SUNDAY PRAISE -- ADAM, EVE, AND THE FALL

 

Hello, friends!  Happy Sunday.  Hope you had a good day.  Mine wasn't all that good.  Joe and I went to church but I felt sicker and sicker.  After about 30 minutes I left and Joe stayed because we were having our annual meeting after church and since he's an elder he had a part in it.  Once I got home, I ate some crackers to settle my stomach and took my medicine.  Then I turned on the TV for some background noise, laid down on the sofa and halfway through "Leave It to Beaver" I fell asleep.  When I woke up I was feeling better.   That's when I turned on YouTube and watched Pastor Jesse's message from Paradise Bible Fellowship Church.  Pastor Jesse is a gifted speaker.  I had my Bible on my Kindle and followed along.  That was my church for today.

There was a luncheon after the business meeting.  Joe had made a beautiful green salad last night for it.  I had gotten four bottles of soda.  That was our contribution.  My friend Kathy brought potato salad and sent some home for me.  I was very hungry when Joe got home and ate it.  I didn't get sick, but had to run to the bathroom, so I guess I'm not out of the woods yet.

In any case, here is the Sunday Praise lesson for today.  And I'm sure you're all familiar with the story -- Adam, Eve, and the Fall.

The Garden of Eden was a beautiful place.  Adam and Eve enjoyed everything God had made.  One day, when Eve was walking through the garden she heard a snake calling her.  It was Satan in disguise.

Satan convinced Eve to try the fruit God warned them not to eat.  Eve thought the fruit was tasty, so she called Adam to taste it.  Adam liked the fruit and thought that it was good.

But then Adam and Eve began to feel unhappy.  They were ashamed.  They knew they had done something very bad.  When God came to speak to them, they hid from Him.

They covered themselves with leaves to hide their shame.  But they still felt sad.  They told God what happened.  God said that they would have to leave the perfect garden.  But God promised someone would come to save them.

Of course these stories I share with you are meant for children so they are very simplistic.  But we can still learn from them.  Think back to when God created the world.  He said over and over that things were good.  Then He made this beautiful garden and put man there.  It was perfect and Adam and Eve were happy there.  Best of all God came and walked and talked with them in the cool of the evening.  This could have gone on forever.  But then things changed.

The important thing we need to learn from this lesson is the consequences of the choices we make.  God did not make a bunch of robots.  We don't love and obey God because we have no choice.  God gave Adam and Eve a choice.  They could eat anything in the garden except for the fruit of one tree.  They could obey God or turn their backs on Him and disobey.

There are always consequences for our actions.  Everything we do will have either a good or bad consequence.

But even though God disciplined them, He did not stop loving them.  Just as we discipline our children but continue to love them.  In fact, God loved them so much that He promised to send a Savior.  This is the first promise in the Bible of the coming of Jesus.  Accepting Jesus as our Savior is the only way we can restore our relationship with God.

And that's the lesson for this week.  A lot to think about.

Have a great evening.  I'm going to get some more sleep.

Until later...

Kathy

SUNDAY PRAISE -- Adam and Eve

Hello friends!  Hope you are all having a great weekend.  These weeks just seem to fly by, don't they?  Here it is the middle of January already.

I wanted to be sure to give you this week's lesson.  We are continuing on with the creation story and today we are focusing on Adam and Eve.

A long time ago God made the heavens and the earth.  When God had finished making all things He said, "Let us make man in our own image."  He made man just like Him, out of the dust.  The man was called Adam.

Adam took great care of all the things God made.  God gave Adam a job to name all the animals He had made.  But Adam was alone, and God saw that was not good.  God knew what to do.

God caused Adam to fall into a deep sleep.  While Adam slept, God took out one of his ribs.  God used Adam's rib to create a beautiful woman.  Her name was Eve.

When Adam woke up, he saw Eve.  Adam was happy to see her.  Adam and Eve lived in the garden God had created.  They enjoyed a relationship with God and with each other.

Today children are taught that they are here by chance.  That people evolved from lower creatures.  We want our children to know that we are God's creation.  We are special.  We are created in God's image and are made for a special purpose.  God wants us to have fellowship with one another.  And He wants us to have fellowship with Himself.

God did not make us animals.  He made us different and special from animals.  He made us in His own image and when He looked at Adam and Eve, He said it was good.

God gave Adam a job to do.  He was to name all the animals and look after the garden.  We all have gifts, and we can all serve God in some way.

The only thing we hear God saying was not good was that Adam was alone.  And so Eve was created.  God doesn't want us to be alone.  He gives us families, friends and others to talk with us, be with us and care for us.  We should thank God for those people in our lives.

God would often meet and talk with Adam and Eve.  What does that tell us?  God loves it when we speak to Him in prayer.  He loves it when we listen to Him as we read our Bibles.  God gives us a way to have a relationship with Him.

Let's remember to thank God for loving us enough to want to have a relationship with us and for making us special and unique.

That's all for this week.  See you tomorrow as I continue to tell you about my Christmas season.  I have to get a move on before it is next Christmas!  Have a great night everyone,

Kathy

SUNDAY PRAISE -- God Made Everything

Hello, friends.  I hope you all had a great New Year's celebration.  I have been so very busy.  I hope to catch up with you but I'm not sure when that will happen, but  I will try my best.

Today, though, I wanted to start off this year with a Sunday praise.  I have started reading through the Bible in a year with my sister's church.  It is exciting and so far, I've kept up with it.  It's so interesting to read passages I've read many times before and see something new in them.  Her pastor goes over them each Sunday and Wednesday and I watch his messages on YouTube. 

So when I saw the topic for today's lesson, I knew I had to share it with you.  What better time to start anew and look at Creation.

