THE BEST THINGS IN LIFE
August 1, 2010
Luke 12:13-21
Preparation:The incomplete poems, found in the message below, for the children to help you complete. You could enlarge them so they’re easy to see or use the activity on pages 2 and 3 in today’s Children’s Worship Bulletin. Answers: hug, smile, love, friend, rain-bow, sunshine, song.
We are going to do some poetry together this morning. I have them here (show them) and will read them to you. The last word in each of the poems is missing. If you listen carefully to the rhyme, you will hear a clue that should help you know what the last word is. (Begin reading.)
It’s being as close
As a floor and a rug;
You use your arms
To give a ________.
It’s on a face,
And I’d walk a mile
For a very special
Person’s ________.
Of all things on earth
Or heaven above,
This is the best, and
That’s someone’s _______.
The world would surely
Come to an end,
If I lost my very
Special _________.
After a rain,
This starts to glow;
It’s a many-colored,
Bright ___________.
Cats, plants, and I
Think this is fine;
We love to feel
The warm __________.
You can whistle,
Or hum along,
Or use your voice
For a pretty _______.
Where can I go to buy a hug, a smile, love, a friend, a rainbow, sunshine, or a song? These poems are all about things that are free. You don’t have to buy any of them, and they are some of the best things in life. There is hardly anyone in the world who would not like to have all of them.
A man once came up to Jesus to complain about his brother who would not give him the money he was supposed to share with him. Jesus began talking to the man about what is most important in life. Jesus warned him that if we love money too much we will miss all the things that are really much more important. He was talking about the same kinds of things mentioned in the poems we just read. If this were the very last day of your life wouldn’t you rather be hugged, loved, and smiled at? Wouldn’t you like to feel the warm sun-shine, see a rainbow, or hear a pretty song? Those things are priceless. We can’t buy them, but they can give us more pleasure than all the money in the world.
The story about Jesus and the man who wanted money is in today’s Children’s Worship Bulletin. The poems we just did are also there, as well as a place to draw a picture of something that makes you happy. I hope you will do these activities.
Let’s pray: There is so much beauty in your world, Lord, and we thank you for all of it. Help us remember what is most important. Amen.
