ELEMENTARY KIDS & FAMILIES date
4.9
THANKFULLY, I’VE GOT THE HOLY SPIRIT. RATHER, HE’S GOT ME. HE’S THE LEADER HERE. Inspire (for parents) I’m not a morning person. Ask any member of my family and he or she will tell you that, before coffee, it’s best to “let Mama be.” Coffee isn’t an instantaneous elixir. It’s impossible for caffeine to take effect in five minutes. But it’s not the coffee I crave. It’s the time to sip and be still before I take on the blitz of the day’s demands. Yes, mornings can be rough. The tasks are many and the time is short. The bus will be here any minute and I have to be sure the kids are ready to board, equipped with the things they need for the day.
ones. Only He can awaken me to His holiness, to His standard of love, and stir that same holiness in me to direct my children’s hearts to God. Without Him, I am bleary-eyed and bumbling in my bathrobe, scarcely able to recognize holiness, much less pursue it. So, each day, I choose to be with Him. I need a time of stillness with His Spirit, breathing in His perfect and peaceful person—His holiness. Only then I am inspired and equipped for this day’s good work. No amount of coffee could wake me up like that.
by Missy Wetzel Spiritually, the story is similar. My kids’ childhoods are flying by, and making sure their souls are nourished and prepared for the s 2 waiting world is a 2 Thessalonian salonians 3–4; es Th 1 : re tu rip daunting vocation. That is, Sc essalonians) (Letters to the Th if I go it alone. Thankfully, Us to Holiness ly Spirit Awakens Ho e Th t: in Po I’ve got the Holy Spirit. Main ve your family to ha signed to allow Rather, He’s got me. He’s de is ce ur nd so te re at This children ord before your the leader here. e time in God’s W r parents to be th fo is an pl we cause God’s , Be ith . fa ch n’s ur re ch ild Only He can sanctify and r ch nurturers of thei will grow primary spiritual y, your children energize this responsibility all tu iri sp ow gr u yo as at th know of readying my precious ll. spiritually as we
Getting Started
Equip (for parents) Equip is additional background information that will help you introduce this Scripture passage to your children this week. We see the Holy Spirit awakening Paul in Acts 17, where we learn that he arrived in Thessalonica after being persecuted in Philippi. At that time, Thessalonica was the capital of Macedonia, with a population of two hundred thousand people. Unlike many of the cities in which Paul preached, Thessalonica still exists today. Located on the coast of modern-day Greece, it remains an important city of trade and commerce.
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“Hea EMEMBE R VE will l me, O RSE be h L and eale ord, a nd d you I will be s ; save m I are ave the d, fo e Jere one I pra r mia h 17 ise.” :14 pursuit to be holy like God, as well as an assurance that the Holy Spirit is the only power able to awaken our hearts to holiness.
Like most Greek cities in Paul’s time, paganism and sexual promiscuity were socially acceptable. This is why Paul’s message was so radical to the original hearers. He proclaimed: There is only one God, and He calls His children to practice self-control. The Holy Spirit moved in the hearts of the Thessalonians, and a church quickly formed, the believers ready to live in holiness.
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Persecuted, Paul left the new church after only three weeks. He sent Timothy to Thessalonica to “strengthen and encourage [the Thessalonians] in [their] faith” (1 Thessalonians 3:2). Despite the church being young, Timothy sent back a favorable report. He said the church was thriving and the members were full of faith. Even so, many needed encouragement to remain sexually pure and to “learn to control [their] own bod[ies] in a way that is holy and honorable, not in passionate lust like the heathen, who do not know God” (1 Thessalonians 4:4–5).
Tell your children that you’re going to read a part of The Big God Story in which Paul wrote two letters of encouragement to the Christians living in Thessalonica. Together read 1 Thessalonians 1. Discuss how the power of God’s Holy Spirit changed the people to whom Paul was writing.
In all, Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians is a beautiful reminder that holiness comes not by our own efforts, but through the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit. It is an eloquent encouragement to remain steadfast in our
(for parents & kids) This week, JUST FOR FUN, play a game with your family at the dinner table. Have each family member tell the person to the right something she loves about him. Then go around the table again and have each family member share with the person to the left why he’s thankful for her.
Next, read 2 Thessalonians 1. Paul commended the Thessalonians for their faith, hope, love, and perseverance in the face of persecution. Ask your children where they think the Thessalonians received the power to be strong like that. Then discuss how you see the Holy Spirit working in each of your lives. Remind your children that what they just heard is a part of The Big God Story, and they will learn more in church this week about how God’s Holy Spirit awakens us to His holiness.
© 2012 David C. Cook. TruResources are developed in partnership with ROCKHARBOR Church and a national network of family and children’s ministry leaders. All rights reserved.