Kidz Topic ... EVANGELISM (Halloween)

This is a new segment of my blog where I will be sharing a variety of thoughts, scripture verses, and “sparkle” ideas just for kids. Feel free to pass them on to your children, grandchildren, or any other young people that God has put in your life.

KIDZ ☮ PEACE...  Over the next three weeks our Kidz Peace topics will be about E V A N G E L I S M.   Evangelism means talking about our beliefs with others who do not share those same beliefs. In other words, spreading Christianity.

A few more days and it will be Halloween. When I think of Halloween, I think of carving pumpkins with crazy faces, then putting a candle inside to watch them glow.

In Exodus 34:29-35, we can read the story of how Moses spent 40 days and 40 nights on Mt. Sinai with the Lord. During that time, Moses wrote down the 10 commandments. When he came down the mountain after meeting with God, his face was glowing. Like Moses, we have no light of our own. But , because we have accepted Christ as our Lord and Savior, we have been filled with His light, and the more time we spend with God, the brighter our light becomes.

John 8:12 tells us that when Jesus spoke to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” What an important message – one that needs to be shared with others. We have been called to reflect God’s light to the world – to share the incredible message that God sent His Son to die for our sins (Romans 5:8).

1. Did you know that being a CHRISTIAN is like being a PUMPKIN?

God picks you from the patch, brings you in, and washes off the dirt you may have gotten from the other pumpkins. Then he cuts off the top and scoops out all the yucky stuff. He removes the seeds of doubt, hate, greed, etc. Then He carves a new smiling face and puts His light inside of you to shine for all the world to see. (- passed on from one of God's pumpkins to another!)

Evangelism Idea: Why not put a copy of this poem with each treat you pass out this Halloween. Spread the Good News of Christ!

2. How to carve a Christian Pumpkin:

I am a Jack O' Lantern my light will shine so bright,
for I am a Christian pumpkin my symbols tell what's right.

My nose is like the cross on which our Savior died,
to set us free from sin we need no longer hide.

My mouth is like a fish the whole wide world to show,
that Christians live in this house and love their Savior so!

The story starts at Christmas my eyes are like the star,
that shone on Baby Jesus and wise men saw from far.

My color it is orange just like the big bright sun,
that rose on Easter Day along with Gods' own Son.

And so on Halloween let's set our pumpkins out,
and tell the trick-or-treaters what Gods’ love is all about!

Evangelism Idea: Why not carve some Christian pumpkins, then make a card telling the story of a Christian Pumpkin, and give them to some of your neighbors. Your neighborhood may reflect the only sign of Christ someone see’s this Halloween.

3. What does God’s Word tell us? When we go to God in prayer and read our Bible we can find words that instruct us on shining our light as a witness to others. Check out these verses: Matthew 5:14, 2 Corinthians 4:6, Ephesians 5:8, Matthew 5:16, 2 Corinthians 3:18.

4. Do you know what an acronym is? It is when you take letters and use them to represent a saying. If I asked you what the letters W W J D meant, you would probably know that it meant – What Would Jesus Do. Here’s another one, what do the letters G L O W mean? They stand for God’s Love Overpowers the World. Or, what about S H I N E  - Share His Incredible News Everywhere.

Kidz Thought for the Week:   Hold on, man. We don't go anywhere with "scary," "spooky," "haunted," or "forbidden" in the title. - from Scooby-Doo

Keeping you in my prayers. 'til next week ... whether you G L O W or S H I N E, have a safe and fun-filled Halloween ... it’s a great time for Evangelism.

God's Peace, Donna

Peace is not Enough

“If someone thinks that love and peace is a cliché that must have been left behind in the Sixties, that’s his problem.  Love and peace are eternal.”   – John Lennon

Happy New Year everyone!  Sometimes I think my friends wonder if I am really a left-over hippie from the 60’s.  The answer to that question is definitely NO.  I have never been part of a commune, used drugs, or rejected social or political values.  My only “hippy-ish” ways consist of having worn my hair long, occasionally dressing a little unconventional (tie-dyed shirts, beads & peace sign jewelry) and as much as I love using the word peace, it is usually done so in relationship to my faith.  With that being said, I do believe the world would be a better place if it was filled with God’s Peace and Love! 

I don’t know about you, but there are many areas of my life that are not exactly peace-filled. So in 2011, I am going on a journey to seek more of God’s peace & love in four specific areas of my life. The idea for this blog has been a work in progress for quite some time now, but the timing of the New Year seemed just right for challenging myself to the task at hand. 

While working on this project, the word sparkle started appearing to me in books and magazines that I was reading, in conversations, on TV and even in sermons I heard.  I didn’t understand why, until I heard a DJ on K-Love talking about an alternative to New Year resolutions.  He was sharing a story about a challenge called “My One Word.”   According to the website (myoneword.org) their challenge is simple, “Lose the long list of changes you want to make this year and instead pick ONE WORD.”  Since I already had my blog under construction, I knew peace was going to be my focus... I had a plan.  But, there was something that continued to bother me, and that was the word sparkle.  When I looked up sparkle in the thesaurus I found words like “shine, glitter, glisten, flicker, twinkle and shimmer.”  As I prayed about my plans to seek peace, I began to realize what was missing.  You see, peace in itself is not enough.  Matthew 5:16 (NIV) says, “... let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”  Shine.... “sparkle!”  As always, when I seek God’s guidance, His plan is always better than anything I could come up with, hence my blog Peace Love and Sparkle was born.

Here are the four areas of my life that will be the focus of this journey:

1.  Peace in my Heart (peace) = calm, quiet, stillness, tranquility, silence, harmony, serenity

2.  Peaceful Environment  (simplify) = uncomplicated, uncluttered, easier, to reduce

3.  Spirit of Peace (joy) = delight, happiness, pleasure, enjoyment, bliss, wonder

4.  Sharing the Peace (sparkle) =shine, glitter, glisten, flicker, twinkle, shimmer

During this week, think about the list above and see if you can come up with one or two steps you could take in your own life to seek peace in one or all of these areas.  We can compare our lists next Monday. 

BTW.... don’t throw away the Christmas cards you’ve received this year.  Friday I will share a great way to use them to start the New Year off with a “sparkle.”

God’s Peace...  Donna Weaver

“All we are saying; is give peace a chance.”    – John Lennon