Year A - Proper 10, 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (July 10, 2011)

Genesis 25:19-34

Children enjoy this story of brothers who were fighting before they were born.  Parents appreciate the story of the parents who did everything wrong by today’s standards for parents.  The whole family is a mess AND still God loves them and calls them to be God’s people.  There is a lot of hope in that for less than perfect families today. 

Do note that Joseph and the brothers who sell him into slavery show up the first two weeks in August.  Think ahead about which shared themes you will emphasize in these similar but different stories.

Ask a family with two sons who are good readers (maybe older elementary or middle school age) to read the scripted version.  Explain to them that their job is to help the listeners hear all the problems in this family.  Rehearse it with them once to show them where to stand and to encourage them to play their parts a little over the top. 

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Genesis 25:19-34

Reader 1 reads from the lectern and is probably the worship leader.  Isaac stands beside Rebekah in the middle, (maybe on the top step).  Esau and Jacob stand just in front of their parents (maybe one step down) and Esau closer to Isaac and Jacob closer to Rebekah.

Isaac  and   Rebekah

                  Reader 1

Esau            and                  Jacob

Reader 1:  These are the descendants of Isaac, Abraham’s son: Abraham was the father of Isaac,

Isaac (pointing to self):  Isaac was forty years old when he married

Rebekah (pointing to herself proudly):  Rebekah, daughter of Bethuel the Aramean of Paddan-aram, sister of Laban the Aramean.

Isaac: Isaac prayed to the Lord for his wife, because she was barren; and the Lord granted his prayer,

Rebekah:  and his wife Rebekah conceived.    The children struggled together within her; and she said, “If it is to be this way, why do I live?”   So she went to inquire of the Lord.

Reader 1:  And the Lord said to her,

“Two nations are in your womb,

and two peoples born of you shall be divided;

the one shall be stronger than the other,

the elder shall serve the younger.”

Rebekah:  When her time to give birth was at hand, there were twins in her womb.

Esau (pointing to self): The first came out red, all his body like a hairy mantle; so they named him Esau.

Jacob (raising hand as if to say that’s me): Afterward his brother came out, with his hand gripping Esau’s heel (Lean down to grab Esau’s heel then stand up again); so he was named Jacob.

Isaac (proudly):  Isaac was sixty years old when Rebekah bore them.

Esau (stand tall with feet planted wide):  When the boys grew up, Esau was a skillful hunter, a man of the field,

Jacob:  while Jacob was a quiet man, living in tents.

Isaac:  Isaac loved Esau, because he was fond of game; (Put hands on Esau’s shoulders)

Rebekah:  but Rebekah loved Jacob. (Put hands on Jacob’s shoulders)

Pause  (Parents withdraw hands and boys step forward a little)

Jacob:  Once when Jacob was cooking a stew,

Esau:  Esau came in from the field, and he was famished.   Esau said to Jacob, “Let me eat some of that red stuff, for I am famished!”

Jacob:  Jacob said, “First sell me your birthright.”

Esau:  Esau said, “I am about to die; of what use is a birthright to me?”

Jacob:  Jacob said, “Swear to me first.”

Esau:  So he swore to him, and sold his birthright to Jacob.

Jacob:  Then Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew,

Esau:  and he ate and drank, and rose and went his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright.

                                               Based on the New Revised Standard Version

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F Before reading this text, invite the children forward to explain what a birthright was.  From a preschool room bring a collection of plastic farm animals and housekeeping equipment.  Explain that when a man died in Bible days, all his stuff was divided among his sons (sorry, daughters).  The oldest son got twice as much as any younger son.  Identify several boys as brothers.  Give half of everything to one of them and split the rest between the others.  Note that since the oldest had more than he could possibly take care of, he COULD invite the younger ones to stay at home and help him.  But, he would be the boss.  Agree with the children that this was very unfair and you are glad it doesn’t work that way today.  Then, repeat the word “birthright” and tell the children they will hear about two brothers and the older’s birthright in today’s story.  Then send them back to their seats to listen.

