Year B - Fourth Sunday of Advent (December 18, 2011)

It’s still a whole week until Christmas!  This is the longest advent possible – 28 full days!  But, it is also your last chance to worship around the Advent Christmas message with those folks who will be leaving town for the holidays.  Many congregations will build this service around a cantata or pageant.  The possibilities are endless.  But, just in case you are working mainly with the texts for the day….

2 Samuel  7: 1-11, 16

'''' Adults will enjoy the details of the play on the word “house” here.  But, children will either not get it all or be only vaguely interested in it.  So, skip the clever word play and go straight to what it meant to build a house for God.

'''' David was not to build a house for God because God is too big to be stuck in one little place.  Had David built God a house, everyone would assume that God lived only there, would know they could go there to talk to God,  and would assume God wouldn’t bother them any place else.  We are getting a big lesson on how God moves around in the next weeks.  God becomes a human baby with a poor teenage mother.  God sends angels sing to shepherds working the fields.  Sages cross a desert to see the king God is raising up, but find him in a manger rather than in a palace.  So, we need to be looking for God moving around in the world today and join in God’s activity.

Luke 1:46b – 55

'''' The Magnificat is best read by a teenage girl.  To help her get into the mood of the song, tell her about a picture of Mary with her hair in braids, wearing a t shirt, rolled up jeans and high-top tennis shoes.  (The photo collage I saw is copyrighted, but you easily can imagine it.)  Practice with the reader to get the feisty reading the song implies.

Set the context before the reading by bringing the Mary figure from the crèche to the lectern.  Briefly tell the story leading up to Mary’s song, leave the figure on the lectern, and step aside for the young reader.   You may want to keep the figure there for the remainder of the service perhaps referring to it when appropriate during the sermon or plan for the reader to return it to the crèche after she reads.

'''' When read today this song is all about Mary’s joy.  Mary is not in a safe, happy situation.  She is an unwed teenage mother to be.  But, she is full of joy because she is doing something huge for God.  God has trusted her to be the mother of Jesus!  One paraphrase I read included two phrases children and youth will especially appreciate,

“God did not say, ’she is just a girl’.”  God took Mary seriously, trusted her, and put her to work.

“The rich, for all their wealth and status, can go suck lemons.”  The rich here would include anyone who thinks they are better than she is.  Mary was a poor nobody, but God chose her not someone rich and famous and important to be Jesus’ mother.  So, all those people who look down on her can just go suck lemons. 

All this leads me to wonder what Mary’s t shirt might have said.  It might be fun to play with the possibilities during the sermon and challenge worshipers to imagine, even design, t shirts for Mary to wear as she sings her joyful song.

OR    Psalm 89:1-4, 19-26

On this Sunday this psalm is far from the interest of children. 

Romans 16:25-27

'''' Save lighting the Advent wreath this day for the benediction.  At benediction time go to the wreath, point out that we are almost to Christmas, next Sunday is THE DAY.  Then while lighting the candles paraphrase Paul’s words something like….

On this fourth Sunday of Advent, let us give glory to God

Who gives us the strength to stand firm

Who has shown us and all the world the mystery that was once hidden.

In the baby in the manger, the teacher, the healer, the one who died on a cross and rose again we meet God.

To the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, be the glory forever!  Amen.

(maybe with a happy grin)  See you on Christmas Eve!

Luke 1:26-38

This is Mary’s Sunday.  The challenge with children is to help them see Mary less as a passive, gentle, agreeable person and more as a prophet who saw God at work in her world and was willing to take big risks to be part of the action.  Sweet Christmas cards and years of children’s pageants make this a very real challenge.  Little girls are especially prone to over-sweeten Mary.  They to hear stories of fights over who gets to be Mary in pageants embedded in thoughtful comments about what Mary might really have been like.  The story and the Magnificat insist that she was a strong, brave, active young woman who was aware of the realities of her world.  That’s a good role model for today’s children, especially today’s girls.

