Big Idea: God makes earth more like heaven when we live with Jesus as our King.

Bible Passage: Matthew 6:5-13, (focus on: verse 10.)

Parent Prep: Although the 'Big Idea' this week is the same as the last one in this Lord's Prayer series, this time we are looking globally. This week we will think and pray through ways to 'bring the kingdom' to our world – and the role we all play in doing so.

Read Matthew 6:5-13 together in your Bibles, or read it in a children's version here, or watch it together here.

Talk 

Together, read Matthew 28:19-20. Talk about what 'nations' are. Using the map that you printed off for Sunday (or print and download here: World Map), choose a country or nation at random. You could stick your map up and throw a pen at it to see which it hits, or close your eyes and randomly choose, or even put it across the room and throw something small and see where it lands. However you choose your nation, colour in that country, and 'google' search the nation to find out who lives there and what their culture is like. Take note of the country's most popular religion and whether many people there know of Jesus. Does this country have a Bible in it's native language?

Listen

Ask children, does [this country] look like heaven/God's Kingdom? Does everybody obey Jesus and name Him King and Saviour there? Is there hurt, brokenness or pain there? Have children name where they see brokenness in the country you have researched. 

Ask children, do you think that God cares about those things? What do you think God, the King over everyone, wants to do about those things? Read Romans 10:14-15 together. God has chosen us, His people, to be the ones to go and tell others about the good news of Jesus. How can we be a part of God's plan for the whole world? Daniel shared in his message yesterday, there are 4 ways we are all involved in this mission: to Pray, Encourage, Give and Go.

Do 

• Pray – Using the country you have chosen as a family, work out which direction it is in. Then, stand as a family to face that direction outside on the pavement or driveway. Trace around children's feet as they face the direction, and write the name of the country in the middle of the drawing. Commit as a family to stand in these feet spaces and pray that God's word would go forward and many people there would know and accept the good news of the gospel. 'How beautiful are the feet of those who bring the good news.'
• Encourage – as a family, write and post a letter of encouragement to Daniel and Megan, or the Callows family as they serve God in Thailand. Alternatively, write a letter to your family's sponsor child(ren) together and include your favourite Bible verse to share with them.
• Give – Talk with children about your family's budget, and how much is set aside to bless the work of overseas missionaries or people in need overseas. Ask children how they would feel about contributing to this giving work. What could they give to bless and further the work of the gospel in far away places? Remind children that just as Jesus took the small lunch of the boy with fish and bread and blessed thousands with it, Jesus can take whatever small amount they have and multiply it by His mighty power to bless many people.
• Go- Did you know that according to a Barna study, most Baptist missionaries decided to do that work by the time they were age 11? Encourage children to seriously pray and ask God if this is work He has called them to, and that they would have the faith in Him to follow wherever He leads them. 

Have a great week, and we hope to see you soon!

Big Idea: God makes earth more like heaven when we live with Jesus as our King.

Bible Passage: Matthew 6:5-13, (focus on: verse 10.)

Parent Prep: Although the 'Big Idea' this week is the same as the last one in this Lord's Prayer series, this week we are looking locally, at our community. This week we will think and pray through ways to 'bring the kingdom' to our local area and the people we meet there.

Read Matthew 6:5-13 together in your Bibles, or read it in a children's version here, or watch it together here.

Talk 

Together, look up in a dictionary, or 'google' the word: Community. [A group of people living in the same place or having a particular characteristic in common.] Talk about the 'communities' your family members are a part of. They can be geographical communities – like the lady at the local grocery store ('living in the same place') or the people you do the same things with each week –  like a sports team ('having a particular characteristic in common'.) 

Listen

Ask children, do [these communities] look like heaven/God's Kingdom? Does everybody obey Jesus and name Him King and Saviour there? Is there hurt, brokenness or pain there? Have children name where they see brokenness in the communities you have named. Maybe people use hurtful language, or the people they meet seem sad or angry. Maybe children notice there are other kids at school who are mean, or come to school hungry. Maybe there is a neighbour or an elderly person down the street who seems lonely. Maybe a friend from a sports team or club has been sick.

Ask children, do you think that God cares about those things? What do you think God, the King over everyone, wants to do about those things? Read 1 John 3:16-18 together. God, our King, has chosen to use us to help others. When we know how much God loves us, we want to love others the same way. Whatever we have, we want to give to others to help them, just like Jesus.

Do 

Say to children, "When we choose to live with God as king, other people can see how wonderful it is to be in God's Kingdom." With the list of communities you made earlier, draw a basic map together of places your family goes and interacts with each week. It could include the local grocery shop, school, grandparents or friends houses, or sporting/activity clubs. Then, choose (at least) one community space or place that your family interacts with, and colour it in together. Decide on one way that you could make it look more like heaven this week by sharing the love, hope and healing of Jesus with those people. Maybe you could write a letter or draw a picture for an elderly neighbour, or for the lady at the grocery store this week. Maybe you could text or send a video message to a sick friend to tell them that you are praying for them, and pray for them as a family. Stick your map on the fridge with your colourful communities to remind you to bring joy and love to those places this week. Remind children as you do this, that we are doing what Jesus has first done for us as it says in 1 John 4:19: "we love because He first loved us."