GOD MADE EVERYTHING

Before the world came into being, God was, for He has no beginning or end.  His Spirit hovered over a dark, formless, and empty place.  God said, "Let there be light!"  Light sprang into being at the sound of His voice.  God divided the light from the darkness.  He named the light "day," and He called the darkness "night."  Evening and morning, day one ended.

God said, "Let a dome appear in the middle of the waters."  A vast blue vault appeared in the midst of the waters.  God called it "sky."  Evening and morning, day two ended.

God said, "Let the waters gather together and dry land appear."  The land and the seas obeyed God's voice, but the land was empty and brown.  "Let there be grass, flowers, and trees to cover the land."  Green grass unfurled.  Colorful flowers bloomed.  Trees stood tall and straight.  God saw what He had done, and it was good.  Evening and morning, day three ended.

God said, "Let there be two lights to mark time and days, seasons and years.  A greater one shall rule the day and the lesser shall reign over the night."  Sun and moon appeared in the sky, and God sprinkled the universe with twinkling stars.  God saw it was good.  Evening and morning, day four ended.

God said, "Let there be life in the sea and the skies."  A flurry of feathered birds filled the sky with color and song.  Fish, lobsters, and clams teemed in the waters of the sea.  God saw it was good.  Evening and morning, day five ended.

God said, "Let animals of all kinds fill the land."  Creatures formed at the sound of God's voice.  Some were large and powerful like elephants and crocodiles.  Others were small and delicate like squirrels and frogs.  They filled the vast and empty land.  Yet God wanted one more creation to rule over all the others.  He said, "Let us make mankind in our own image."  He created a man and a woman and spoke to them and said, "Fill the earth with children.  Rule over all the animals and birds and fish.  All of this wonderful world that I have made, I give into your care."  God saw the heaven and earth He had created, and it was good.  Evening and morning, day six ended.

With His work complete, God rested on the seventh day and blessed it.

Where is the best place to begin reading a book?  At the beginning of course.  At the beginning of the Bible it tells about the beginning of our world.

What is nothing?  That is a hard thing to describe, isn't it?  Anything you can think of to describe nothing is something.  Darkness.  Emptiness.  Our minds can't seem to wrap around "nothing."  But the Bible tells us that was all there was.  We as humans are creative beings.  But we cannot create something out of nothing.  Even right now we are reading this on something.  And I am writing these words on something.

But God merely spoke and something came from nothing.  How powerful God is!  And then, because God is so powerful, He told His creation what to do.  Sun -- you shine during the day.  Plants -- you grow for food.  And even today, thousands of years later, God's world still obeys His voice.

A new year is an exciting time.  A new beginning.  A new chance at things.  I pray that this will be a good year for all of us.

Back as soon as I can to continue to catch you up.

See you then.

Kathy

SUNDAY PRAISE

Hello, friends!  It is hard for me to believe that an entire week has gone by since I last posted.  My only excuse is that every day is jam packed with things to do.  I seem to never stop from the time I wake up until I go to bed.

But I wanted to get today's Sunday Praise up and I will do my best to get some others up this week before the month turns.  And who can believe it's that time already?

Today's lesson is HOUSE OF PRAYER (JESUS CLEARS THE TEMPLE)

At the time of Passover, Jesus and his disciples traveled to Jerusalem to worship God and pray at the temple. The temple was a special place where people worshipped God and offered sacrifices. Jesus always looked forward to visiting the temple and praying with God's people.

But when Jesus arrived at the temple, He couldn't believe what He saw. Instead of people praying and worshipping, it looked like a marketplace.  There were cows, sheep and birds. People were selling all sorts of things and exchanging money. People were not thinking about God.

Jesus was very sad. He was angry at the way people were treating God. Jesus loved His Father and His house! Jesus turned over the tables and set the birds and animals free. He told the people to get all of those things out of His Father's house!

Jesus reminded the people, "It is written in the scriptures, 'My Temple will be a house where people will pray.'"

Some of the people became angry with Jesus. They wanted to keep cheating people. But others joined Jesus to pray and worship God in the temple.

= = = = =

Think about going to a flea market or craft show in your area.  Now think about trying to read, study or pray in a noisy area like this with things going on all around you.  It wouldn't be easy to concentrate with everything happening.

It's wonderful that we have churches where we can go to worship God and learn about Him.  Where we can sing praises to Him and where we can pray.  Where we can be with others who love God.

When Jesus entered the temple in this passage (Matthew 21:12-16, Mark 11:15-18, Luke 19:45-48, and John 2:12-24), He saw lots of things that He didn't like.  Men were selling animals and changing money right inside the temple.  Imagine if you went to worship God at your church and it was chaos inside. People were trying to make money from people who had come to worship God.

This passage shows a side of Jesus that we don't often see. Jesus is angry when He sees people selling and making money in the temple and clears them out quickly.  Jesus had a righteous anger.  He was not angry at how He was being treated, but by their attitude toward God and cheating other people. These moneychangers and sellers were distracting people from worshipping God.

What things distract us from worshipping God?  The Bible tells us that our bodies are the temple of God.  So, we should not have anything in them that distracts us from the worship of God.  Let's remove the things in our lives that distract us from living for God.

This is another story that we often take as a simple story but has so much in it to ponder.

I hope you all have a great night.  If you can, please pray for me.  I have a very uncomfortable medical test tomorrow afternoon that I am not looking forward to.  In fact, I'm a bit nervous about it.  And my knees are still in a lot of pain.  Thank you so much for caring and praying.

I will see you soon.

Kathy

 

SUNDAY PRAISE

 

Hello, friends!  Hope all is well with you.  Welcome to another week.  And the end of May.  Another month that has just flown by.  The weather here has been warm bordering on hot.  We really must get the air conditioner in downstairs.  We have one working in the bedroom.  It is supposed to be horrible on Monday and then get cool again.  Go figure.

