Heavenly and earthly Fathers (Sunday school lesson for preschoolers)

This Sunday is Fathers Day - perfect for talking about God, our heavenly Father.

This time no story. I wanted to get the kids talking.
Today we're going to talk about God, our heavenly Father. Who here has a father? (encourage response)
Who know his father's name? (encourage response)
They are your earthly fathers. Your father here on earth. Did you know that you ALSO have a heavenly father? Who knows who that is? (encourage response)

Do your daddys know a lot? Are they smart? Can you think of something your daddy knows? For example, my daddy always knows where he's going. He can always find his way. He never gets lost. He has a good sense of direction and can always find his way home. What about your daddy's?

Wow, your daddy's are smart! We can learn a lot from our daddy's. And did you know.. God, our heavenly Father is also really smart. He knows even more than every daddy on earth. God knows everything. He even knows how many hairs you have on top of your head! And he knows all your names! He knows where you live and whether you have brothers and sisters. He knows when you're happy or sad or angry. He knows all this because He's God. God knows everything.
We can also learn a lot from our heavenly Father. For example, I am learning how to love people the way He loved us, how I can show someone I love them by being friendly to them.

Who can tell me something their daddy does really well? For example, my daddy is good at fixing bikes. What can your daddy do really well? (encourage response)

Wow, your daddy's sound amazing. We can learn so much from our fathers.
Our heavenly Father is also really amazing. He made the earth, the seas, the clouds, the sun, moon and all the stars! He made all the trees and flowers, animals, birds and fishes. He even made us! God can say to the wind 'Be still' and the wind will stop blowing. He can say to a storm 'Be quiet' and the storm will calm down. God can say to the sun 'Don't move' and it will stop moving. Wow huh! God can do anything!

Let's play a game.

Daddy says
Run around the room. You are the wind in the storm. Be wild. Be fast. But listen closely because when I say 'Still' all of you must freeze. Can you do that? Then we'll do another storm and you start running again. But when I say 'Lie down' you must all lie down as quickly as possible.
Let's play.

Prayer
Let's thank God for our fathers here on earth and that He is our Father in heaven.

Fathers Day Craft
Cut pieces of cardboard out of boxes. Punch 2 holes in the top with a hole punch. Paint it. Glue a text on top saying 'I love you Daddy' (the lego heart I used is from the brickartist). Glue a small note book on the card board as well.

Coloring Page
Illustrating today's lesson: Our father here on earth and our Father in Heaven.(Feel free to use it)

Reading the bible with kids

For some time now I've been looking for ways to deepen our bible reading times. For several years now I've been reading to them during breakfast - different children's bibles have crossed our table, stories getting more detailed as the kids grow older. It's been good but now I want more. I am finding that my children know the stories all too well. What they are lacking is how these stories pertain to their lives. Why did God include these stories in the bible? What can we learn from them? About God? About the human race? About ourselves?

I started looking around on the internet for ideas. What do other parents do? And I came across a book called: Together. Growing Appetites for God by Carrie Ward, an everyday mama. Carrie felt God calling her to read the entire bible with her children (3 at the time, all under the age of 4). And she did. Not a children's bible. She actually read the real bible. And her kids were younger than mine are now. So I wondered - would my kids understand the sometimes really hard-to-understand language of the bible? Would their attention drift as mine frequently does when someone else reads out loud from the bible to me? Or would they become rivited as Carrie's children had been?

I decided to do a test drive. In order to have more time I started postphoning my own breakfast so that I could spend that time reading to the kids instead. First I read a story from the children's bible. And then I read that same story from the real bible. I leave the children's bible open so they can look at the amazing artwork while they listen to the same story again. And it's interesting!
The eldest (who is 7yrs) can't wait to hear more. At lunch he will ask if we can continue where we left off in the mornings! The second (6yrs) doesn't seem to be paying much attention but sometimes he'll suddenly say something profound or touch back on something we read later in the afternoons when he's back from school.
Reading from the real bible is sparking discussion. About what certain words mean. About cultural differences: bible times vs. this day and age and middel-eastern ways vs. our ways here. The stories are coming alive!

I'm not sure I'm ready to read the entire bible through from Genesis to Revelation but I am delighted at the positive way the children are responding to being read to from God's Word, just as it is, tough words and all. Since I am half way through a new children's bible at the moment I've decided to finish reading that bible, with parallel readings from God's Word. And I pray that God will reach out and touch their hearts and lives. After all, God promises: "so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it." (Isaiah 55:11) And that's my prayer: that it may reach our hearts and do God's great work in us.