Imagine...
Hi Werb’s Kids and Werb’s Parents!
How are you feeling this week?
Some of us are probably quite disheartened by the world around us.
This week’s session is called Imagine and we are challenging ourselves to imagine a better world and then asking the question: How can I help it get there?
We’re joining in with Refugee Week which starts this Monday (15th to 21st June) and thinking about putting ourselves in other people’s shoes.
I’m reminded of our very first week of lockdown when we looked at being Warriors of Kindness.
This was not a one-off nice thing to think.
I really hope you have continued to be warriors of kindness each and every day to all who you meet especially during this uncertain season.
The world around us can change but it all begins with us.
Let’s change the world with kindness and God’s unconditional love.
Stay safe and stay connected!
Love Amy
IMAGINE
THIS WEEK IS REFUGEE WEEK!
“The theme of Refugee Week 2020, Imagine, is an invitation to imagine – and fight for – the world we want to see.
Thousands of children and young people take part in creative activities and acts of welcome for Refugee Week every year, developing a connection with refugee experiences that many will carry with them into adulthood.
refugeeweek.org.uk”
And we are going to join in too!
First of all do you know what a refugee is? Have you ever met a refugee?
For those who don’t know, refugees are people who have fled war, violence, conflict or persecution and have crossed an international border to find safety in another country.
Could you imagine if you had to leave your home and the country because it wasn’t safe to stay there anymore?
LET’S DO THIS…
Think about all the different types of shoes you own or have - you might even want to go get some and make a little pile. (If you do this make sure you put them back where they belong after!!)
Each of the shoes are different right? They all have different purposes and reasons to wear them.
Can you name the places or the reasons you’d wear the different types of shoes you own?
Now name other types of shoes that are special and different to the shoes you own.
For example, you wouldn’t wear your slippers outside or your muddy wellies indoors because your slippers would get ruined and you’d have to do lots of cleaning if you brought mud into the house!! It would also be silly to wear ballet shoes to play football as you’d hurt your feet!
Each are important.
When someone says “put yourself in someone else’s shoes” what does this mean?
Could you explain it?
Here’s some help if you need it: It is to imagine yourself as someone else and think about how they experience the world differently to you.
Why is it good to do this?
Let’s try and do this more.
HERE is an amazing resource to help you begin doing this with refugees. This is a resource provided by RefugeeWeek.org.uk and has content for a variety of ages.
Parenting for Faith has also created THESE great resources to help you talk and learn about injustice.
As well as THIS information sheet on justice and the bible.
An amazing book to read aimed at children is ‘God’s Very Good Idea’.
This book talks about how God’s family is all different whilst sharing the message of Jesus.
I found it cheapest on thegoodbook.co.uk but there is also a colouring and activity book. The activity book is cheaper still and includes most of the main story so can be purchased instead of or alongside the original book.
I think God wants to talk to us about how we can truly love our neighbours.
WHEN WE SAY LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOUR WE DON’T JUST MEAN THE PERSON WHO LIVES NEXT DOOR TO YOU!
Who is your neighbour?
In the Bible we are told “Love your neighbour as yourself”. The word neighbour in the Bible means any other person or human being in the world.
How would you now explain “love your neighbour” to someone?
We’re so lucky to have a church full of diverse people. Imagine for a minute that our world was full of people exactly like you. That would mean a world full of clones of you. You would all look the same, dress the same, like the same things and talk the same. You might think that it would be fun. But I think it would get pretty boring, pretty quickly.
I think a world full of Amys would be rubbish! I know I’m fun (or at least I hope I am…) but without other people and their unique ideas and experiences the world would be so boring! Difference is what makes this world great. But unfortunately sometimes when people see others who are not the same as them they get nervous or feel uncomfortable and can be horrible, mean and cruel.
Have you ever seen someone being horrible to someone else because they are different?
What did you do?
Sometimes we can see things that are wrong and not want to get involved. But if you see something bad the best and most kind thing you can do is speak up and be a friend.
Last week I asked you to make a promise.
I’d love for you to join me now in making a new one: I promise to accept, love and be kind to everyone and speak up for others.
In today’s story, Jesus is talking to a huge crowd of people. He sees every single one of them and loves them all. Each and every individual different person. So much so he makes sure when their tummies start to rumble that they get what they need!
Watch the video below to remind yourself of the story!
This story appears in all 4 gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) which means it must be pretty important to be told 4 times right?!
The reason I wanted to share this story with you this week is because Jesus looks at the crowd and he loves them. So much so that he doesn’t want to send them away to get food and instead asks his disciples to help feed them all!
Have you ever played the game Sardines?
In this game, one person hides and the rest of the group seek. If you find the hider, you hide with them, until everyone is in the same hiding place all squashed together like Sardines!
For Jesus, life was a bit like one long game of sardines! Because he was so loving and so kind, everyone wanted to be with him all the time. So whenever Jesus tried to be alone, the crowds followed him.
One day, Jesus wanted to be alone with his disciples, so he got on a boat and they rowed across the lake. But someone saw them go, and they told their neighbours.... and by the time Jesus got off the boat, guess what happened? Thousands of people had walked round the lake and were sitting there, waiting for him.
How do you think Jesus felt?
Well, we would have been annoyed but Jesus really loves people – and he felt sorry for this crowd.
So, even though he was tired, he sat down and he talked to them. He told them stories, then he healed some of them who were sick. By this time the sun was going down and it was almost time for dinner.....
What did Jesus do? Do you remember?
He felt sorry for the people – he knew they had a long walk to get home and they had no food with them – and anyway there were no shops near and the markets were closed. So he decided to feed them himself.
First, he asked his disciples if they had any food, and they did! Guess how much they had?