Have a great week – we'll see you soon.

Big Idea: We are strengthened in our faith when we drive deep into God's word and with God's family.

Bible Passage: Colossians 2:6-7

Parent Prep: This week we have celebrated Mother's Day together, and our schools are going back! We are taking it easy this week with our family devotions as a way to celebrate and thank our mums (and all our mother-figures) and give rest to those who need it.

Read Colossians 2:6-7 together in a children's Bible. 

Talk

As you drive, walk or sit together this week, discuss with children what makes plants and flowers grow up strong. Sunshine and plenty of light, good, deep roots, water, healthy, fertile soil. As plants need these things to grow up strong, so we need things to help us grow up strong in our faith too. Explain to children, when someone tells us about the hope of Jesus, and we put our trust in Him, it's like when a seed is planted. But seeds need lots of things to help them grow into healthy plants.

Listen

Ask What kind of things do we need to grow up strong in our faith? What makes our 'seed of faith' grow? (Reading and asking questions to understand God's words, singing songs of praise to Him, speaking to Him in prayer, trusting Him when it is tough, having others who are strong in the faith around us to encourage us, serving Him in love, using our gifts to help and serve others, telling others about Him).

Do

Go out into the garden and water the plants together. As you do, point out the things that make plants grow. Then, list the things that help our faith grow, and talk about where you have these things together in your family life. Celebrate that God has given you these ways to know Him, and be 'overflowing with thankfulness' to Him for these. Consider singing a song of praise together, or praying in thanks for these things around your family's 'Ebenezer' stone if you have one.

Enjoy your gardens, the sunshine, and the week together 🙂

Big Idea: God makes earth more like heaven when we live with Jesus as our King.

Bible Passage: Matthew 6:5-13, (focus on: verse 10.)

Parent Prep: This week we look at our calling to partner with God in bringing hope and healing to our world. When we pray "Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven," we are asking God to have His way here on earth as He does in heaven. In heaven, He is on His throne, and all praise and glory go to Him, all the time. In Revelation 21:3-5 describes a perfect home for His children, where there are no tears, no death, no mourning or crying or pain. When we ask God to make this earth like heaven, we are asking for these things. Healing, hope, restoration, life and joy. We are asking God to draw near to His people and make broken things 'like new'. And we are asking God to use usas instruments in His hands as He does this. 

Read Matthew 6:5-13 together in your Bibles, or read it in a children's version here, or watch it together here.

Talk 

Say to children "God wants our world to be perfect, for us to be close to Him and to enjoy Him forever. No more tears, no more crying or pain. He promises one day this will be our real life." Read together Revelation 21:3-5. Ask children, "Is that what our world looks like now?" No, our world is full of brokenness. Ask children to list places they see tears, death, mourning, crying or pain. Remind children that our own sin is also part of the world's brokenness, and can hurt ourselves and others. Write or draw the things and places that they list out on pieces of paper or sticky notes for your activity later.

Listen

Ask children, "What's the best thing about heaven?" [That God is there, on His throne, dwelling with his people.] Ask children to describe what they think heaven might be like to you, and let them imagine as much as they want to. If you like, try to draw the things they describe. Add your own thoughts and wonderings, encouraging children to imagine as much 'good' as possible.

As children imagine, ask, "Why don't you think earth looks like that now?" Allow children to think through reasons our earth has brokenness and pain, and heaven does not. Eventually, lead them to see that the difference is that in heaven, and in God's coming Kingdom, everyone always lives as God desires. People on earth right now, do not. Ask children, "Do we always live with God as our King?" Help children see that when we choose to sin, and act as if we are the boss, that we contribute to the pain here on earth. When we choose to live as God desires, we bring life and light, hope and healing to our world.

Do 

Say to children, "When we choose to live with God as king, other people can see how wonderful it is to be in God's Kingdom." With a large piece of paper, or a board, or even a blank piece of wall-space, stick up or write the heading "God's Kingdom". Underneath the heading, stick your sticky-notes and post its that you wrote or drew earlier with the broken things of this world on them. Then, on new sticky notes, or pieces of paper, write or draw together ways you could bring hope and joy to those places.

Eg. If a sticky-note says "falling off my bike," draw or write someone hugging/comforting/sticking a band-aid on a sore knee. Or, if a sticky note says "not sharing toys", write or draw a child sharing toys with their friends or siblings. Then, take these new pieces of pape/sticky-notes, and stick them on top of the 'brokenness' sticky-notes. As children stick up their new pictures and words, have them say, "When I choose to live with Jesus as King, I help bring healing to people." When the activity is complete, stand back and admire how much more beautiful 'God's Kingdom' now looks. 

Remind children, God gives us His Holy Spirit to be able to do these hard things, to bring healing and hope to a hurting world. Pray together and thank Him for His presence, and that we get to be a part of His big plan to save the world. Ask Him for help this week to go out and be a part of bringing hope to our world.

Have a great week!