D Children, who hear a lot about making good choices, enjoy hearing about Esau’s really poor choice.  Esau chose what he wanted right now without thinking about what he was giving up to get it.  Parents work hard to get children to avoid making that mistake.  And, throughout our lives we all struggle with what we want right now and what is of long term value.  Two books connect neatly here.

F Way back in the first Harry Potter book, Hagrid who loved magical animals got a chance to get a dragon egg.  He really wanted to raise a dragon.  He wanted it so much that he did not think ahead.  He ignored the fact that owning dragons was illegal, that dragons grow very fast, have poisonous fangs, nasty dispositions, and breathe fire.  (Hermoine had to remind him what was likely to happen to his wood house.)  And, there was trouble.  It soon became impossible to hide the growing, rambunctious dragon.  Finally, Harry, Ron and Hermoine managed to smuggle the dragon (Norbert) out of Hogwarts to people who could get it to a safe place.  But everyone got in trouble in the process.  Hagrid finally regretted getting the egg, just as Esau eventually realized that his choice to sell his birthright for a bowl of stew was very foolish.  Unfortunately for Esau, his bad choice had much more serious long term consequences than Hagrid’s did.  (See Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, chapter 14, for all the glorious details.)

F In Alexander Who Use to Be Rich Last Sunday Judith Viorst describes a long series of bad choices a boy makes spending the dollar his grandparents brought him.  Alexander (yes, the same Alexander of Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day) really wants to save it for a walkie-talkie, but frithers it away foolishly.  Since the book was written in 1978, you may want to update the prices, e.g. no 11 cent candy bars.  Alexander and Esau both need help thinking ahead when they make choices.

Psalm 119:105-112

F This is the section of the huge alphabet poem Psalm 119 in which every line begins with the Hebrew letter nun.  Display a poster of the letter, explain that each line praises God’s word in a phrase that begins with that letter.  Project or show this text in a Hebrew Bible pointing to the letter at the right hand (Hebrew reads right to left) of each line.  Then have each verse read by a different reader.  This could be a good worship leadership job for an older children’s class.

F Verse 105 is probably the best known of these verses.  To help children understand the metaphor “Your word is a lamp to my feet,” try using a Bible as a flashlight pretending to look for something.  Maybe with the help of the children, conclude that a Bible will never be a flashlight.  Then read verse 105 and work out what it is really saying about the Bible.  The Bible helps us know where to go and what to do every day.  It helps us see God’s good way of living. 

Romans 8:1-11

J.K. Rowling (Harry Potter) and Paul are on the same page in this passage.  Paul compares living by the flesh with living by the Spirit.  Rowling gives us two characters to embody those possibilities. 

Lord Voldemort lives according to the flesh.  He is all about getting what he wants no matter what it means for others.  One thing he wants is to be immortal.  He learns that the way to do that is to divide his soul (his self) into seven parts, inserting each in a separate object that he obtains by killing its owner.  These soul holding objects are called horcruxes.  Slowly Lord Voldemort creates the horcruxes hiding them in ingeniously guarded places.  Murder and mayhem ripple out from his activities. 

Harry Potter on the other hand lives by the Spirit, that is he understands the world as a good place and sees love as what holds the world together.  He knows that he was loved so much by his mother that she died to save him.  He slowly learns to treat all the people around him lovingly.  He and his friends hunt and destroy each of Lord Voldemort’s horcruxes to save each other and everyone in the world.  When Harry learns that he is the final horcrux and that the only way to stop Lord Voldemort is to let him kill Harry, Harry allows that to happen.  That is living by the Spirit.  The surprise is that after his “death,”  Harry learns that he still has the opportunity to live and thus is returned to his friends.  His love triumphs over death.  This is living by the Spirit too.

