Warriors Not Worriers
Hello Werb’s Kids and Parents!
As you are all aware by now, due to the latest guidelines from the
government we are unable to meet for the foreseeable future and worship together. HOWEVER, this does not mean we can’t still hang out, have fun and talk about Jesus.
We will be posting regularly things that you can do which means you can have Werb’s At Home!
To help navigate us through this I will put next to each item or activity the age it is based at but feel free to use as much of this as you like! This is a resource to help all of you to continue building your relationship with God as a family.
We would love to keep connected and see what you’re up to and how you’re doing Werb’s At Home so if you use the hashtags ⧣werbsathome and ⧣werbskids we’ll be able to see your posts on social media! There is also a comments section below where conversation and community can happen!
I hope you have fun worshipping and growing your faith at home and I look forward to speaking soon,
Love Amy.
Be a Warrior NOT a Worrier!
Things at the moment seem scary. It may feel as though things are uncertain and there is a lot to be worried about but in the Bible we are told in 2 Timothy 1v7 that “God has not given us a spirit of fear but one of power, love and self-control.”
We have the power to change the conversation and to speak kindness and goodness into people’s lives whilst they are afraid. Be a warrior for God. A warrior of kindness and goodness.
PARENTS: You may want to play superheroes and talk about what makes a great superhero or warrior. Or you could make an assault course…
Choose a room in your house to make an assault course in. You may want things to climb under or over, things to weave in and out or just obstacles in the way to get around! Once you’ve created your course someone needs to be blindfolded (it’s best to use a scarf) and someone needs to be the guide! The guide is to take the blindfolded person around the course (without hurting them!!) as quickly as they can. Take it in turns and swap roles! How easy was it to trust someone to take you round the course safely?
The best way to be a warrior for God right now and help fight against the fear of coronavirus is by washing our hands. Watch the video below to see why it is so important!
Coronavirus is hard for some of us to understand. Check out this LINK to a comic strip which helps explain more about Coronavirus and how being kind can be the best weapon and why we shouldn’t worry.
Here is a LINK to another website which helps answer some of those questions we’ve all been asking and explains it in a way that is easy for all children to understand.
I think God wants to talk to us at the moment about worry and why it is important that we need to be warriors who bring peace and kindness and not worriers who spread fear.
For those aged 0-7:
In the Bible, Jesus tells a story to a group of people all about worry. If you have a Jesus Storybook Bible, read ‘The Singer’ on page 228. If you don’t have it, don’t worry! You can buy it from Amazon. Unforunately the link I originally found was taken down from YouTube but I will try my best to find an alternative.
After reading this passage, what do you remember about the story?
Get some paper and together draw a picture that shows how God takes care of the birds and flowers. You may want to go into the garden or you could go on a little walk to look for some flowers or to take pictures of some to draw.
It’s also be released that the National Trust (one of my favourite organisations EVER!) have agreed to remove all pay barriers from National Trust parks and gardens so you can visit for FREE! There will be no charges for their car parks either so anyone will be able to visit! For more information check out their website as obviously cafes, houses, retail and events are all closed but the grounds themselves are now open to all so why not take the opportunity to visit Kedleston Hall or Calke Abbey?
Once you’ve finished, look at the pictures. How does God provide for flowers and birds? What does that teach us?
God cares for us even more than the birds and the flowers and that’s what Jesus was trying to tell us. He wants us to remember how important we are to Him and that means He promises He’ll look after us.
For those aged 8 and above:
Christians aren’t immune to fear and anxiety but the Bible is full of encouragement and advice about how to cope with our fears. Read the following verses together. You may wish to find them in your own Bibles.
These versions below are taken from the Message translation.
Isaiah 41v10: “Don’t panic. I’m with you. There’s no need to fear for I’m your God. I’ll give you strength. I’ll help you. I’ll hold you steady, keep a firm grip on you.”
Psalm 56v3: “When I get really afraid, I come to you in trust.”
Philippians 4v6-7: “Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the centre of your life.”
John 14v25-27: “I’m telling you these things while I’m still living with you. The Friend, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send at my request, will make everything plain to you. He will remind you of all the things I have told you. I’m leaving you well and whole. That’s my parting gift to you. Peace. I don’t leave you the way you’re used to being left—feeling abandoned, bereft. So don’t be upset. Don’t be distraught.”
What do you think of these verses? How hard do you think it is to put our trust in verses like this in the face of situations like the coronavirus?
In the face of uncertain circumstances, it’s not always easy to put our trust in God, but when we’re faced with difficulties we have a choice. We can choose not to let fear and anxiety rule our life and we can choose to reject fear and anxiety. Be a warrior not a worrier. This isn’t easy but the more we practice, the better we are likely to be at trusting God. Let’s be clear, Christians who experience fear and anxiety have not 'failed' but God has a better plan for our lives and wants us to be living in His peace.
If you had the choice just before you went to sleep at night as to whether you looked at the newspaper headlines or one of the verses from the Bible, which would give them the most comfort (and a good night’s sleep?).
CRAFT IDEAS!
If you have any play dough think about making some superheroes or warriors explaining whilst making them that we are going to be warriors for Jesus which means we will be spreading kindness and goodness.
Or make some birds and flowers and remind yourselves of the story; how Jesus said that we are more loved and cared for than the flowers and birds that we see.Alternatively you can really easily make some!
HERE is a recipe for salt dough Or HERE is a recipe for play doughIf you have your own garden, try pressing some flowers! (Don’t go stealing and picking other people’s flowers!) You’ll need a book to press them in and it’s best to put the flowers in some baking paper or just normal paper to avoid the book getting ruined!
These could then be used to make pictures with.Make a paper bird. Instructions HERE
Make a bird feeder and watch real birds come to your garden! This website has a variety of versions from cheerios on pipe-cleaners to sticking using birdseed in toilet rolls so there should be something for everyone!
All ages:
Listen to this song. It’s called Stand in Your love by Josh Baldwin.
Listen to it carefully and focus on these lyrics: “My fear doesn’t stand a chance when I stand in your love.”
What does this mean for us and what we face today? Can you come up with some actions to these words so that you can remember that God’s love is bigger than your fears?
God is bigger than anything scary we face and we can trust Him. God’s love is bigger than the fears we have but it’s okay to feel worried. If we do feel worried or scared then the best thing we can do is talk. We need to talk to each other! From children to parents to friends. And of course talk to God. Pray together now and ask God’s peace to come into your home. Pray for those you know who might be scared and ask God how He wants you to help them. Spend some time listening to God and allow Him to speak to you.
Why not start a prayer journal?! You may want to write or maybe draw but each day ask the following 2 questions: What do I want to tell God today? What does God want to tell me today?
Every member of the family should do this together, this is not just an activity for the children!!
PARENTS: This may be out of the comfort zone for some of us but give your child the opportunity to pray in this way. Hearing from God is a skill that we need to grow and most of us aren’t used to it or we easily write it off believing God won’t speak to us when He actually may have spoken to us but we’ve just ignored Him! The point of this is to remember that prayer is a conversation not a one way rant! Trust your children and write down whatever they say. Children are very open to the Spirit, often far more than we realise. Just as Jesus said “Let the little children come!”, have faith that something incredible can come from this time.
Put something into action: think of 1 way as a family you could help someone this week. Think of a way you can be Warriors for God. Warriors of kindness and goodness.
Edited and adapted by Amy Farrar from several sources including energize.com
