PRESCHOOL & KINDERGARTEN KIDS & FAMILIES date
3.10
She understood that Jesus lives within us and offers love and comfort to His children. Inspire (for parents) “Mommy! I figured out how Jesus takes care of our baby!” Sarah exclaimed. “There are stairs from your heart to your tummy. When the baby cries, Jesus goes down the stairs, picks up our baby, and rocks him.” Swallowing a giggle, I smiled at the image painted by my daughter’s words. Then I realized that while it might not happen exactly that way, she was expressing an aspect of God’s character she knew to be true. She understood that Jesus lives within us and offers love and comfort to His children.
often ask me: “Mommy, why did Jesus have to die on a cross?” “He died because He loves us and wants us to know just how much!” I explained to her. God wants everyone to know Him and have a relationship with Him. In Jesus’ death on the cross, He shows us just how perfect His love for us is. “How wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ” (Ephesians 3:18). Now we are free to have an intimate relationship with Him. That’s a truth God wants everyone to know.
Paula Moldenhauer As a young mom, I was beginning to understand that God didn’t want me to simply know His rules, He wanted me to know Him— His voice, His heart, His passions. Sarah’s innocence helped me to look beyond religious trappings and hiopian Man) hilip and the Et (P 8 s ct A : re focus on who God is. Her simple Scriptu Know Him, ts Everyone to an W od G t: in understanding of His loving character Main Po Part II made me long to know Him better. your family to signed to allow de is ren ce ur so When I look back on that This re fore your child od’s Word be G for in is e tim an pl ve memorable exchange, I’m reminded ha ause God’s ec B . ch ur nurturers of attend ch of a burning question Sarah would imary spiritual pr e th ow be to parents that as you gr ith, we know fa s ell. n’ w re as ild ly ch al their ow spiritu children will gr ur yo ly, al tu iri sp
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Equip (for parents) Equip is additional background information that will help as you introduce this passage of Scripture to your children this week. Jesus’ desire is for everyone to know Him. As the early church spread this message, they encountered great persecution. Much of the persecution was under the tyranny of Saul, who later became the apostle Paul. The church scattered but continued to preach the Word so others could know about Jesus. During this time, an angel led Philip down a wilderness road. There, he saw an Ethiopian eunuch, an important court official to the queen of Ethiopia, reading from the book of Isaiah. Although the Ethiopian knew about God and had traveled far to worship in Jerusalem, as a eunuch he was not allowed to enter the assembly of the Lord. But his reading of Scripture and his questions to Philip indicated he wanted to know more. There were many reasons Philip might have chosen not to share the good news with this man—ethnicity, social status, and his physical condition. But the Spirit revealed to Philip that God wants everyone to know Him. In what some commentators see as a fulfillment of Isaiah 56:3–7, Philip not only shared the good news with the eunuch foreigner, but baptized him and fully accepted him into the faith community. In this part of The Big God Story, we see one way in which God’s plan for all of humankind to know Him was being fulfilled.
Share with them that God loves everyone no matter how different they are.
REMEMBER VERSE
Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory. Isaiah 6:3
Support (for parents & kids) This week, JUST FOR FUN, encourage your children to notice the people around them (at the grocery store, the post office, school, etc.). Later, ask them: “Who did we see today?” Encourage them to share with you things they remembered that were unique about people. For example, they might point out skin or hair color, clothes, or how tall or short each person was. After they describe several people, ask them: “What’s one thing that’s the same about all those people?” Share with them that God loves everyone no matter how different they are. He wants everyone to know Him. Read together Acts 8:26–35. When you’ve finished reading, ask your children, “Who was it who told Philip to go speak to the queen’s official? What did Philip tell the Ethiopian?” Then have your children articulate what they think is the good news about Jesus. Share with them that the queen’s official decided he wanted to know God after listening to Philip talk about Jesus. Remind your children that what they just heard is part of The Big God Story, and they’ll learn more in church this week about how God wants everyone to know Him. Gather as a family and pray for a better understanding that God wants everyone to know Him, and seek ways to help others know Him better.
© 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.