Though we do not face death-eaters, magical monsters, and wizards with wands, we do daily meet opportunities to do what we know is wrong and will hurt other people.  We are warned by Harry to stay alert and be careful.

F If your congregation uses the phrase “renounce evil” in questions in baptismal, confirmation or ordination, quote those questions today.  Put the question into your own words with reference to Harry Potter’s fight against the evil he encountered.  Talk about what it means to “renounce evil” in each worship situation.  Compare “renouncing evil” every day to the way Harry had to “renounce evil.”

Matthew 13:1-9,18-23

F Parables are very open stories designed to have more than one meaning.  Often they mean different things to the same reader at different times.  When we refuse to offer right answers to the parables in preaching, we welcome worshipers to read and ponder all parables with a sense of open wonder.

The commentaries I read, warned against treating this parable as an allegory.  The easy way to do that is to read only the parable (verse 1-9) omitting the very allegorical interpretation in verses 18-23.  Or, stop after the parable to ponder “what Jesus was trying to tell us” before introducing verses 18-23 as one possible meaning.  Children are often more able than adults to produce possible messages.  If they do, be sure that their attempts are affirmed and not laughed at – even when their offerings are a bit novel.

F This parable (verses 1-9) begs to be dramatized for sheer enjoyment. 

 

Before worship gather a group of worshipers to prepare to pantomime the parable as it is read.  Read through the story first asking actors to show you how each seed grew.  As they offer good interpretations, assign them to that part.  After reading it through once and assigning parts, direct actors where to stand.  Then reread the parable with the groups miming their assigned parts.  Now you should be ready to pantomime it during worship.

- This could be done by youth and adults for a more polished performance or
- by children to give them a chance to be worship leaders and have a more spontaneous performance or
- by an intergenerational group for summer fun and to emphasize that the parable belongs to all of us.

Green plant sock puppet
choked by a weed sock puppet

For a no rehearsal presentation using socks as puppets, invite the children to come forward to help you present the parable for the day.  Give each child one sock to pull over one hand.  Most socks should be green (or white with the instructions to imagine them green).  You will need a few dark brown ones for weeds and black ones for the thieving birds. There could even be a few gray ones for the rocks.  Once everyone has a sock on, invite them to show with their sock puppet what happens in the story.  You may need to pause as you read to help them act it out as you get started.

F The Harry Potter connection to this parable is found in Chapter 3 of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, “The Letters From No One.”  When his Uncle Vernon refuses to give Harry a letter addressed to him, more and more, actually hundreds of letters arrive.  As Uncle Vernon moves Harry and the family around hoping to make the letters stop, the letters keep arriving with the new address, e.g. “the cupboard under the stairs,” “the smallest bedroom,” “Railview Hotel,” and finally “the floor, Hut on the Rock, the Sea.”  The letter is an invitation to become a student at Hogwarts.  When Hagrid finally delivers it personally to Harry he tells Harry that he is a wizard, a much loved one.  Like the sower, Hagrid scatters his letters in abundance everywhere that Harry might get them.  Like the seed, the letters tell Harry who he is and invite him to an incredible new future. 

F Two other familiar children’s stories about sowing with abandon:

Miss Rumphius, by Barbara Cooney, tells the fictional story of a woman who keeps her promise to her grandfather to do something to make the world prettier by planting lupine seeds all around her community in Maine.

Go to http://www.appleseed.net/About_Johnny.htm to learn the details of the story of Johnny Appleseed, a real person who became a legend, for planting apple trees all over the Ohio River Valley and into New York.  After telling his story, sing the Johnny Appleseed blessing in place of the doxology today when offerings are presented today.

O, the Lord’s been good to me. 

And so I thank the Lord

for giving me the things I need:

the sun and the rain and the apple seed. 

The Lord is good to me.  Amen.

