourselves in relation to God and others. As the Bible says, "The least shall be the greatest among you." Your pinky should remind you to pray for yourself.

By the time you have prayed for the other four groups, your own needs will be put into proper perspective and you will be able to pray for yourself more effectively.

"...But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you...." -- Matthew 6:6

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Gear up!

What do you wear when you play soccer?  Shin guards
What do you wear when you play football?  Football helmet
What do you wear when you ride a bike?  Helmet

Why do we wear these things?  To protect us...Keep us safe to play...Make us prepared...

God expects us to wear protective gear in our everyday lives too!

Ephesians 6:10, "Be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.  Put on the full armor of God so that you can stand against the devil's evil schemes."

Ephesians 6:14, "Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist..."

"...with the breastplate of righteousness in place with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace."  (...love what is right...)

verse 16... "...take up the shield of faith" (trust Him in all we do)

verse 17... "take the helmet of salvation and sword of the spirit, which is the word of God..."

Sometimes we feel nervous or weak, but remember that God is super strong, super powerful, and can handle anything that comes our way.

If I fall on my bike, my helmet is there to protect me.  God gives us gear to protect us and help us stand firm for Him.

Because You're Worth It!!!

How much is this (hol up a dollar bill)? Kids say, " a dollar!" Have a volunteer fold it.....now how much is it worth? Still worth a dollar! Crumple the dollar bill up in a wad.... Still worth a dollar! Throw the wad on the ground and stomp on it..... Still worth a dollar! Dunk it in a cup of water... Still worth a dollar!!!!! Just like that dollar is still worth a dollar, God loves us NO MATTER WHAT! He always has. he always will! "because of the Lord's great love, we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. they are new every morning, Great is Your Faithfulness!" -- Lamentations 3:22-23

Golf Ball

Know what this is? 

Golf balls found in the creek!  (There are usually quite a few in the creek.)  Did you know that we are like these golf balls?  We start out well...then, we get off course.  For example, we get angry at our brother or sister...we lose our temper...we forget to share...or don't listen to instructions. 

God loves us.  He picks us up!  Just like I picked up golf balls from the creek.  He forgives us...and cleans us up...and puts us on the right path.

There are usually quite a few balls in the creek...which means everyone gets off track some.  We mess up more than once.  But, God loves us and always will.  All we have to do is trust and believe in Jesus Christ as Savior.

"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness." -- I John 1:9



Butterfly

Do any of you know how a butterfly starts out?  First, it's a caterpillar...then it takes shelter in a coccoon...then breaks free transformed into a butterfly!

The Butterfly is one of the significant symbols of Easter. Its whole life cycle is meant to symbolize the life of Jesus Christ. The first stage, is the caterpillar, which stands for His life on Earth. Second phase begins from the cocoon stage, portraying the crucifixion and burial of Jesus. The third and final stage is the butterfly, representing His raising from the dead in a glorified body and peace.

Jesus came to Earth as a man.  The soldiers killed him with nails on a cross.  Then, He did something that we all would have thought was impossible...kinda like the butterfly emerges from the coccoon...he came of the grave...ALIVE!!  ...and talked with His disciples...and went to live in heaven!

That's why we celebrate every day!  You may have things in your life that you think are impossible...but, Jesus really did what nobody else can ever do.  He took our sins with Him to the cross and left them there!  Through Jesus, all things are possible!!

I don't like spiders

Does anyone here like spiders?  I DO NOT!!!

This week, I walked out of the garage on the way to work.  Kids walk outside on the way to the car and we see a tarantula on the outside of our house!  Eeep!!  Kids, in the car!  Husband, you take care of THAT!

I told my friends about it at work.  Went to a meeting.  Came back to my desk and found a huge (fake) spider on my desk.  I had been so busy that I never noticed it.  I was going about my business and just reached up to my computer without even looking and the (fake) spider scared me silly!  I jumped and yelled and I hear half the department laugh.  (Good to have friends, ya know!)

Satan is kinda like that spider.  He shows up when we least expect it.  We have to stay in step with God through reading our Bible each day, praying, and memorizing Scripture to protect us when we need it the most.

I Peter 5:8-11
"Stay alert.  The devil is poised to pounce...Keep your guard up...Keep a firm grip on your faith in God.  The suffering won't last forever.  It won't be long before this generout God who has great plans for us in Christ -- eternal and glorious plans the yare! -- will have you put together on your feet for good.  He gets the Last word; yes, He does..."

St. Patrick's Day Lesson

St. Patrick’s Day!  Did you wear green?  Did you get pinched?

Do you know what this is?  If you’re like me, you probably have some growing in your yard.  It’s a SHAMROCK!  This is one of the symbols from St. Patrick’s Day.

Many years ago, St. Patrick used the shamrock to tell others about God.  He explained that the shamrock has 3 parts, but it’s still one shamrock.  The same is true about God.  The Bible tells us that there is God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. 

Matthew 28:19  “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit…”

Another symbol you see a lot around St. Patrick’s Day is a rainbow with a pot of gold at the end of it.  The Bible has a story about a rainbow too…remember when Noah stepped out of the arc and God put a rainbow in the sky?  He used the rainbow as a symbol of his promise to Noah.  To me, God’s promises are worth far more than a pot of gold. 

We all make promises, don’t we?  You may promise your Mom that you’ll clean your room or do your chores.  So, next time you see a rainbow, I want you remember that it’s important for us to keep our promises too…just like God always keeps His.

