This weekend we taught the children the biblical account of how God rested from Creation. We helped the children explore what it means to praise God through worship, rest, and reflection.

The Bible tells us that at the end of the Creation account, God rested. God’s rest serves as the basis for two central elements of faith. First, rest is a necessary and sacred part of life. God’s day of rest established the practice of the sabbath, a weekly sacred day of rest. (The word sabbath means “to cease.”) The practice of a day of rest helps us recognize and remember that creation does not depend on us; creation depends on God. When we rest in imitation of God, we honor life as a gift.

Second, many scholars say God’s day of rest demonstrates the faith God has in creation. God is an ever-present part of creation, but God chooses not to keep tinkering with it. God has faith creation will work. (Even in the story of the Flood, found later in Genesis, God shows faith in creation by saving Noah’s family and the different species of animals.)

Keeping the sabbath is one of the Ten Commandments. “Remember the sabbath day, and keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work. But the seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God” (Exodus 20:8- 10).

The Jewish sabbath begins at the appearance of the first evening star on Friday night and continues until sunset on Saturday. It is considered a time of joy and thanksgiving. As Christians, we celebrate the sabbath on Sunday. It is a reminder of the resurrection of Jesus on Sunday morning. Like the teachings of our Jewish heritage, we remember the sabbath and teach our children how this day of rest helps us to serve and celebrate God.

This week as you interact with your children, think about what the sabbath means to you. Think about things you do to relax. Thank God for rest. In Mark 6:31, Jesus said to the disciples, “‘Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while.’ For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat.” Aren’t our lives just this busy at times? In the midst of your busy schedule, ask God to give you the balance you need between rest and work. Pray for your children. They, too, feel the pressure of rushed and hurried lives. Pray for your home environments and guard your time of rest.

God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good. Genesis 1:31

This weekend we helped children recognize that they are made in the image of God.

Being made in God’s image is frequently taken to mean “looks like.” God’s image is much more complicated than that. When we talk about the image of God, first we have to get beyond the idea of physical characteristics. Obviously as the children look around themselves, they see people who are a variety of sizes, shapes, and colors. So which group, the children will ask, represents the image of God? We will answer, “They all do!” God has given people the ability to choose, not merely act on instinct or training. Being made in God’s image means that humans are a reflection of the spiritual, emotional, and intellectual characteristics that are attributed to God.

This weekend we helped the children make the biblical connection that we are made in the image of God. We engaged in activities that showed that each one of them is special and unique. Have you thought lately about your own uniqueness and how special you are to God? There’s no one else in the universe like you. What you will offer your children, your gifts and talents, faith, personality, manner of interaction with them is unlike any other parent. Take a few moments and thank God for you. Don’t think about your failures or shortcomings we all have them. Rather, concentrate on what wonderful gifts you bring to the relationship with your children. Let your gifts be an inspiration to your kids.

This week as you interact with your children help them see how special they are, expand their thoughts to the diversity of the world. Take time to thank God for all the different abilities, cultures, ages, and qualities of people throughout the world. Emphasize to them that all people everywhere are created in the image of God.

“God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good”. Genesis 1:31

This weekend we helped the children recognize that God created the world and that our world is a gift from God. We helped children understand that it is our responsibility to care for God’s creation.

Last week our lesson left the stage prepared to receive the next step in God’s creation, living creatures. God filled the sky with birds and the seas with sea creatures. With the creation of animals in the waters and in the air comes a blessing. While creation has been affirmed as good, this is the first time that a blessing is given. The blessing is a meaningful image in the Old Testament. With a blessing, one person gives power and vitality to another. In creation, this blessing shows us that animals of all kinds have an important value to God.

This week as you spend time with your children, help them to think about how God richly provides for us through creation. Spend time in prayer, thanking God for His provisions. Also ask God to fill you and your kids with awe and wonder at His creation. You might want to study with your kids an unusual animal, fish, or bird, and discover how awesome God really is. Spend some time thinking about ways you and your kids can be good caretakers of God’s world.

“God saw everything that He had made, and indeed, it was very good”. (Genesis 1:3)

This weekend the kids heard the account of Creation. They were encouraged to respond to God’s amazing love and the wonder of His creation.

As Christians we believe that God created the world. He said let there be light and there was. As adults we often lose sight of the wonder of God’s creation because we come to view nature, the seasons, and animals as routine and mundane.

Kids are full of questions about the “how” of creation. This weekend we answered those questions by reading the Creation account in the Bible. We also explained to them that is OK to have questions and to not understand certain things about the Creation account. We explained to them that is in these times when we trust and have faith even if we don’t fully understand.

This week as you interact with your children let them experience the wonders of God’s creation and remember to point out to them that everything that is around them was created by God. Remind them and yourselves that God’s presence is with us in all the world around us. And of course Jesus teaches us, that from the dawn of creation to the dawn of life everlasting, God will always be there.

This weekend the kids hear the account of Paul reminding the believers in Ephesus that Jesus taught about love and forgiveness. They learned that God calls us to practice love and forgiveness. They were encouraged to be imitators of God by loving and forgiving others as God loves and forgives us.

Paul’s letter to the church in Ephesus is filled with advice and tips on how to “live the story,” including specific advice about to live in love with one another. In order to live a life of love, Paul first tells us to put away that which is harmful to ourselves and to others: “bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice” (Ephesians 4:31). Instead Paul says that we must be “kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you” (Ephesians 4:32).

Wow! Can you imagine what kind of world we would live in if we all just followed those simple words of advice? The truth, though, is that our world is often full of the things that Paul advises us to “put away.”

God expects us to love as He intended. Note that Paul does not say that it will be easy for the church to follow this advice. Paul knew better than that! He knew how easy it is for people to use harsh words, to gossip about each other, to let anger get the best of them, or to carry a grudge. So Paul was not saying that living a life of love would be a simple task.

Paul did, however, give us one great tip on how we could work toward such a life. He wrote, “therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love, as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God” (Ephesians 5:1). Surely, we are far from smelling like a fragrant sacrifice. But isn’t it wonderful that we are forgiven? And isn’t it great knowing that we have an example of Christ to follow in our own lives?

Children know about all the “junk” that Paul tell us to get out of our lives. They get angry; they sometimes say mean words. They unfortunately see adults behaving in such ways. So this week as you interact with your children, remember that they are looking at you, therefore, it is crucial that you become “imitators of God.” Remember that Paul said to be kind to one another that we should forgive. This week also encourage the children to fill their lives with love and kindness and forgiveness. As Christ is our supreme example, let’s strive also to be an example for little eyes and little lives to follow.