Year A - The Fourth Sunday in Lent (April 3, 2011)

Today’s texts are filled with images of light and vision.  Poetry and metaphor abound.  To avoid losing the children entirely, think carefully about the images you use.  Select one or two rather than include every  one of them.  The images that make most sense to children include

Ø  God sees us.  God saw the overlooked David.  Jesus saw the blind beggar.

Ø  God sees us as we are “on the inside,” not just the way we look “on the outside.”  (See the David story)

Ø  John’s word play about the Pharisees “not seeing” works well in English.  In everyday English, “I see” or “I get it” means “I understand.”  When it is laid out in detail, children enjoy the joke that the Pharisees, were blind or couldn’t see (understand) what happened to the blind man.  The joke continues in the Old Testament reading when “Samuel, the Seer” fails to see the one God has chosen to be king.

Ø  “Children of the light” or “children of darkness” are simply titles for God’s people and those who are not God’s people.  They are more like team colors than a meaningful description of the team.

Children get overwhelmed by some light images.

Ø  “I am the light of the world.”  For literal thinkers, the sun, the moon, the stars, and electricity are the lights of the world.  It is almost impossible for them to grasp light as spiritual understanding or moral guidance.  Forget lighthouses, searchlights, flashlights, etc. as object lessons.  The children just don’t see the connections.

Ø  Spiritual blindness is an idea that will simply have to wait for young brains to develop more fully. 

Ø  “Doing deeds in the light” is doing them where they can be seen. 

1 Samuel 16:1-13

Children who are shuttled off to eat in the kitchen while the grownups eat in the dining room, children who  get left at home when older family members do interesting-sounding things, and children who feel themselves always “less than” their older siblings love in this story!  It promises them that God does not overlook them, sees them as they are, and appreciates them.  The story was probably set on the fourth Sunday of Lent as encouragement to those who are struggling with keeping Lenten disciplines.  And, there are similarities between the fourth Sunday in Lent and this point in the school year.  To those who are struggling, the end of the year is very distant.  Teachers and other students have decided who you are and what you will do.  They don’t seem to see the real you and all your efforts.  In such a stuck situation, hearing that God knows and appreciates the real you is Good News indeed!

To bring this story to life, have it read and pantomimed by a group of men and boys.  The seven brothers can simply step forward and stand in place (maybe in the military “at ease” pose) as the story is read.  Old Samuel looks at each one shaking his head with surprise.  Finally, younger David is brought in, kneels to be anointed, then goes back to the sheep.  A rehearsal will be needed and should be a fun connecting time for the group.

One lectionary commentator explained the British Mothering Day custom of families worshiping together on the fourth Sunday of Lent.  He suggested building the entire service, including a child friendly sermon,  around this story so that children who are often sent away from the sanctuary can remain and worship with their mothers.  He rightly contends that people of all generations respond to this message.  Those who celebrate Mother’s Day in May might want to save this story and his idea for use then.

Psalm 23

Children who are regulars in church school are usually well versed in shepherds and recognize most of the shepherd references in this psalm.  For other urban children shepherds are fierce guard dogs.  They need a more thorough introduction.  A walking stick (rod) and shepherd’s crook (even one from a swimming pool) can be used to demonstrate the shepherd’s work and to explain why having a shepherd with those tools handy would be a comfort. 

After he was anointed, David was sent back to take care of the sheep.  When his brothers got sent to fight the Philistines, David had to say behind.  He made it to the front lines only to carry food to his big brothers.  When Psalm 23 is read as a David’s prayer while he was back with his sheep, it is possible to hear “you anoint my head with oil” more as a memory of what happened and an appreciation of the fact that God has plans for him than as a reference to first aid for sheep.  Children can imagine David back with his sheep, happily recalling being singled out and wondering what that anointing would mean for him.

Remember that for children a cup that runs over is a disaster, not an over abundance of the good things in life.