Another thing about Mary that is important to children is that she is a nobody.  She was a poor girl living in a rural village in an occupied country.  Everyone around her discounted her.  But God did not.  This gives everyone else who feels like a nobody the assurance that God values them too.  God has work and a plan for them.  They have to be ready to do it.

'''' Bring the Mary crèche figure to the lectern before reading this story and the Magnificat, then place it near the manger in the crèche.

'''' Two hymns tell the annunciation story.  Read the story from the Bible first after alerting people to listen to this story because we are going to sing it after we hear it.

“The Angel Gabriel from Heaven Came” is shorter and includes a chorus which can be introduced and rehearsed for the sake of young readers before the congregation sings it.

“”To a Maid Engaged to Joseph” is longer and therefore offers more details. 

'''' “Here I Am” is usually listed as a confirmation or ordination hymn.  But, today it is a perfect response to Mary’s story.  Instead of an affirmation of faith following the sermon, invite the congregation to sing the hymn as a way of stating their intent to respond to God at work in the world as Mary did.  It can be sung in unison or responsively with the choir or a soloist singing God’s verses and the congregation responding with the “Here I am” choruses.

from Chrismons: Basic Series, p.48

'''' According to tradition, Mary’s flower is the rose.  So somewhere among all the poinsettias find space a single rose in a vase today.  If could be put near the pulpit, the crèche, or on the central table paired with the crèche figure for Mary.  If you sing “Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming” walk through the words of the two short verses taking time to point out and explain some of the references to Mary.  If you have a rose Chrismon ornament on the tree, point it out.

Year B - Third Sunday of Advent (December 11, 2011)

The key words for today are JOY and REJOICE!  They show up in most of the scripture texts for the day and will probably be found throughout the liturgy.  Children (and many older worshipers) need to be reminded of the difference between joy and happiness.  Happiness can be fleeting, e.g. having your favorite food for supper.  Joy is deeper, more important to you, and can’t be taken away.  Joy is knowing that your parents love you and will take care of you – always.  Joy is knowing that you love your parents and will do all sorts of things to love them back.  Joy is knowing that God is in charge of the world and is taking care of it – even when things are going all wrong at the moment. 

''' Present one or both of these words on a big poster as part of the Call to Worship.  Define them and encourage children to listen for them and even to count them.  Have wrapped hard candies in your pocket for any child who offers anything close to the number of times the words appear upon leaving the sanctuary.

''' During the sermon display a poster that says “Choose JOY.”  Explore the possibility of deciding to be joy-full.  Most children assume that feelings just are and only change when the situation around us changes.  Suggest that we can decide even on bad days to remember all the reasons we have for joy and refuse to get mopey.  Suggest that choosing JOY is a good way to prepare for Christmas.

''' Give children small posters featuring the word joy spelled in balloon letters.  Invite them to fill the letters and the rest of the page with joyful decorations and to post their poster where they will see it every day between now and Christmas (refrigerator door, bathroom mirror…).

''' There is a variety of Advent songs and carols that feature joy.

-          “I’ve Got a Joy, Joy, Joy Down in My Heart” includes verses about what causes this joy, e.g. “the love of Jesus,”  “the peace that passes understanding,” etc.

-          “I’ve Got Peace Like a River”…”I’ve got joy like a fountain….”

-          “Joy To the World” is not an easy carol for children, but includes many calls for preparation that can be pointed out before the congregation sings.

-          The sad sounding verses and happy chorus of “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” reminds us that it is possible to know joy in sad times.  Children will have trouble with some of the words.  Before singing it, practice the chorus together and highlight the word “Rejoice!”  Consider singing it responsively with congregation responding to the choir, or one side of the congregation responding to the other.

-          “Rejoice Ye Pure in Heart” fits the Sunday to a tee.  At the very least practice the chorus so that children can join in on all the Rejoices there.  Or, take time to briefly walk through the verses putting them into your own words noting the presence of people of all ages.