Five loaves, two fish. That’s not a lot, is it? Could you all get fed by 5 loaves – little loaves, not great big ones – and 2 small fish? No! It’s not enough!
But Jesus was God’s son and he could do miracles. After he thanked God for the food, he asked everyone to sit down. Then he told his disciples to pass round the food. And guess what? There was enough for everyone! In fact, there was so much that the disciples could each gather a basketful of leftovers afterwards!
Why do you think Jesus talked to the people? Why did he give them food?
It was because he felt sorry for them. The long word is “compassion”. Compassion means feeling sorry for someone because of the state they are in AND doing something about it.
God loves us and he does want to help us when we need it.
But do you remember who Jesus got to help him feed the thousands of people?
He got his friends the disciples to help!
God wants us to have compassion and love others too. He wants us to help play our part and make a difference in his world.
For those aged 0-6:
God wants to help us when we are in trouble because he cares for us.
God wants us to be like him. God loves everyone. And he wants us to love everyone too.
Can you think of someone who may need to know you love them?
We can’t hug someone right now but we can still show that we care by SMILING!
If you like making things maybe you could make a card for someone who is ill? Could you be kind to someone you know at school who hasn’t got friends? Could you help a parent who is busy by tidying up for them?
Is there anyone you can think of that might need some help? What could you do to help?
Take a moment to think of someone that you could help and then pray together asking God to help us to be caring and to help other people.
God loves it when we help just like how Jesus loved the disciples helping him to feed the huge crowd of people!
God wants us to have compassion and this is when you see a need and you do something to help!
For those aged 7 and above:
Think about what comes into your head or how you react to people who are hungry or who need help or compassion.
Compassion is when you care. It’s when you see a need and you do something to help!
Do you think you have compassion for others?
Start by thinking of the people that you know who are in need of compassion. Do you know anyone personally who is in need? How about people in other countries?
How would you want to help them?
Is there anything else you could do as a family?
The best way is always to pray but there are also lots of charities who help people in practical ways and we could donate to those to help others. We could also buy things that are fair trade, where those who work to make the products get treated and paid fairly.
Write down anything you feel that God is challenging you to do to respond to people who are hungry or homeless or refugees.
Pray that God will help you to respond to that challenge and to show whole-hearted compassion to those in need.
Just listen to God. This isn’t an exercise in feeling guilty or bad: God may not want you to do anything!
He may want you to commit to pray once a week for hungry children. Or he may want you to smile more at those who are strangers and refugees in our country. He may ask you to send pocket money once a year to a charity that can help those in need.
Most of all God wants us to be compassionate and warriors of kindness.
TO THINK ABOUT…
Jesus took time to spend time with all the different families that came to listen to Him. Who are you going to make time for this week?
Who could you share something with this week (just like the boy who shared his dinner)?
Take time to pray for people who might need Jesus to provide something for them.
You could write or draw your answers to these questions.
CRAFT IDEAS
Something to do during the talk
- Colouring Sheets ONE and TWO
- Spot The Difference
- Wordsearch
- In our story the crowd ate fish and bread, probably not what you would have wanted to eat!
Can you draw your perfect picnic with Jesus?Shoe Box Dolls House
This is an idea put together by The Giant Dolls’ House Project to try and raise awareness for homelessness and refugees. You can join in with their big project if you want but the deadline is Sunday 14th June.
You can just make one anyway like I am and it doesn’t even have to be in a shoe box. But as you make your tiny house think and pray about those who don’t have a home or had to leave their homes and what that is like.Welcome Banner/Poster
Make a welcome poster for someone coming to the UK to be safe. They are probably very scared and worried about the future. You might want to include the word ‘welcome’ in other languages and make it bright and colourful.
We would love to show those who are refugees in our church and in our community that we love them. Please take a picture of your poster and send it to amy.farrar@stwderby.org. I’d love to pass on these pictures so they can make a difference.Cool Glasses!
Often we forget that God wants us to look at all the people in our world, how he sees them. Using card make your own special pair of glasses to help remind you to look at other people the way God wants you to: with love and compassion.
NEW SONG
This song is called BIG FAMILY OF GOD! What do the lyrics tell us about God’s family?
LET’s PRAY
Draw a picture of a pair of shoes.
For those who are younger, think about someone who is different to you and pray for them. You may want to write their name or something you know about them next to the shoes you’ve drawn.
Pray for those who are homeless and those have to leave their countries and come to the UK because they want to be safe.
For those who are older, think about those in your school or communities who are left out. Those people you know who get picked on. Those who are different. Talk to God about how you feel about all that you’ve learnt today about refugees. Pray for those who you know are in need and ask God to help show you how you can help.
PUT SOMETHING INTO ACTION: KEEP THE CONVERSATION GOING
Think about something that makes you sad when you think about our world. Maybe it’s bullies and those who get bullied? Maybe it’s people who are poor and have no food or clean water? Maybe it’s those who have to leave their homes because of war? Maybe it’s the people affected most by coronavirus? Or maybe it’s lots of different things…
Ask God to help you pray for these people and then be the change that you want to see.
These things, as much as we want them to, won’t just disappear. So that means we need to keep talking and keep asking the question: How can I help?
One way you can help is by visiting Refugeeweek.org.uk and looking at their Simple Acts page. They have listed some Simple Acts which are everyday actions we can all do to stand with refugees and make new connections in our communities.
We can also talk to friends and family and think about ways we could help people in our community and around the world who need our support and love right now.
You can always talk to God and ask him how to help. Then spend some time listening to see what he says.
God tells us in the Bible to shine our lights in our dark world. (Matthew 5v14-16) More than ever, our world needs to see God’s light, love and kindness right now.
Edited and adapted by Amy Farrar from several sources including energize.com and refugeeweek.org.uk