We are not going away this weekend.  We thought about it, but the traffic and the crowds made us decide to stay home.  That and the cost of gas.  But we will be watching the parade that goes through our neighborhood and the veterans group across the street where Joe is chaplain is going to have a picnic which we are invited to.

Well, let me give you the story for today.

THE PARABLE OF THE TALENTS

One day, Jesus told a story to teach people to use their gifts.

A man was going on a long journey.  He called his servants and asked them to take care of his things while he was gone.  He gave the first servant five talents of money.  He gave the second man two talents.  He gave the third man one talent.  Each servant was given something precious.

The first servant with five talents used his money and got five more.  The second servant used his two talents and made two more.  The third servant dug a hole and hid his one talent.  He was afraid of losing it.

When the master returned, he was very happy with the first two servants.  He gave them even more things.  But he was angry with the third man because he was lazy and did nothing.  The third servant left with nothing.

Think about the gifts that God has given to each of us.  We may not be able to sing, draw or play a musical instrument.  But maybe our gift is listening to someone who is lonely.  Or praying with someone who is hurting.  We should not compare ourselves with others, but use the gifts that God has given to us.  Each of us has a gift.

Sometimes we want to keep God's gifts for ourselves.  But when we share what God has given to us, He gives us even more.

One gift that God has given to us is the Bible.  One way to keep that gift safe is to hide it in our hearts.  But we should not keep it hidden, but share it with others.  God's word is a priceless treasure we should want to share.

God has given each of us a talent (a gift).  We should never look down on the gifts God has given to us.

So share your gift this weekend and I will see you very soon.

Until later...

Kathy

SUNDAY PRAISE

 Good morning, friends!  Happy Sunday!  I hope you are all having a wonderful day.  I am looking forward to going to church today.  We are having a guest from the Gideons this morning.  What a great group they are.  Joe and I firmly believe that everyone should have access to God's Word.  Since we have been married Joe has given away more than 500 Bibles and New Testaments.

And that brings us to today's Bible story, The Parable of the Mustard Seed.

Jesus told the people a parable about a mustard seed.  He wanted to teach His followers what the kingdom of God was like.

One day a farmer went to plant some seeds in his field.  When he looked at the mustard seed, it was very small.  It didn't look important.  The farmer planted it with care.  He dug a hole, covered the seed with soil and gave it some water.

Slowly the little seed grew into a small plant.  Each day the farmer watered the plant and the sun shone on it.  The plant grew bigger and bigger until it grew so big that the birds made nests and lived in the tree.

The mustard seed reminds us that the smallest things we do in the Kingdom of God can grow into something bigger than we could ever imagine.

Many things in life that start small become large.  Think of some things that start small and become large.  For example, seeds are small but become large plants.  Babies are small but become large people.  Eggs are small but become large birds.

Imagine an uninflated balloon.  It looks small and unimportant.  But put some air in it and it becomes large.  If we ignored this small piece of rubber, we could never enjoy the balloon.

Jesus lived in a world vastly different than the one we live in.  When He first began to preach the gospel, he didn't have television or internet.  He couldn't catch an airplane to fly around the world.  But He spoke to one person who spoke to another person who spoke to yet another person and the good news of God's kingdom spread.

Think of wetting a sponge and laying it on a paper towel.  The towel will draw the water from the sponge and spread until the entire towel is wet.

God can use the smallest thing (like the mustard seed) to spread His word.  What small thing can you do which can change the world?

I hope you have a great day and I will be back soon.

Kathy

SUNDAY PRAISE

 Hello, friends!  Welcome to the month of May.  April seemed to go by so quickly.  Let's hope May sticks around for awhile.  With nice weather too.

I wanted to share another Sunday Praise with you.  Our story today is the Parable of the Sower from Matthew 13:1-23, Mark 4:1-20 and Luke 8:4-15.

One day Jesus sat on a boat to teach the people.  Jesus told them a story about a farmer who went out to plant some seeds.  The farmer scattered the seed around the field.  The seeds fell on four kinds of soil.

The first seeds fell onto a patch where people walked.  The birds were happy to see it.  They flew down as quickly as possible and ate all the seed.  

The farmer continued to spread seeds around his field.  Some other seed landed on rocky soil.  It began to grow fast but the sun was too hot.  The plant died because it did not have roots to find water.

Other seeds fell among the weeds and thorns.  The weeds grew faster than the plant and blocked all the sun.  Plants cannot grow without sun.

Finally, some seed fell on good soil.  It grew healthy and produced a big harvest.

Jesus said that we are like these types of soil, and the seed is like God's word.  Just as the seed grows in good soil, God's ways can grow in our hearts.

This is a parable, a story Jesus taught to help people understand important truths.  In this parable, Jesus wanted the people to understand the effect of God's word and His teaching on their hearts.  Think about the ways we respond to things that people tell us.  Maybe you are busy and you don't really pay attention to what someone is telling you.  How does it make you feel when you are trying to tell someone something important and they aren't really listening to you?

The disciples didn't understand what Jesus was trying to teach them so they asked Him to explain it.  We don't understand everything in the Bible so it is important to pray and ask God to show us what He wants us to know.  We can also ask people we trust to explain things to us.

Just remember that not everyone we witness to will immediately accept the truth of Christ.  But it is still important to plant the seed.  It is important to tell everyone about salvation through Jesus.  And it is important to have good soil in our lives.

Hope you are having a wonderful Sunday.  I'll be back soon.

Kathy

SUNDAY PRAISE

 

Good morning, friends!  Hope you are having a wonderful Sunday.  Let's hop right in with today's lesson.