-          “Come Christians Join to Sing” is not an Advent hymn, but it is filled with Alleluias and Rejoices that children can sing.  It also very simply names the main reason for our joy – Jesus!  It will connect worshipers with Easter when this is often sung. 

If you have an Alleluia poster that you hide away during Lent and feature at Easter, bring it out today.  Recall its use and claim Alleluia as a good word for Christmas as well as Easter.

-          “Good Christian Friends Rejoice!” is another hymn usually sung later in the season, but possibly appropriate for today.  Again the youngest can join in on the repeated first line of every voice.

''' Some Advent wreaths feature one pink candle, the joy candle for the third week of Advent.  Light it today during the singing of a rejoicing hymn.  One candle might be lit on each rejoicing verse or chorus.

Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11

''' This is a long reading in several voices.  To help all worshipers follow it, have it read by three readers.  If you are going to preach on it, consider interspersing your remarks with the readings.

Reader 1: verses 1-4

Reader 2: verses 8-9

Reader 3:verses 10-11

''' Verses 1 and 2 are filled with often used abstract descriptions of the mission of God’s people.  For the sake of the children identify specific activities your congregation undertakes for each of these phrases, e.g. children singing in a nursing home is one way of binding up the broken hearted, food drives meet the needs of the oppressed. 

''' Verses 8 and 9 provide an opportunity to explore the joy of being part of something bigger than yourself, in this case to be among God’s people living out their mission.  With children start with the fun of being on a team caught up in a game.  Describe the excitement of being part of something that is bigger than just you.  Then, tell about a time you were caught up in something more important than a sporting event – maybe being present at the inauguration of a leader, or hearing an important speech (like Martin Luther King’s I Have  A Dream Speech.   Conclude about the joy of being part of God’s people, especially at festival time.  (This may be the time to sing “Rejoice You Pure in Heart”)

Psalm 126

''' Verse 2 says “our mouths were filled with laughter and our tongues with shouts of joy.”  A friend told me that when she took her two year old to the beach for the first time and set her down at the edge of the ocean, her daughter threw up her hands and laughed and laughed with a full happy laugh.  Invite worshipers to remember places and times they have felt that kind of laughing joy – a starry night, running out into the first snow of the year, finally understanding or doing something really hard….  Use their experiences to define joy.

OR      Luke 1:46b-55

''' The Magnificat is best read by a teenage girl.  To help her get into the mood of the song, tell her about a picture of Mary with her hair in braids, wearing a t shirt, rolled up jeans and high-top tennis shoes.  (The photo collage I saw is copyrighted, but you easily can imagine it.)  Practice with the reader to get the feisty reading the song implies.

Set the context before the reading by bringing the Mary figure from the crèche to the lectern.  Briefly tell the story leading up to Mary’s song, leave the figure on the lectern, and step aside for the young reader.   You may want to keep the figure there for the remainder of the service perhaps referring to it when appropriate during the sermon or plan for the reader to return it to the crèche after she reads.

''' When read today this song is all about Mary’s joy.  Mary is not in a safe, happy situation.  She is an unwed teenage mother to be.  But, she is full of joy because she is doing something huge for God.  God has trusted her to be the mother of Jesus!  One paraphrase I read included two phrases children and youth will especially appreciate,

“God did not say, ’she is just a girl’.”  God took Mary seriously, trusted her, and put her to work.

“The rich, for all their wealth and status, can go suck lemons.”  The rich here would include anyone who thinks they are better than she is.  Mary was a poor nobody, but God chose her not someone rich and famous and important to be Jesus’ mother.  So, all those people who look down on her can just go suck lemons. 