Print the words of the psalm in large print at the center of a piece of paper. Give copies and crayons to children inviting them (and other worshipers?) to illustrate the psalm during worship.  Suggest that they either underline one or two phrases to illustrate or that they surround the psalm with pictures from their own lives of times when they need to remember the psalm.  Ask children to show you their work as they leave the sanctuary or invite them to post it on a door or bulletin board near the sanctuary.

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Psalm 23

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.

²     He makes me lie down in green pastures;

he leads me beside still waters;

³     he restores my soul.

He leads me in right paths

for his name’s sake.

⁴     Even though I walk through the darkest valley,

I fear no evil;

for you are with me;

your rod and your staff—

they comfort me.

⁵     You prepare a table before me

in the presence of my enemies;

you anoint my head with oil;

my cup overflows.

⁶     Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me

all the days of my life,

and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord

my whole life long.

New Revised Standard Version

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There are many musical versions of Psalm 23.  Many however use the King James vocabulary that few children know.  Probably the first choice is “The Lord’s My Shepherd, I’ll Not Want” (Scottish Psalter) because the tune is familiar to the congregation and because the words are closest to today’s English.  “The Lord’s My Shepherd, All My Need” (Christopher L. Webber, 1986) has easier vocabulary but the tune is less familiar.  Finally, “He Leadeth Me, O Blessed Thought” is a meditation on the theme of the psalm with an easy to read and understand repeated chorus. 

It is also a fact that each congregation has its favorite Psalm 23 hymn which is sung with a passion children hear.  If you select such a song knowing that children will have trouble with some of the vocabulary, in a brief introduction explain one or two key words or phrases before inviting the congregation to sing it.

Ephesians 5:8-14

The light and dark images here keep children from Paul’s point which they need to hear.  Simply put, Paul is telling us not to do or say anything that we don’t want everyone in the world to know we did or said.  This is one time when straight talk is most understandable.

John 9:1-41

A call to worship is supposed to get people ready to worship.  If you will be worshiping using vision vocabulary and images, begin by alerting especially young worshipers to that fact.  Together brainstorm words related to vision (eyes, see, light, vision, watch, etc.).  Add any words you will use, but that no one else mentions.  Encourage worshipers to watch for them in the readings, prayers and songs of the days.  Suggest that they underline all the vision words they see in their bulletins.  Then sing one or more verses of “Open My Eyes That I May See” to call yourselves to worship.

This is another of those long, complex stories that are more easily followed when they are pantomimed by actors and actresses who can show what is going on with their faces and gestures.  Older teenagers and adults do this best.  A worship leader reads from the lectern as the actors work.  They may work in a confined space front and center of the sanctuary.  Or, following the story, they might move to different parts of the sanctuary for the scenes of healing, community response, discussion with the Pharisees, and final scene with Jesus.

Much of the discussion about light and seeing in this story is beyond children.  But, the way people did or did not really see the blind man offers older children an appropriate  challenge. 

Though the blind man had been begging outside the Temple for years, the Temple leaders had paid him so little attention that they did not recognize him when he was not in his usual place.  They had seen him with their eyes, but not paid him any attention. 

Jesus on the other hand, saw him and paid him attention.  He treated him as a real person.  In response to his need, Jesus healed him.  Later, when he went looking for the man after he got thrown out of the Temple, he did not need anyone to point him out.  He remembered what he looked like. 

The challenge is to be like Jesus, i.e. to really “see” people.   Encourage children to think of people they meet everyday such as bus drivers, school cafeteria workers, the library lady, grocery store cashiers, even beggars by the road, etc.  Identify some ways they can let those people know they are important to you, e.g. learning their names and then calling them by name, smiling at them, thanking them for what they do for you… 

This could be a children’s sermon, but will probably lose the younger children.  It is better as part of the “real” sermon in which children as well as adults are challenged and children learn that sermons might be for them, too. 

One way to enable people to “see” the homeless in their community is to give them a specific way to respond.  Make meal coupons or gift cards to local fast food restaurants available for purchase by church members.  Members keep them in their cars to give to homeless people they encounter begging by the side of the road.