FISHERS OF MEN

Simon and Andrew were two brothers.  After a long night of fishing, they caught nothing.  Simon and Andrew were busy sorting their nets when they heard Jesus teaching nearby.

More and more people came to listen to Jesus.  Jesus asked Simon if he would take Him out a little way in his boat so He could speak to all the people.  When Jesus finished teaching the people, He asked Simon to go fishing.

Simon didn't think this made any sense.  He had fished all night and caught nothing, but because Jesus asked him, he did it.  Jesus told Simon to throw the net over the other side of the boat.  He caught so many fish he had to call his friends to come and help.

When they arrived back on land, Jesus invited the fishermen to leave their boats behind and follow Him.  Jesus told them it was time to fish for people and share God's love with them.  Straightaway the fishermen left everything behind to follow Jesus.

Have you ever tried to do something and failed?  Failure is a part of all our lives.  These fishermen had fished all night and caught nothing.  They were experienced fishermen and knew what they were doing.  By morning they must have been tired and discouraged.  I think all of us have reached the point of being tired and discouraged after trying to do something for a long time.  We all get frustrated and want to give up.  Would you want to try to do your task again because a stranger showed up and told you to?  Probably not.

But even though Simon Peter was tired and thought he knew better he chose to trust Jesus.  Like Simon we need to trust Jesus no matter how we feel.

At times it's hard to trust Jesus.  We think we know best.  But ultimately we know who is in charge.

I so enjoy sharing these Bible stories with you each week and I hope you do also.  It certainly gives me something to think about.  I think the teacher learns more than the students.

I hope to be back later this week with another post for you.  March is coming!  And so is Spring.

Until later...

Kathy

SUNDAY PRAISE

 

Hello, friends!  How did it get to be Sunday again so quickly?  I have things to share with you, but got so busy this week that I never got to it.  This coming week for sure.

I want to share this week's story though.  It is Jesus and Nicodemus.

Nicodemus was a very important man.  He was a leader of Israel. He was also a pharisee. He studied and memorized the Bible every day and did his best to obey it. Nicodemus wanted to know more about Jesus.

One night Nicodemus came to speak to Jesus in secret. He didn't want anyone else to see him. Nicodemus knew that Jesus was special because he had heard Jesus teach and saw him do miracles. Nicodemus had lots of questions to ask Jesus.

Jesus told Nicodemus that to go to heaven you must be born again. This didn't make any sense to Nicodemus. He knew it was impossible to be born two times. But Jesus was talking about spiritual birth. Jesus explained that like as we are born as babies, we must be born again into a relationship with God.

Jesus spoke some amazing words to Nicodemus. Jesus said, "For this is how God loved the world: He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life."

Nicodemus understood. The only way to have eternal life is to believe and trust in Jesus.

Some questions are easier to answer than others.  Nicodemus had big questions that he wanted answered.  And Nicodemus knew who to go to to get his answers.  We too can go to Jesus to get the answers to our difficult questions.  Don't we all have difficult questions in this life?  I know I do.  All the time.  But sometimes we feel as if we don't get answers.  I know I would love to have a list all printed out that first I do this and then I can do that and my life will turn out perfectly.  Well...  it just doesn't work that way.  I don't know about you, but lots of times I'm not really sure what God wants me to do.  Or where He wants me to go.  Or who He wants me to talk to.  And the thing is, I don't need to know all the answers.  But I do need to trust that God knows the answers to my questions and He is in control.

Friends, it's so hard to let go and let God, isn't it.  I'm going to try harder and I hope you will too.

I'll be back this week (promise!) and show you some things going on.  I did post a YouTube video this week, so if you want to head on over there, I would love for you to see it.  Kathy's Happy Home.

See you soon.

Kathy

SUNDAY PRAISE

 Hello, friends!  Happy Sunday.  I hope you are having a wonderful day.  I am still cleaning the house.  So much to do!

I thought I would give you another Bible story today.  In light of Valentine's Day this week the story is Jesus' first miracle -- the wedding in Cana.

Not long after Jesus began His ministry, He was invited to a wedding.  Everyone was happy, dancing and celebrating.  Then there was a big problem.  They ran out of wine to drink.  This was a bad thing to do at a wedding.

Jesus' mother Mary was also at the wedding. When she heard of the problem, she knew what to do.  She told Jesus. Then she told the people at the wedding to do whatever Jesus said.

Jesus wanted to help His mother.  He told the people working at the wedding to fill six large pots with water.  When they were all full, Jesus told them to take a taste of the water to the man in charge of the wedding feast.

When the man tasted it, he couldn't believe it.  It was the best wine he had ever tasted.  How could water become the best wine?  Jesus had performed a miracle.

John 2:1-11

What is a miracle?  We know that a miracle is something that can't be explained by normal means, but happens by the intervention of God. Was this turning of water to wine a miracle?  Of course it was.

But what about miracles today?  Do they still happen?  Or is it like a magician, just a trick?  I believe that miracles happen today.  They may not be dramatic like this was, but we see miracles every day.  I think we just don't recognize them.  Or we take them for granted.

On Tuesday I was in the middle of an intersection crossing on a green light.  I had a car full of people with me that I was taking home from Bible Study.  Suddenly as I was halfway across a car came speeding through a red light right at me.  I immediately stopped and waited for the inevitable impact.  But there was none.  The driver of the other car stopped just inches from me.  He was very upset.  I breathed a prayer of thanks to God (as did the people with me) and continued through the intersection.  There was no way that the car should not have hit me.  I was right there and so was he.  I consider that a miracle.  God was letting me know that He is always there and always taking care of me.  Many times this week I have thanked Him for His protection.

I know if you think about it, you can see miracles around you.  I would love to hear about your miracles in the comments below.