''' All this leads me to wonder what Mary’s t shirt might have said.  It might be fun to play with the possibilities during the sermon and challenge worshipers to imagine, even design, t shirts for Mary to wear as she sings her joyful song.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-24

During the last two weeks before Christmas, verses 16-18 speak most clearly to children.  At this intense part of the holiday season it is easy for them to get jealous of what others are getting and to feel left out of festivities.  Given this it is easy feel and act crabby.  These verses remind them to think, pray, and act joyfully.  Though Paul does not say it, you can add that we do this not because Santa is watching and will not bring crabby kids the stuff they want.  We do it because we know God loves us all and came to live among us as Jesus. 

John 1:6-8. 19-28

''' If you did not do this last week with Mark’s gospel….  To tell the story of John the Baptist, point out that there is one person who though he was not at the stable should probably be in the nativity set, but never is.   Pick up one of the shepherd figures in the crèche.  Explain that the shepherds probably looked most like John.  Describe his way of dress and his food.  Then tell his story fleshing out the details in John’s account.  For the rest of the day display the figure on or near the baptismal font.  Key parts of the story for children include:

-          John was Jesus’ cousin

-          How John dressed and ate

-          John told people they had forgotten how to live like God’s people and needed to make changes

-          John baptized people who heard him and wanted to make those changes

-          John promised that someone was coming from God who was going to be Very Important

-          John baptized Jesus – I’d use this as the stopping point noting that we’ll hear that story on Jan 8, after Christmas.

''' John the Baptist was the first to point people to Jesus.   He is most often pictured either baptizing Jesus or pointing to him in the distance. Since I cannot find such a painting that is free of copyright restrictions, I’d suggest getting two men to pose one or both pictures.  If you do both, pose the baptism of Jesus first and briefly remind people that John baptized Jesus.  Then, pose John pointing to Jesus.  Note that though John was the first to point others to Jesus, many others followed. For example, after they visited the stable on Christmas, the shepherds told everyone they met about what they had seen and heard.   The Samaritan woman Jesus met at a well gathered all the people in her town to meet Jesus saying to them, “Come and See”… this man.  The women returning from the empty tomb, say “We have seen the Lord.”  From here invite worshipers to join all these folks pointing to Jesus.

Year B - Second Sunday of Advent (December 4, 2011)

'' The call to work for justice while waiting for God is all through these texts.  The Christmas Menorahs: How a Town Fought Hate, by Janice Cohn, tells the true story about the townspeople of Billings, Montana who put drawings of menorahs in their windows in response to a hate group which had thrown a rock through the menorah decorated bedroom window of a Jewish boy.  The story is told from the perspective of the boy and the young Christian friends who rally around him.  The book takes way too long to read in worship.  But, it would be a great story to tell in your own words during the sermon.

'' The Feast of Saint Nicholas is on December 6^th (Tuesday this year).  Saint Nicholas was a wealthy boy who dedicated his life to caring for others.  There are all sorts of colorful stories of his aiding groups of people who then adopted him as their patron saint.  In one connected to Christmas he saved three sisters from being sold because their family could not afford dowries for them.  Nicholas threw three bags of gold through their windows at night.  Saint Nicholas, by Ann Tompert, is a picture book with a child-friendly telling of many of the stories about Nicholas.  An Author’s Note at the end details how he morphed over the centuries into Santa Claus.  The book is much too long to be read as a whole in worship.  Either read one or two stories about Nicholas from it or use it as background to tell about Saint Nicholas in your own words.  However you present his story, today is a good opportunity to connect the real Santa Claus to the Advent teachings about God’s work for justice.

Give each child (or each worshiper) a small mesh sack of chocolate coins wrapped in gold foil with the challenge to give coins to people in honor of Saint Nicholas between now and Tuesday evening.  Suggest that they might give some to family and friends, but could also do like Saint Nicholas and give some of them to people who will be happily surprised that someone cares about them.  (Check local discount stores or Google “chocolate coins.”)

'' The Mark and John readings both call us to get to work with God.  Emphasize this with the lighting of the Advent Wreath.  

