St John’s Kids & Families, 26 September 2021

St John’s Kids & Families, 26 September 2021

St John’s Kids Online Sessions

Sessions are in recess over the term break, to give our volunteer leaders a much-deserved break. Planning is underway to recommence St John’s Kids online in Term 4.

 

St John’s Trivia Night

FREE event – Saturday 9 October, 7:00pm – ALL WELCOME

Wide variety of topics with multiple choice answers, suitable for all ages and interests. Bragging rights for St John’s Trivia Champion are up for grabs!

Register now!

You need only book one ticket per participating team device, i.e. one ticket per household, unless you wish to compete against each other using separate devices! You will be emailed the Zoom link and other game details once booked.

 

Services, Sunday 26 September

Join our livestream service at 10am or 5pm.

If you would like to keep young hands busy while listening to the talk, these activity sheets are related to this week’s reading, Luke 18:1-8

 

Family Discipleship

This segment is intended to be activities/conversation starters parents can often incorporate into everyday routine, e.g. at mealtime or bedtime (not as an extra thing you need to add to your already busy schedules), to help make engaging in ‘God stuff’ with their children part of everyday life, not just for Sundays.

Over the past two weeks, we have looked at simple prayer and bold prayer. This week, the focus is on persistent prayer.

ASK your child if they know what being persistent means. They might understand it in the negative sense of nagging. Explain that it means continuing to do something, even if it’s difficult or takes a long time. Discuss situations that were so difficult that you just wanted to give up. Share some examples of things that take persistence to achieve (e.g. learning an instrument or how to cook).

READ Luke 18:1-8

Are there elements of this story that strike you as odd? The judge refused to give the widow what she needed until she drove him nuts with her pestering. He only relented to be rid of her! Does that mean we need to pester God for things until we get them?

Jesus uses the image of the widow to commend persistence, but the judge is not God. Jesus uses a bad judge as a contrast to God.

We are told to learn a lesson from the unjust judge. If a judge who didn’t care about God or what people thought eventually did the right thing, how much more do you think God, who is loving and generous, will care for us?

We are encouraged to keep praying even when we feel like nothing is happening. God always hears and answers our prayers. Sometimes he says yes. Sometimes he says no. Sometimes he says wait.

ACTIVITY to emphasise the importance of waiting: Choose a fruit, one that is ready to eat, and one that is unripe. (Hint: you can cut off the end of a green banana without wasting the whole piece. The rest will still ripen in due course.) Try both with your child. As you react to the unripe fruit, chat about how waiting for the proper time is important. God will always do what is best for us, knowing the best timing to answer our prayers.

PRAY together, thanking God for giving us all that we have. Ask him to help us to be persistent in prayer and to look and listen for his answers.

 

Have a great week,

Kylie – Children & Families’ Minister

 

 

St John’s is committed to Child Safety and welcomes your feedback on how we can keep improving.

 

 

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