Have a wonderful Sunday and I'll see you soon.

Kathy

SUNDAY PRAISE

 

Hello, friends!  Hope you are all having a lovely day.  It has been a long time since I did a Sunday Praise post.  I no longer have a Sunday School class, but I continue to get free lessons sent to me from the U.K.  I thought I would share this week's lesson with you.  The theme is John the Baptist.

Even before John was a baby, his parents knew God had a special plan for him.  Zacharias and Elizabeth were too old to have a baby.  His birth was a miracle.  He was Jesus' cousin.

Zacharias and Elizabeth were good parents and taught John what it meant to obey God.  They thought, when he was old enough, John would also become a priest.

But God had a special mission for John.  Instead of working at the temple as a priest, he moved to the desert.  He wore clothes made from camel's hair.  He ate locusts and wild honey.  (Matthew 3:4)

He began to preach an important message.  John taught people they needed to repent.  Many people came to listen to him.

Some people thought he was crazy.  Some religious people told him off.  But others believed his message and repented of their sins.  They said sorry for the bad things they had done and began to obey God.

John baptized them in the Jordan River.  It was a way to show they really meant what they said.  It was like washing the bad things away.

Many people repented of their sins and were baptized by John.  John was preparing the way for Jesus.

This lesson made me wonder how I prepare the way for Jesus.  How do I show evidence of my repentance for my sins?  Many people talk the talk but do not walk the walk.  I need to be so careful that I am not like one of them, but that Christ shines through me always.

John's main task was not baptizing people, but calling attention to Jesus.  Do I call attention to Jesus?  Or is my focus on myself?

Deep thoughts indeed.

On another note, I thought I would let you know that I went to my primary doctor this week.  The pain in my left arm is so intense that I can barely move it.  Now the pain is going up my neck and into my back.  After examining me (and pushing in a spot on my back that was so painful I almost screamed) Dr. Barbara said that it was not a torn rotator cuff or even torn ligaments in my arm.  It is a torn tendon in my neck.  She knew what it was immediately from where the pain was.  I am now on steroids and will be getting an X-ray this week of my neck and shoulder to make sure her diagnosis is correct.  Hopefully this will clear up itself without any further treatment.  If not, I will be seeing an orthopedist.  But what a relief to finally know exactly what is wrong with me and to be getting some treatment.

I am going to end for now.  Hopefully I will be back later this week with another post.  I'm trying to keep in touch.  Really trying.

See you all later.

Kathy

SUNDAY PRAISE

 Good morning, friends!  Happy Sunday.  I am coming to you early this week so I don't know how many kids I will have in Sunday School.  I am hoping about four but we will see.

Yesterday I had the pleasure of having lunch with my former pastor, his wife and two of his daughters.  It was so fun to see them all again and have the delicious lunch that his daughter Karen prepared.  She has just moved into an apartment at Salem Harbor, a complex on the Delaware River not far from where I live.  The apartment was beautiful, but so much smaller than what I am used to.

While we were there Joe and I took a tour of the sample apartments.  As I said the one bedroom one was small.  But great for someone who doesn't need a lot of room.  The two bedroom one is something I could live with.  There was a large living room, very small dining room with a balcony, open kitchen with new appliances and a pantry, a large linen closet, a small bathroom with a washer and dryer, then you go down a hallway and there are two large bedrooms.  

There are no apartments available right now, but Joe and I put in our names on a waiting list and if something opens up they will call us.  This is something we have thought about for several years.  We love the house and neighborhood but we are getting older and it's harder to do the yard work and shovel the snow, etc.  I will let you know what happens!  We might be staying where we are for several more years or we might be moving by the end of the year.  You never know with us.

But let me tell you the lesson for today.  It is about King Josiah.

JOSIAH

Josiah was only eight years old when he was made king.  When King Josiah was sixteen, he began to worship God.  King Josiah loved God and obeyed his ways completely.

Josiah had noticed that many of his people had begun to worship idols.  Idols were objects that people would pray to like they were gods.  But Josiah wanted his whole kingdom to worship God only.  For six years, Josiah worked to get rid of the idols.  He had the altars used to worship idols torn down, and the idols ground into dust.

Because so many people were worshiping idols, God's temple, holy place -- like a church, was not cared for properly.  When King Solomon had built the temple, he had richly decorated the building to honor God.  The walls and floors had been lined with carved cedar wood and gold.  Even the doors and door posts had been beautifully carved.  But it had been 250 years since repairs were made to the special temple.

Josiah was only twenty-six years old, but he knew it was important to have a place to worship God.  He gave orders for the temple to be repaired.

Money was collected to buy the materials needed for the repairs.  The men chosen to work on the temple were honest and could be trusted to work hard.  They bought wood and stone to make repairs.  When the temple was repaired, Josiah brought back the singers and musicians to celebrate.

God was pleased with the young king.  He wants his house to be clean and in good repair.  Josiah led the people to making a new vow of love and loyalty to the true God of Israel.

(based on 2 Kings 22:1-6)

How old was King Josiah when he gave orders for the temple to be cleaned?  He was 26.  A young man with a heart for God.  Oh that we had young men in our churches with hearts for God.

The second question this week is who can keep God's house clean?  And the answer is everyone.  I think this is important since the kids tend to just throw things around the Sunday School room and I end up cleaning after the lesson.  We are going to have clean up time starting today.

I found a new to me website that will email me a Sunday School lesson each week.  Each lesson also has games, coloring pages, puzzles and other things attached to it.  I was looking for a puzzle page for Josiah and came across this.  I joined their page and am looking forward to having new lessons each week.  It may not match up with mine, but that's OK.  I can print them out and keep them in a folder or three-ring binder and use them as I need them.  So for today I have a game like Concentration -- cards that are turned upside down and they have to find the matches.  Then I have a maze "Help Josiah find the scroll" and also a coloring page.  I think the kids will have fun with it.  Having fun helps you to remember the lesson.