If the congregation regularly says an affirmation of faith during worship, choose one about God at work in the world.  Light the first candles of the wreath as the congregation says it together.

Or, tie the lighting of the wreath to the offering.  Invite all worshipers to tear off a corner of their bulletin and write their name on it.  As the offering plates are passed, urge them to drop both their money gift and their name into the plate as a sign to God that they are willing and ready to join God at work in the world.   Light the candles as the offering baskets are presented at the front.

Isaiah 40:1-11

'' The verse 11 image of God tending the people like a good shepherd tends a flock offers two good Advent connections for children.

1.       Pick up one of the shepherds in the creche.  Talk about what shepherds do to take care of sheep.  Then read verse 11.  Describe the shepherd-like ways God takes care of us, i.e. provides food, walks with us in the dangerous places, rescues us when we get into trouble, etc.  This could be a children’s time or could be done at some point in the Sermon.

2.       Read verse 11, briefly identifying ways God cares for us like a shepherd cares for sheep.  Then display one of the shepherd’s crook crosses from the Chrismon Tree.  You might even give all children (or all worshipers) white or gold pipe cleaners (one about 10-12 inches long, one about 3 inches for the cross piece) with which to twist an ornament to put on their tree at home. 

'' If you sing one of the Psalm 23 hymns choose one with the children in mind.  Avoid those following the King James text or those using lots of unusual vocabulary.  If the congregation has a favorite version that includes difficult words, take time before singing it to put the phrases in which they appear into words children will understand.

Psalm 85:1-2, 8-13

'' Introduce the poetry of personification as talking about something invisible as if it were a person.  Read verse 10 (“steadfast love and faithfulness will meet; righteousness and peace will kiss”).  Laugh a little at the mental picture this produces – or simply refuses to produce.  Then, explain that the psalmist’s word pictures are telling us what God does.  Do this at the beginning of the sermon.  Then, assign sermon seatwork.  Challenge the children to draw pictures of steadfast love, faithfulness, righteousness, or peace.  Show them a picture you have drawn of your family and explain how it is a picture of steadfast love.  Brainstorm briefly about other pictures – e.g. a dog for faithfulness, a picture of a family doing something together you all love to do for peace, even a picture of bringing food for the food drive for righteousness.  As you preach, at some point make a reference to the assigned task perhaps saying, “now that is a picture of ….”  Invite children to post their work on a bulletin board nearby, tape it to a rail at the front, or lay it on the floor around the Advent Wreath.  Post the one you drew there as a starter.

2 Peter 3:8-15a

'' Behind many of the Advent texts is a call to understand time in God’s expansive terms rather than our own human terms.  The older we get the faster time seems to fly.  But, children have experienced only a few years.  So short times seem huge to them.  The time since last Christmas or even the beginning of school feels enormous.  As they wait for Christmas during Advent, it seems Christmas will never come.   They are fascinated by verse 8’s puzzling claim “with the Lord a thousand years is like one day and one day is like a thousand years.”  Explore time with questions like “which is longer an hour spent doing really hard homework or an hour spent playing a video game?”  (This is not an easy question for elementary school children to sort out!)  Talk about the value of spending an hour playing with your little brother so your parent can cook supper for the whole family.  (That food will keep the whole family going for hours and the fun around the table will make the family closer and happier for an even longer time.)  The Advent texts call us to measure time in God’s terms.

'' The Alpha and Omega symbol insists that God is at the beginning and the end of all time.  In kid words, god was before anything and when everything is totally over, God will still be there.  Point the symbol out wherever it appears in your sanctuary or on the paraments.  If you have a Chrismon tree, display the Alpha-Omega ornament or point it out on the tree.

'' The remainder of this passage deals with waiting for the Day of the Lord.  One preacher humorously titled his sermon “God is Coming!  Look Busy!”  During the month when children are totally caught up in waiting for Santa or at least in “what will I get?” it is almost impossible for them not to get Peter’s urging to be “good” while waiting confused with all the “Santa is watching” talk.  There is no way to explain the difference in the two that makes sense at their age.  So, I’d suggest skipping it with children.