Year A - Second Sunday in Epiphany, Second Sunday in Ordinary Time (January 16, 2011)

Isaiah 49:1-7

Reading this text in which the speaker is telling a story and within that story quoting God extensively requires practice.  If worshipers of any age are to follow the passage, the reader needs to imagine himself/herself speaking dramatically before a large crowd.  Think ahead about how you will show with your voice the difference in what the Servant says and what God says.  Plan how to emphasize the words to communicate the ideas in each sentence.

In verse 6 the task of the servant Israel is to be a light to the nations.  Explaining to children who think literally what it means for either God or people to be light is not easy.  Describing the difference lanterns, flashlights, even candles make in the dark is easy.  But, connecting that difference with the difference that kind words and deeds of love and mercy make is quite a stretch.  Children’s brains simply have not developed the necessary transference ability. 

Instead use this as an opportunity for some worship education about the use of candles in worship and even the responsibility of acolytes who light them or carry them in or out.  Many congregations place two candles on the worship table.  One means God/Jesus is the light of the world.  The other means we are called to be light for the world.  Some congregations intentionally carry a taper lit from one of these candles out of the sanctuary at the end of worship in order to remind us to follow God out into the world to serve and worship there.  Describe and even deomonstrate how your congregation uses candles in worship and explain in simple terms the significance of what you do. 

Without getting tangled up in the “light to the nations” image, it is possible to explore Isaiah’s insistence that God doesn’t want us just to look out for ourselves, our church, and our community, but to be concerned for everyone in the whole world.  Reread  just verse 6, putting some of the ideas you’re your own words.  Then,

-     describe at least one way your congregation reaches out to people far away.  If possible select an activity in which children are involved, such as packing disaster relief kits.

-     think together of a prayer to offer for the people who live on each continent.  (Follow you progress using a globe.)  Then offer those prayers.

Psalm 40:1-11

Verses 9 and 10 are the key ones for children.  The psalmist declares that he has spoken about God’s saving action.  Children can be encouraged to speak about God in two ways.

Like the psalmist they can sing God’s praises.  Singing songs praising God with others at church and singing songs praising God on their own are important disciplines to cultivate.  Today children are more likely to listen to music than to sing it.  Encourage them to sing by telling stories in which singing is important and by doing a lot of congregational singing during worship today.  Assign worshipers a familiar hymn you have sung and discussed in worship today to sing in the car on their way home.  (Encourage them to do this whether they are singing a solo or with a “choir”.)

Children can also speak up on God’s behalf every day.  When the group is doing something that is wrong, even young children can say so.

This weekend the psalmist reminds us of Martin Luther King who spoke to the American nation on God’s behalf of the injustices being endured by African Americans.   He said, “I have a dream…” but he meant “God has a dream and will make it come true.”   His words about this dream inspired people to make difficult changes to right the injustices.  King and his followers also sang songs, spirituals that echoed his words.  Together the speaking and singing of God is powerful.  King spoke to and sang with millions of people.  Few of us do.  But, we can sing songs for God and we can speak up among our friends.  We can stand up for God’s ways and point out when people are starting to do things that are wrong.  Martin Luther King had to be brave to speak up for God and so do we. 

1 Corinthians 1:1-9

For the next seven weeks we will be reading from 1 Corinthians.  This may be the first generation of children who need to learn what a letter is.  Strange, but true!  They are increasingly used to communicating in short emails or even shorter text messages that are sent quickly, read and generally deleted.  They have little experience with a several page letter that was carefully composed, read and reread, and then kept to reread in the future.  So before reading from this letter, take time to explore what it was and meant to the early Christians.