Now I have to get off of here and get something to eat, get Joe up and get ready to leave for church.  I hope you all have a wonderful and blessed Sunday.

Until later...

Kathy

SUNDAY PRAISE

 

Hello, friends!  Hope you have had a great day today.  I spent most of today asleep.  I wasn't feeling all that great so I guess it was good I did that.

I did get to church this morning and I had two little girls in Sunday School.  The youngest one was so bad.  She goes to school for the first time this year and I told her she couldn't be running around and talking back to her teacher in school, but she doesn't believe me (or her older sister).  Boy is she going to be surprised.

I did get the lesson across to her though.  And it was a good one.  The story of Naaman.  She was fascinated that he had to wash seven times in the Jordan River and not just once.  She counted along with me (me:  "He washed one time and was still sick.  He washed two times and was still sick.  He washed three, four, five...) and asked, "Why seven?"  She also thought that Gehazi was a funny name for Elisha's servant.  "It sounds like he's sneezing," she said.  What a kid!  But so loveable at the same time.  She's the one who goes around giving everyone hugs.

But enough of that.  Let me tell you the story.

Naaman, the great leader of Syria's army, had a terrible disease.  It was called leprosy.  His wife was very sad.

"Why are you crying," asked her maid.

"Oh, it is just terrible.  Naaman has the dreaded disease.  He has leprosy," she answered before covering her face with her hands and sobbing.

"Don't cry," said the little maid.  "I know a great prophet, Elisha.  He could cure your husband."

Naaman left on a journey to Elisha's home.  Elisha sent his servant, Gehazi, to tell Naaman what to do.  "Elisha says to go wash in the Jordan River seven times.  Then your skin will be pure."

Naaman obeyed Elisha's orders and his skin became like that of a young boy.  He was cured.  Naaman was so thankful he tried to give Elisha some magnificent gifts.  "Thank you for helping to cure me of my leprosy," he said as he handed the gifts to Elisha.  "I know your God must be the true God.  Take these gifts and gold as my thank you."

"No," said Elisha.  "I don't want your gifts.  May God bless you as you return to your home."

Gehazi heard Naaman offer Elisha the gifts.  He wanted those beautiful presents.  "I'll just wait until Naaman is out of sight," he thought.  Then I will go get the gifts.

That's what he did.  As soon as Naaman was out of Elisha's sight, he hurried to him.  "My master has changed his mind," he lied.  "He would like the gifts and gold."

But God helped Elisha to know about Gehazi's sin.  "You will have the curse of leprosy because you are not content with what you have," he told him.

Elisha knew how to be content with what God had given him.  He was God's child.

(based on 2 Kings 5:15-27)

Are you satisfied with what you have?  Gehazi wasn't.  He wanted more and better without trusting in God to provide it for him.  It's so difficult sometimes to be satisfied with what God has given to us.  We want newer, bigger, better things than what we have.  Now there is nothing wrong in trying to improve your lot in life.  I know that I want to.  But there is something wrong in coveting and not trusting God to provide for our needs or being satisfied with what we have.  I always say there is a difference between needs and wants.  For instance, I WANT a bigger and newer house with land around it and a deck and a screened in porch and a...  But I NEED a new bathroom to fix the things wrong with the one I have (like peeling wallpaper and missing tiles).  

Friends, trust in God to supply all of your needs.  And be satisfied with what He has given to you at this moment in time.  God loves His children and will always provide.

I am heading towards the end of the Old Testament stories in this series.  In the fall we will start stories of Jesus.  It's important to have these background stories in your life, but even more important to build on them with the stories of Jesus.

I hope you will have a wonderful week.  I will be back tomorrow to finish my story of our Sisters Getaway.  I also have another book review to share with you.  And maybe... just maybe... there will be a little road trip.  I have to see how things work out.

Until later,

Kathy

SUNDAY PRAISE (A DAY LATE AGAIN)

 

Hello, friends!  How are you all today?  Hope it is a wonderful day for you.  I really had every intention of getting this up yesterday, but after church we had to stop at Target. It took so long to get through the store and at the end my legs, feet and back were hurting so much that I was in tears.  I had to sit down at the pharmacy before we could even go to check out.  I was hurting before we went in but walking around the store did not make things better.  We ate when we got home and then I took some pain medication, laid down and slept the rest of the day.  I got up in time to make dinner (a really easy dinner that took only 15 minutes to make), take my medicine and go back to sleep.  I didn't even get the dishes done!

I had four little girls yesterday.  I wish I had some boys too, but they are very happy it is an all girl class.  😉  After all girls rule and boys drool.  Ha, ha!  We had the story of Elijah and Elisha.  I find the stories with them hard to teach because I'm forever mixing up their names!  But here is the story of Elijah and Elisha.

Elijah was God's prophet.  He knew that he would go to Heaven one day and would need someone to take his place.  "God," he prayed.  "Who shall I choose to take my place?"

"Go find Elisha," God told him.  "He will take your place as prophet."

Elijah found Elisha in the field.  He had twelve yoke of oxen pulling his plow.  When Elijah got close to Elisha, he took his own colak and threw it over Elisha's shoulders.

Elisha bowed his head.  He loved Elijah and was honored to take his place.  "I don't feel worthy," he whispered.  With the prophet's cloak around his shoulders, he left his plow and followed Elijah to become a prophet.

One day after Elijah had gone to Heaven, Elisha went to Shunem.  While he was there he met a rich man and woman.  "Come, eat with us," they invited.

Elisha went to their home.  "Thank you," he said after eating the delicious fruits and other good food.  "The meal was so good."