'' Go to Year B - The First Sunday of Advent for ideas about singing “O Come, O Come Emanuel” or “Watchman Tell Us of the Night.”

Mark 1:1-8

'' If you project video clips during worship, show the section of The Lion King in which Raffiki, the baboon who is a prophet, seeks out Simba who has run away in guilt after his father was killed trying to save him in a stampede.  Raffiki insists that Simba has forgotten who is he and leads him back home.  In many ways Raffiki is like John the Baptist who preached to the people that they had forgotten that they were God’s people and urged them to change their ways and to get ready for the great thing God was about to do.   (Thanks to Ann  at http://seedstuff.blogspot.com/2008/11/advent-2-b-december-7preparing-road-in.html .)

'' To tell the story of John the Baptist, point out that there is one person who though he was not at the stable should probably be in the nativity set, but never is.   Pick up one of the shepherd figures in the crèche.  Explain that the shepherds probably looked most like John.  Describe his way of dress and his food.  Then tell his story fleshing out the details in Mark’s account.  For the rest of the day display the figure on or near the baptismal font.  Key parts of the story for children include:

-          John was Jesus’ cousin

-          How John dressed and ate

-          John told people they had forgotten how to live like God’s people and needed to make changes

-          John baptized people who heard him and wanted to make those changes

-          John promised that someone was coming from God who was going to be Very Important

-          John baptized Jesus – I’d use this as the stopping point noting that we’ll hear that story on Jan 8, after Christmas.

'' The people who heard John preach did not find him in the Temple in town.  They had to leave the city and go out to the river at the edge of the wilderness.  The wise ones who were looking for the baby Jesus did not find him at the palace.  Jesus was born in a stable and slept in a manger.  Pick up the manger in the crèche and discuss the surprising places we find God at work.  Encourage people to look for God is surprising places this week.  Then either display the manger on the central table for the remainder of the service or add a small cactus plant to the crèche area to remind us of the surprising places God comes to us. 

Year B - First Sunday of Advent (November 27, 2011)

' Check out the Planning for the Advent and Christmas Seasons - Year B for Creche, Wreath, Chrismon and Carols other general ideas

' To celebrate the change in the liturgical season and the darkness in today’s texts, begin worship with the paraments from Christ the King in place.  As the call to worship, remove them recalling what they represented.  Dramatically fold them aside noting that we will next see them on Christmas Eve.  Then, put the Advent paraments in place.  Point out that their color (whether purple or blue) is much darker and quieter.  Do whatever Advent education is needed, e.g.

-          Unlike the stores which are already completely decorated for Christmas (even unlike our homes where the trees are up or going up?), at church during Advent we take a deep breath to think about all the problems that made it necessary for God to come among us.

-          Highlight some spiritual Advent disciplines individuals and household might undertake, e.g. lighting an Advent wreath at home, etc.

-          Point to the difference in Advent and Christmas songs.  Encourage people to pay attention to the mood of Advent music and to claim at least one Advent song as their own.

Once the Advent paraments are in place, you are ready for the call to Advent worship.  (This may be done by one or two worship leaders or several  worshipers of all ages can be asked to help.  It could even be done very informally as a beginning of the service children’s time.) 

' Commentator Robert Roth pointed out that all of these texts are full of “we”s.  They are about God’s care for and acting through the community.  Isaiah says “we” are the clay.  In Mark’s apocalypse, we are all swept up in cosmic events.  In 1 Corinthians, it is the church rather than individuals who is gifted.  Directing worshipers of all ages to this is a good antidote for all the self-centeredness that is bred during the commercial Christmas season.