Dear Lord, we are thankful that you are faithful to keep your promises.  Help us to be faithful in keeping ours.  Amen.

Baseball

The Lord's team was playing Satan's team in a baseball game. The Lord's team was at bat, the score was tied zero to zero, and it was the bottom of the 9th inning with two outs.

They continued to watch as a batter stepped up to the plate whose name was Love. Love swung at the first pitch and hit a single, because Love never fails.

The next batter was named Faith, who also got a single because Faith works with Love.

The next batter up was named Godly wisdom. Satan wound up and threw the first pitch. Godly Wisdom looked it over and let it pass: Ball one. Three more pitches and Godly Wisdom walked, because Godly wisdom never swings at what Satan throws. The bases were loaded.

The Lord then turned to Bob and told him He was now going to bring in His star player. Up to the plate stepped Grace. Bob said, "He sure doesn't look like much!" Satan's whole team relaxed when they saw Grace. Thinking he had won the game, Satan wound up and fired his first pitch. To the shock of everyone, Grace hit the ball harder than anyone had ever seen.

But Satan was not worried; his center fielder let very few get by. He went up for the ball, but it went right through his glove, hit him on the head and sent him crashing on the ground; then it continued over the fence for a home run! The Lord's team won.

The Lord then asked Bob if he knew why Love, Faith, and Godly Wisdom could get on base but could not win the game. Bob answered that he did not know why.

The Lord explained, "If your love, faith and wisdom had won the game you would think you had done it by yourself. Love, faith and wisdom will get you on base, but only My Grace can get you home."

"...For the Lord is good.  His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures to all generations." -- Psalms 100:5

First vs Last

 

Lightning McQueen was a very fast, red race car.  He wanted to win the Piston Cup, and he got really focused on winning.  But what happened at that first race?  There was a 3-way tie...Lightning McQueen, Chick Hicks, and "The King" all ended up in a tie!

So, they all headed out to California for a tie-breaking race to see who would really win!  Lightning McQueen got so focused on winning that he didn't do a good job of being nice to folks around him.  He wasn't very nice to his race crew; he wasn't very respectful to his Rusteez sponsor; he made Mack work late into the night so much that he fell out of the truck; he tore up the streets of Radiator Springs...and the list goes on...He wanted to win!

What happened...He ends up having to fix the roads, but does a smash-up job and the road was worse than when he started.  So, Doc challenges him to a race, McQueen lets his pride get the best of him, and he goes flying into a cactus patch.  Around that point, Mater helps him out and McQueen realizes that he needs to do things right.  He ends up fixing the road and heads out of town.

Race day for the Piston Cup comes and McQueen is ready.  They all line up and tear out.  It's a close race, but what happens...

Chick Hicks plays a dirty trick on The King and bangs him up pretty good.  You gotta hand it to McQueen at that point.  He could have won the race, but he didn't... He turned around.  He went back and pushed The King across the finish line allowing The King to finish his last race and retire with dignity. 

McQueen learned a valuable lesson...He learned how to put others first and himself second.

That's what Jesus tells us to do too.

Mark 9:35
Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, "If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all."
With Valentine's Day around the corner, you'll see a lot of signs and cards that say "I love you".  But, one of the greatest ways to show someone that you love them is to be kind to them and put their needs before yours.  That means sharing, caring, and helping them, even if they don't ask you to help.  The King didn't ask McQueen to turn around and help him, but McQueen saw the need and helped him anyway.

1 Corinthians 13:4
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
Lord, thank You for blessing us with these wonderful children.  May we all show love to our community by putting the needs of others first, helping others, and sharing Your love.  Show us where those opportunities are and how we can make a difference to someone this week.  In Jesus Name, Amen.

Horton, the Faithful

Have you read the story "Horton Hatches the Egg" by Dr. Seuss?   There's an elephant named Horton...and a lazy bird named Mayzie.

Mayzie was sitting on her egg and she basically got fed up.  She said, "I'd take a vacation, fly off for a rest if I could find someone to stay on my nest."

Then, Horton walked by and Mayzie asked Horton to stand in for her...saying, she wouldn't be gone long.  So, Horton agreed...and Mayzie flew off for a beach trip to Florida.

Well..........Days turned into weeks and weeks turned into months.  Mayzie is kickin' back on a "va-cay", while Horton is still sitting on the egg.  Winter comes.  Snow and icicles form on Horton's ears.  But, good ol' Horton stuck to his job of egg sitting.

He said, "I'll stay on this egg and I won't let it freeze.  I meant what I said and I said what I meant, an elephant is faithful 100%!"

In the Bible, Galations 5:22-23 says, "But the fruit of the Spirit is:  love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control."

So, faithfulness is one of the fruits of the Spirit!  In our story, Horton was certainly faithful, wasn't he?  He stuck to his word.  He said it.  He meant it.  He did what he said and kept his promise.

That's whta God wants in our lives too.  When we tell a freind or our parents something, then we should be faithful to do it.  More importantly, when we tell God that we'll do something (like read our Bible or memorize verses), the nwe need to remember Horton the elephant and do what we said. 

"I meant what I said and I said what I meant because we should be faithful 100%!"

(At the end of the children's sermon...I passed out Rice Krispie treats reminding the kids to "stick with their promises"...nothing is sticker than a good Rice Krispie treat!)

Lord, thank you for the children.  Help us all to "mean what we say" and "say what we mean".  Help us to be faithful to Your mission and not to our own agendas.  In Jesus name, Amean.