Preschool: Count the Stars

Lydia here. Pinch hitting for Laura who is out sick. Pray for her comfort and ability to rest up!

Today we learned about the promise God made to Abraham, a promise that his decedents would be as numerous as the stars. God told Abraham, "...I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you throughout thier generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you." Gen. 17:7.

There's a lot more to the covenant than that, but that's the part the storybook highlighted along with the part of the story where Abraham and Sarah pack up all their stuff and move to a new, beautiful place.

As a lead in to this story, we packed a backpack with cookware, a towel, a hat, mittens and a Bible and went on a trip to our new, beautiful campsite (a super cool play tent on loan from Olive Edwards). The kids had a great time playing in the tent and pretending to star gaze.

I didn't have time to give this lesson much thought beforehand. So, basically I just presented the story and didn't drive home any clear moral. I am confident that God is able to work on the hearts of our kids without my input, and that his Word can speak for itself. As I went into second service, I was working to gain some significance from the lesson for my own sake. Then, voila, Summer compares God's people to stars (or moons) who reflect God's glory and the love of Christ. We shine brighter and brighter through sanctification. Then Mark pulls out this new song that incorporates the chorus of an old Rich Mullins song. A verse to that old song goes like this:

Sometimes I think of Abraham
How one star he saw had been lit for me
He was a stranger in this land
And I am that, no less than he
And on this road to righteousness
Sometimes the climb can be so steep
I may falter in my steps
But never beyond Your reach

Wow! These connections between what was happening in Sunday school and what was happening in "big people church" astounded me.

Preschool: David the Shepherd & Song Writer

Today we heard about how David- the same boy who defeated Goliath with God's help- was a shepherd boy who grew up to be a King and musician.  We talked about farmers who take care of their animals and how a shepherd is a lot like a farmer who just takes care of sheep.

So first, we heard the story of David defending his sheep from a lion and a bear (and a puma and coyote and fox), with God's help.  We thought about how David protected his sheep and how God protected David.  We thought about how God protects us, even from things that are large and scary and more than we could do on our own.  We thought about how God makes us feel safe.

We made a green pasture and quite waters in which our sheep our sheep could feel safe.

Then we played music like King David and sang a song that he wrote, which we call Psalm 23 (I attempted to put the words to the tune of Baa Baa Black sheep).  It is about how David is like a sheep and God is his shepherd.  Consider reading Psalm 23 with your family this week and think about how God is our shepherd.

The kids were rock stars today.  Can't wait to see them next week.

Confession: This idea of safety is one that I struggle with as a parent. I want my child to feel safe and know that, with God's help, I will do everything in my power to protect them. But, I recognize that they cannot always be safe and harm can happen.  I worry that if I only teach them about God keeping them safe from harm, that if someone was harmed, they would see this as God's failure.  In Sunday School at this age, I realize that we are teaching the about God's GREAT love for man and have yet to introduce man's GREAT brokenness.  Maybe we as parents can think about how and when we want to introduce this concept to our kids in the future... thanks for journeying with me!

Preschool: Jonah and the whale

Glad to be back in Sunday School for this part of the church calendar.  We'll be hearing a few more old testament stories before we start anticipating the birth of Jesus in Advent.  So this week, we met Jonah who tried to hide from God.  God had a message for Jonah and for Ninevah: God loves you; God will be with you, even when you try to run the other way.  


I love the simple yet profound message in these stories.  


We colored Jonahs, ate goldfish, pinned the Jonah on the whale, played hide and seek with Jonah, and build a lego city of Ninevah where Jonah proclaimed: God loves you!

Preschool: Daniel and the Lions

This week we learned about Daniel and how he prayed to God even when it was against the law to do so. When Daniel was punished by being thrown into the lions' den, God kept him safe.

The kids and I had a conversation about being in places that might seem scary (like a cave full of lions). But guess what? We don't need to be afraid! God is with us at Sunday school, in dark rooms, on airplanes, around big dogs. God is taking care of us everywhere we go.

We made lion masks and had a good time reenacting the story.

Next week will be my last week teaching this class. After that, the fabulous Laura Watrous will be taking over. I have had an absolute blast teaching the class and will definitely serve another 3-month term in the future.