"Come anytime," the couple urged.  "We have an extra room just for you."

They gave Elisha his own room on the cool roof.  The room had a bed, a stool, a table, and a lamp.  It was a special place for Elisha to rest.

"This Shunemite couple is so loving," said Elisha.  "I wish I knew what I could do to show my love for them."

"I know," a friend told Elisha.  "This lady would like to have a son."

Elisha told the woman, "You shall have a son."  God gave them a son.

What a joy the son was to the Shunemite woman.  She and her husband loved a prophet of God.  In return, Elisha was loving to them.  They were God's children.

(based on 2 Kings 4:8-17)

Do you think being loving encourages others to show love to you?  How can you show love to those who have shown love to you?

I understand where this story was going with the preschool children, but I thought for myself, do I show love to those who do NOT show love to me?  That is so much harder.  John 3:16 tells me that God loves the world.  He loves the world so much that He sent His Son into the world to die for us.  So this gives me a hint that we should love everyone, even if they are not loveable.  So very hard to do!  I'm not there yet, but I hope I am a work in progress.

Have a wonderful day.  The next two days are my annual trek to Lancaster for my Sisters Get-Away.  So I will not be around for a few days, but I will for sure be taking pictures to show you what we got up to.  See you all later.

Kathy

SUNDAY PRAISE (A DAY LATE)

 Hello, friends.  Hope you have had a good day.  It is pretty late, but I wanted to get a post up for you.  I was all set to publish something yesterday, and then I fell asleep.  I slept for hours.  I didn't even get to eat dinner.  😮

But I did want to get a Sunday Praise in so here it is today.  I had two little girls in my class.  I was so glad to get back since I was so sick last week and my friend Kathy (Miss K) took over for me.  (I'm known as Miss Kathy and there couldn't be two of us so we came up with Miss K.)

Last week Miss K taught the story of David and Goliath.  She had four girls.  One of the girls said to her that making that sling go around and around would have made her dizzy.  Ha, ha!  You gotta love the way kids think.

This week the story was DAVID FORGIVES KING SAUL.

Saul was king when David killed Goliath.  Saul was happy to win the battle.  When King Saul returned home, the women were singing and dancing.

    "King Saul has killed his thousands," the women sang.  "But David has killed his ten thousands."  From that day on, King Saul was angry and jealous of David.  He was afraid David would take the kingdom away from him.

    David had to hide from King Saul.  So he took some of his men and they hid in caves and forests.

    One day, David heard that King Saul and his army were looking for him.  He hid deep in a cave.

    As David waited, he saw that King Saul had grown tired and was lying on the ground near the entrance of the cave.  There were no soldiers near him.

    "Hurry," whispered one of David's men.  "Here's your chance to kill him."

    But David knew God would not be pleased if he was mean back at King Saul.  Instead David just snuck up behind King Saul and carefully cut off a piece of King Saul's robe.

    When King Saul awoke and left the cave, David secretly followed him.  King Saul was carefully walking among the rocks on the hillside.  David stood high above him and called, "King Saul!"

    King Saul spun around in surprise.  He watched as David bowed in respect.  "Is that you, David?" the king asked.

    "Yes," answered David.  "Today I was close enough to kill you, but I couldn't kill the Lord's chosen king.  I have chosen to forgive you instead."

    King Saul never admitted his jealousy toward David.  But David had chosen forgiveness and did not harm him.

(based on 1 Samuel 24)

Can you forgive a friend who is angry with you?  Or can you forgive a friend who you are angry with?  Forgiveness is a difficult thing for a lot of people.  I think we all have trouble with forgiveness at one point or another.  But it is so important in our lives.  God tells us in the Lord's Prayer to ask God to forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.  We want forgiveness but are we always willing to forgive?  Hmm.  Something to think about this week.

I'll be back soon.  See you then.

Kathy

SUNDAY PRAISE

 Happy Sunday, friends.  And Happy Independence Day.  I am sitting in my living room looking out of the window and watching the beautiful fireworks.  When I was outside to take pictures of course there weren't any.  I could hear them, but not see them.  Now, of course....  But I am not going out again.  I am just going to enjoy them from here.  I'll do a post on today tomorrow.  Does that make sense?

But today I will tell you the lesson I gave my kids.

DAVID THE SHEPHERD BOY

          David was a shepherd boy.  He took his father's sheep to the hills around Bethlehem and watched over them.  David watched the sheep on sunny days and rainy days, too.

          Being a shepherd was a lonely life.  And sometimes it was scary, too.  One day David heard, "Baa, baa."  It sounded like a lamb was saying, "Help me, help me."  When David turned around he saw a bear carrying a lamb in his teeth.

          "Stop," shouted David.  He quickly put a smooth stone in his sling and whirled it around his head.  As he let go of one end of the sling, the stone flew through the air and hit the bear.

          David ran toward the stunned bear and grabbed the lamb out of the bear's mouth.  Furious, the bear ran toward David.  "Help me, Father God," David must have prayed.  He grabbed the bear, hit it, and watched as the bear fell to the ground.  It was dead!  "Thank you, God, thank you," David said.

          Even when David was afraid or lonely, he knew God was with him.  He wrote many songs to sing to God.  One day when all of the lambs were lying quietly on the green grass, David played his harp and sang, "The LORD is my shepherd.  He gives me everything I need."  (Psalm 23:1).

          David was a happy shepherd boy.  He was God's child.

          (based on Psalm 23)

Do you like to sing?  Many of us can't carry a tune but we are all able to make a joyful noise to the Lord.  Do you sing when you are happy?  Sad?  Afraid?  I sing lots of the time and many days I wake up with a praise song in my head.

