May 03
You Are Special by Max Lucado is a story about Wemmicks—small wooden people that spend their time awarding one another grey dots or gold stars. Pretty and talented Wemmicks received gold stars. Not-so-lovely Wemmicks received grey dots. Punchinello is one such Wemmick who had lots of grey dots.
Punchinello is chipped and ugly, and thinks he’s not worth much at all. But Eli the master woodworker helps him realize how special he is, marks and all, and how much Eli loves him. Punchinello meets Lucia, a Wemmick with no stars or dots, and he embarks on a journey to learn the truth—what the Creator thinks is what really matters. Punchinello discovered that stickers only stick if you let them!
Dorothy Nolte wrote, “If children live with criticism, they learn to condemn … If children live with encouragement, they learn confidence.” This week’s free resource is a tool that you can read to children and share with parents. Help everyone see that regardless of the world’s evaluation, God cherishes each of us, just as we are.
In Christ You Are Very Special
Parents are a child’s most influential role models. Parents can encourage their children by reading and believing what God says about whom we really are as Christians! Biblically based affirmations are a powerful tool to help manifest a joyful life. Help children realize, just as Punchinello discovered, that stickers only stick if you let them!
Practical Idea
Print the following free resource, make copies, and read aloud to your kids in class. Provide copies to take home with instructions for parents to read to their children each night before bedtime for two weeks. Ask parents to post on the refrigerator, bathroom mirror, and even send in lunch sacks.
Who I Am In Christ Jesus
- I am accepted In Christ Jesus (Ephesians 1:6)
- I am God’s child (John 1:12)
- I am Christ’s friend (John 15:15)
- I have been justified (Romans 5:1)
- I am united with the Lord and one with Him in spirit (1 Corinthians 6:17)
- I have been bought with a price; I belong to God (1 Corinthians 6:20)
- I am a member of Christ’s Body (1 Corinthians 12:27)
- I am a saint (Ephesians 1:1)
- I have been adopted as God’s child (Ephesians 1:5)
- I have direct access to God through the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 2:18)
- I have been redeemed and forgiven of all my sins (Colossians 1:14)
- I am complete in Christ (Colossians 2:10)
I Am Secure In Christ
- I am free forever from condemnation (Romans 8:1)
- I am assured that all things work together for good (Romans 8:28)
- I am free from any condemning charges against me (Romans 8:33-34)
- I cannot be separated from the love of God (Romans 8:35)
- I have been established, anointed and sealed by God (2 Corinthians 1:21)
- I am hidden with Christ in God (Colossians 3:3)
- I am confident that God will perfect the good work He has begun in me (Philippians 1:6)
- I am a citizen of heaven (Philippians 3:20)
- I have been given a spirit of power, love, and a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7)
- I can find grace and mercy in time of need (Hebrews 4:16)
- I am born of God and the evil one cannot touch me (1 John 5:18)
I Am Special In Christ Jesus
- I am the salt and light of the earth (Matthew 5:13-14)
- I am a branch of the true Vine, a channel of His life (John 15:5)
- I have been chosen and appointed to bear fruit (John 15:16)
- I am a witness to Jesus (Acts 1:8)
- I am God’s temple (1 Corinthians 3:16)
- I am a minister of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:18)
- I am God’s coworker (2 Corinthians 6:1)
- I am seated with Christ in the heavenly realms (Ephesians 2:6)
- I am God’s workmanship (Ephesians 2:10)
- I can approach God with freedom and confidence (Ephesians 3:12)
- I am more than a conqueror through Jesus (Romans 8:37)
- I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Philippians 4:13)
Apr 26
John Piper, pastor at Bethlehem Baptist Church, provides the following article entitled “Jesus and the Children.”1
“One thing to watch for when assessing a person’s spiritual fitness for ministry is how he or she relates to children. Put a child in the room and watch. This is what Jesus did to make his point. Children are the litmus paper to expose the presence of pride.
You might think that the main thing Jesus would do is to say, “Don’t be proud, become like children.” He did say essentially that in Matthew 18:3, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” But he said something else even more striking. When Jesus saw that his disciples were arguing over which of them was the greatest, “He sat down and called the twelve … And he took a child and put him in the midst of them, and taking him in his arms, he said to them, ‘Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me’” (Mark 9:34-37). Read the rest of this entry »
Apr 19
All parents identify with these words from John Wilmot: “Before I got married I had six theories about bringing up children; now I have six children, and no theories.” How true!
In a day when talk show hosts and Hollywood celebrities are presented as authoritative family counselors, more than ever, believers need to know what the Bible teaches about parenting–and put those principles into practice.
Dr. Scott Turansky, founder of National Center for Biblical Parenting, writes, “It’s easy to get caught up in the busyness of family life. The daily job of parenting usually spins around three important tasks: giving instructions, correcting children, and providing for physical and emotional needs. These are all important and learning how to do them well can mean all the difference between a child who is responsive and one who is resistant.” Read the rest of this entry »
Apr 13
Greg Ogden, Executive Pastor of Discipleship, Christ Church of Oak Brook, writes, “If we are to devise a successful strategy of disciple making in our churches, we must first assess the gap between where we are and where we are called to go.”
He reminds us that “One of the consistent images in the New Testament for the Christian life is the discipline of an athlete. Comparing the Christian life to a race, Paul wrote, ‘Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training’ (1 Cor. 9:24–25). In making this comparison, Paul raised the bar. If athletes will put themselves through a harsh regimen to get a ‘perishable wreath,’ how much more should Christians discipline themselves because our goal is ‘an imperishable one!’ One is left with an obvious impression that leading the Christian life is going to require spiritual discipline.’” Read the rest of this entry »
Apr 05
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom” (Proverbs 9:10). Wisdom and knowledge are very different. Knowledge is accumulating facts. Wisdom is knowing what to do with them.
1. Parents are to teach their children about the ways of God. Deuteronomy 4:9, directs parents to teach God’s laws “to your children and to their children after them.”
2. Deuteronomy 4:10 instructs God’s people to assemble together so they “may learn to revere (God) as long as they live in the land and may teach (God’s laws) to their children.”
3. Leaders of children in the church have the privilege and priority to assist parents in bringing up children “in the training and instruction of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4) so that they learn to love God and His Word.
Children wonder, “Why fear God?” Though kids often hear about God’s love, they rarely learn about the fear of the Lord. They are largely unaware that God commands all people to fear and revere Him. As a result, many children show disrespectful, indifferent, or flippant attitudes toward God.
To those who fear Him, God promises deliverance, love, protection, restoration, and reward. Those who know the Lord God Almighty possess a deep reverence and awe for Him. The “fear of the Lord” provides exclusive access to knowledge and wisdom. In fact, learning cannot take place until we fear the Lord! (Proverbs 1:7). Read the rest of this entry »
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