For USA congregations at the end of Thanksgiving and facing Advent/Christmas:

The Perfect Thanksgiving, by Eileen Spinelli, compares the Thanksgivings of two very different families.  In Abigail Archer’s family “Their turkey is plump and golden.  Their napkins are made of lace.  Their table is lit with candles.  They all hold hands for grace.”  In the narrator’s family “Our smoke alarm is wailing. Our turkey, burnt as toast.  Dad spills the gray down his shirt – a less-than-perfect host.”  But the last page concludes “But we’re alike in one way, the nicest way by far – alike in just how loving our different families are.”  The art on this page awards both family “love ratings” of “ultra perfect.”  Use it to explore our disappointments in our holidays and our families and to underline what is really important with both.  This conversation is a good launch into Advents texts about disappointments in the world that is less than God intended it to be.

Isaiah 64:1-9

' Introduce this passage as a group prayer prayed by people living in a time when everything was going wrong. Four readers (actually pray–ers) stand together around one microphone, like a group huddled for prayer and so they can read without pause.  Readers may be youth, adults, or a mix of ages (maybe one family with older children and youth).  Plan a practice session at which you can explain the post-Exile situation to them and think together about why each prayer was prayed.  This time will enable readers to convey a great deal of meaning with their voices.

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Isaiah 64:1-9

Reader 1:  O that you would tear open the heavens and come down,

so that the mountains would quake at your presence—

as when fire kindles brushwood

and the fire causes water to boil—

to make your name known to your adversaries,

so that the nations might tremble at your presence!

Reader 2:  When you did awesome deeds that we did not expect,

you came down, the mountains quaked at your presence.

Reader 3:  From ages past no one has heard,

no ear has perceived,

no eye has seen any God besides you,

who works for those who wait for him.

Reader 4:  You meet those who gladly do right,

those who remember you in your ways.

Reader 1:  But you were angry, and we sinned;

because you hid yourself we transgressed.

Reader 2:  We have all become like one who is unclean,

and all our righteous deeds are like a filthy cloth.

Reader 3:  We all fade like a leaf,

and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.

Reader 4:  There is no one who calls on your name,

or attempts to take hold of you;

for you have hidden your face from us,

and have delivered us into the hand of our iniquity.

Reader 1:  Yet, O Lord, you are our Father;

we are the clay, and you are our potter;

we are all the work of your hand.

Reader 2:  Do not be exceedingly angry, O Lord,

Reader 3:  and do not remember iniquity forever.

All:             Now consider, we are all your people.

New Revised Standard Version

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

' If you have a Hand of God Chrismon ornament, display it today (perhaps during the sermons).  Explain that it is a symbol of hope that God would indeed reach out to us in our lost, broken mess.  God did reach out to us in Jesus and God continues to reach out to us every day.

' The fact that for American congregations the First Sunday of Advent is also the Sunday after Thanksgiving this year makes it an excellent time to explore disappointment.   Isaiah is living among returned exiles who are finding that their lives back in the Promised Land are not as wonderful as they had imagined.  There are real problems and hardships.  They are deeply disappointed.  Hopefully most children had a great Thanksgiving weekend.  But, many children have had a Thanksgiving weekend that was less than they had hoped.  Relatives were demanding.  Older children had to sit at a table with younger children and look after those children far more than they wished.  And, people may have simply gotten cranky.  NOW, Christmas with all of our expectations of it lies ahead.  Will we be disappointed again?  The fact is that we are often disappointed.  Life is not all we dream it will be.  Even trips to Disneyworld have downsides.  On the first Sunday of Advent we admit that to ourselves and each other and turn to God for help.

' After exploring the disappointments in Isaiah and the darkness in Psalm 80, sing “O Come, O Come Emanuel”  Children will miss many of the words, but can follow the very different feelings in the music of the verses and the chorus.  Try singing it responsively with a choir singing the verse and the congregation singing the choruses.  Practice the chorus once so that young readers are ready to sing along.

Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19

' Read this psalm responsively.  A leader reads all verses except the refrain in verses 3, 7, and 19.  The refrain is read by the congregation.  Before the reading introduce this as prayer psalm written when everything was going wrong for God’s people.  Children will miss many of the illusions to Old Testament stories, but will follow the gist of the psalm

Refrain:           Restore us, O God;

Let your face shine so that we may be saved.

' Take time to identify all sorts of darkness in the world – everything from brothers and sisters fussing, families fighting, friends who turn on you, to world hunger, political gridlock, endless wars, financial insecurities. 

Give children (or all worshipers) a gray sheet of paper and pencil.  Challenge them to write words or phrases or draw pictures describing things about the world that are dark, broken, messed up.  Gather them as the prayer of confession.  Either, invite people to call out one item on their page to which the leader and congregation reply, “Lord, we are broken people.”  Or, invite worshipers to pass all the papers in with ushers bringing them forward.  A worship leader then reads a few items from some of the pages to which the congregation responds with “Lord, we are a broken people” then spreads the pages on the floor near the Advent wreath.  Finally, go to the wreath, pronounce an assurance of pardon and light the first candle of the Advent wreath.

If turning out or down the lights would make a difference in the light level in the room, start the service without the lights.  When the assurance of pardon is announced and the first candle of the Advent wreath is lit, turn on/up the lights.

' Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, by Judith Viorst, is a child’s version of the complaints of the psalmist.  Read all or part of it, then imagine everyone having a day like that every day for years.  Point out that life sometimes it feels like that.  In such times we know we can do nothing to save ourselves and like the psalmist we can only call on God.

' Surprise worshippers by including “O Little Town of Bethlehem” in today’s worship, omitting verse 2 (too Christmas-y).  Before the congregation sings it, read through verses 1,3, and 4 pointing out all the darkness  and the hope that God will rescue us.

Mark 13:24-37

' Apocalyptic literature flourishes among people who feel under siege.  That can include many of us facing news of terrorist threats, climate extremes, financial meltdowns, political gridlock, the list goes on.  For children the list includes impossible teachers and coaches, bullies, trying to make sense of difficult school subjects, dealing with problems at home, their lists go on, too. To introduce children to the images in Mark’s apocalypse, compare confronting all these big problems with facing the monsters in Harry Potter or The Chronicles of Narnia.  Few elementary school children will fully grasp the connection, but most will at least hear that these strange words in the Bible are to be read differently than some others.

' Children have experiences that help them understand the parable about the servants.  The teacher has left the room having assigned everyone work to do.  Parents ask them to do some task while the parent is in another part of the house working on something else.  I can tell a story of hiring a neighborhood boy to take care of my two cats.  When I returned a day early, I found the cats’ water and food bowls empty, their litter box full, and a crushed soda can from the refrigerator on floor. 

' If you focus on the parable about watching and being prepared for the master to return, sing “Watchman Tell Us of the Night.”  To help children follow the song, sing it responsively…

-          Male soloist sings the Watchman lines with congregation singing the Traveler lines

-          Choir sings Watchman lines with congregation singing the Traveler lines

-          One half of the congregation sings the Watchman lines with the other half singing the Traveler lines.

1 Corinthians 1:3-9

' This is one text that feels especially comfortable for the Sunday after Thanksgiving and the First Sunday of Advent.  After weekend of naming our gifts with gratitude, we are called on as congregations to name and give thanks for all the gifts God gives us as a congregation.  At the beginning of the commercial Christmas season (even without the Thanksgiving connection), as we start to write out our Christmas gift lists, we are reminded of all the gifts we already have.  To explore this,

Create a spontaneous prayer of thanksgiving for the church.  Individuals may name the gifts they see in the church (both local and universal) to which the congregation responds, “we thank you, O God.”  (This can be compared to gathering prayer concerns, if your congregation does that each week.)

In the sermon name the gifts you see at work in the congregation being sure to include some gifts that children will both appreciate as gifts and in which they participate, e.g. singing in choirs or hospitality to visitors.