Hope you are all having a wonderful holiday and I will be back tomorrow, Lord willing, to tell you about today -- as uneventful as it was.

Kathy

SUNDAY PRAISE

 Hello, friends!  Hope you are having a wonderful Lord's Day.  It is a sunny and hot day here even though it is early in the day.  I am getting myself ready for church.  We are having a guest speaker today while our pastor is away.  It is our friend that we had lunch with at Joe's birthday.  My friend Sharon, his wife, is coming too.  I am very excited to see them.  Although because it is Father's Day we can't hang out with them after church.  Joe and I may go out for lunch -- we aren't sure yet, but I will let you know.

Also, I have today off from teaching.  My friend, Kathy (also known as Miss K) is giving me a break so I can hear the message.  That was so nice and kind of her.

But I will still give you the lesson.  As you read, please remember that it is for pre-schoolers and so is not in great detail.  I will give you the reference and you can read the story in the Bible for yourself.  Today it is

JERICHO

"God, show me what to do," prayed Joshua.  "I am nearing Jericho.  How can we conquer the city with those high, high walls?"

God told Joshua what to do.  But what a strange command God gave him!  Would it really work?  Joshua didn't hesitate, he went right to the captains of his army.  "God has told me how to conquer Jericho," he said.

When the captains heard what God said, they agreed.  "It is very strange, but we will do what God has commanded."

The next day all of the soldiers of Joshua's army lined up.  Joshua led the army in a line around the city of Jericho as God commanded.  They marched all around the city and they did not say a word  There were hundred and hundreds of soldiers and they were all quiet.

For six days the soldiers marched around the city and for six days they were quiet.  On the seventh day, Joshua's army marched around the city seven times.  Seven times around and not one sound was heard!  But then, the trumpets blew and the soldiers yelled as loud as they could. 

As all the noise hit the air, the walls of Jericho came tumbling down.  The soldiers rushed into the city and destroyed it.

The walls fell down because Joshua obeyed God.  He was God's child.

-- based on Joshua 5:13 - 6:26

Is it always easy to obey God?  No.  Definitely not.  But should we always obey God?  Definitely yes.  He made us.  He knows us.  He loves us and has our best interest at heart.  We don't always understand.  I would say we don't understand more than we do.  But that doesn't mean we shouldn't obey.  I find I get myself in trouble when I don't obey.  And I'm sure you feel the same way.

That's my thoughts for today.  I hope you are enjoying these little lessons.  I think I learn more than the kids do.  But isn't that how it usually is when you teach?

See you tomorrow.

Kathy

SUNDAY PRAISE

 

Hello, friends!  Happy Sunday!  Welcome back to another Sunday Praise.  Praising God is so important.  Today I am teaching the children about:

THE TEN COMMANDMENTS

While God's people were camping at Mt. Sinai, God gave them ten special laws to help them know how to live and worship him better.  God gave these rules to Moses to share with his people.  These laws are recorded in the Bible.  God still wants us to follow them today.

Four of the rules were about God.  We should worship God only -- the one true God.  We shouldn't bow down to idols or love anything or anyone more than we love God.  God doesn't want us to make fun of his name or say it in anger.  God wants us to spend one day every week in rest and worship.  God said, "Remember the Sabbath day, and keep it holy."

Then God told Moses to teach the people to honor their parents.  He does not want us to disobey or disrespect our parents.

"Don't take the lives of others," God then said.  "And if you are married, keep your wedding vows."

God also gave us the laws that say "Don't take what isn't yours" and "Don't lie or deceive anyone."  The tenth law God gave was "Don't wish you could have something that belongs to someone else.  Be happy with your own belongings."

God gave us ten rules to live by.  These are ten rules we can learn to help us worship God better.

Psalm 119:108 tells us, "LORD... teach me your laws."  How can we learn God's laws?  Is it a matter of learning Exodus 20 by rote?  Or is it a heart knowledge even if we can't quote the ten commandments perfectly from memory?  God gave us these laws to make our life better, not put restraints on us.  We all break them.  Over and over.  How wonderful that our God forgives us over and over if we just go to Him in humility and ask forgiveness.

Until next time...

Kathy

SUNDAY PRAISE

Hello, friends!  I hope you have had a wonderful Sunday full of God's blessing.  I woke up at 4:30 this morning with an awful headache which lasted most of the day.  But that did not stop me from going to church.

Our opening hymn was "Give Praise to God" written by Dr. James Montgomery Boice and Paul Stephen Jones, the organist at Tenth Church.  I knew Dr. Boice very well because I worked with him for about 5 years at Tenth Presbyterian Church here in Philadelphia when I was the church secretary.  He was a wonderful man.  It brought tears to my eyes when we sang it because even though he died 20 years ago, I still miss him.  It is a beautiful hymn and I found it on YouTube for you to hear.

Today we began a new part of worship.  We are learning memory verses each week.  Pastor calls this section "Hidden in the Heart."  A perfect title since this truly is what we want to do.  Our verse this week is one I already know:

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.  Romans 1:16

Maybe some of you would like to learn the verses each week also.

We stopped at Sonic on the way home and got burgers and fries for lunch.  I also got a lemon slush.  If you have been reading my blog for any length of time, you know I love my slushes.  And even though it was so cold outside and this was an icy drink, I enjoyed every drop of it.

After I ate, I took some aspirin and laid down on the sofa.  The next thing I knew it was 8:00 p.m.  Joe had made himself some hot dogs for dinner and I slept on.  So I got up and had a couple of cupcakes so I could take my medicine.  Don't you like that for dinner?  I'm still full from lunch and really not hungry at all.

So now it is almost time for bed and I will go back to sleep.  It's Nursing Home day tomorrow.  I'm looking forward to that.

Until later...

Kathy