-     Bring a stamped envelope containing a several page handwritten letter, a handheld computer with an email or text message displayed, and the pulpit Bible opened to the beginning of 1 Corinthians.  If Harry Potter mania is still alive, refer to the messages the owls carried.  Talk about the similarities and differences in each one.  Some take more time to write.  Some are harder to deliver and take longer to reach the receiver.  Some are considered more worth saving to reread and to share with others.  Explain that Corinthians is a letter sent from Paul to the Christians in Corinth and that they thought it was so important that they saved it, copied it, shared it with others. 

-     Display pictures of Corinthian ruins and modern day Corinth and have a map on hand to point out where Corinth is.  Ask if anyone in the congregation has been to Corinth.  The point is simply to realize that Corinth is a real place with real people.  (The photos below were found by googling “Corinth pictures.”)

 

-     Briefly introduce Paul telling how he knew the people in Corinth.  Point out some of his other letters to other churches in the Bible.

-     Read verse 2 that tells to whom the letter is sent.  Stop as you get to the parts that describe the saints beyond Corinth.  “Hey, wait!  That is us.  We are….  You and you are…   We have mail!”

Then invite worshipers to listen to what Paul says as the letter begins.

If you are going to explore the gifts Paul recognized in the members of the church in Corinth and in us, offer children a worksheet printed with a large gift box.  Invite them to write about or draw into the boxes some of the gifts/abilities/talents God has given them.  Point out that God wants them to use those gifts to love other people in the world.  Invite them to drop their drawings into the offering plates as a way of thanking God for those gifts or to share them with you as they leave the sanctuary.  Suggest that in one part of the box they draw a cross or a heart for the gift of God’s love.

John 1:29-42

This is really two stories in one.  To help young readers follow it as it is read, plan for two readers and three actors to pantomime with them.  Find actors who are able to communicate with their faces and gestures.  They will probably need to be high school students or older.  The following script is based on NRSV.

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Narrator (reading from lectern):  The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him and declared,

John:   “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!  This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’  I myself did not know him; but I came baptizing with water for this reason, that he might be revealed to Israel.”  And, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him.  I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’  And I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God.”

Narrator:   The next day John again was standing with two of his disciples, and as he watched Jesus walk by, he exclaimed, “Look, here is the Lamb of God!”

John points at Jesus and faces two disciples.

The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus.

Disciples follow Jesus to one side and John retreats off the other side.

When Jesus turned and saw them following, he said to them, “What are you looking for?”

Jesus turns and give hand gesture for question.

They said to him, “Rabbi” (which translated means Teacher), “where are you staying?”

Disciples reach out to ask question of Jesus.

 He said to them, “Come and see.”  

Jesus gestures with hands to come with him.  They all move to other side.

They came and saw where he was staying, and they remained with him that day. It was about four o’clock in the afternoon. One of the two who heard John speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He first found his brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which is translated Anointed).

One disciple goes to bring Simon who is seated in first row to join him and Jesus.

He brought Simon to Jesus, who looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You are to be called Cephas” (which is translated Peter).

Jesus looks at Simon and places his hands on his shoulders to welcome a friend.

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Lamb of God is a nickname or a symbol for Jesus.  But, it is a hard one for children to understand.  To understand the Passover connection it will be necessary to retell that story.  To make the connection to the thank offerings, it will be necessary to explain the thinking behind that practice to children to whom it tends to sound cruel and weird.   Instead,

-     If your sanctuary includes Lamb of God images, point them out and simply say that they remind us of Jesus.
 

-     Point out in the worship bulletin the places you will pray, say or sing “Lamb of God” today.  Maybe suggest that children underline the name every time they find it in the bulletin.  Then instruct them to think “Jesus” as they use the term.

This is a story about people who told others what they knew and introduced their friends to important people.  John pointed out Jesus to his disciples.  Andrew brought his brother to meet Jesus.  It can be tied to theme about speaking your testimony in Isaiah and Psalm 40.  In this story the speaking is done in everyday situations among people who know each other.  It may be used to challenge children to speak up to their friends and siblings or to invite their friends to church.