Sunday 27th September 2020 - We are Family!
The Church - We are Family!
Video:
Worship:
Let’s worship and remember that we are all part of the big family of God as we sing along to ‘Big Family of God’ by Nick and Becky Drake:
Word:
Often, people talk about the church being ‘the body of Christ’ which sounds quite strange doesn’t it! (You might want to look up Romans 12: 3-5 with older children.) This is basically referring to the fact that as followers of Jesus, we become like a big family and need to work together so that we can serve God’s kingdom here on earth and show Jesus to others.
The symbolism of the body is because the human body has lots of different parts, but they all need each other to work well and effectively. So, as the church family we need each other to be the best we can be.
Look up 1 Corinthians chapter 12 verses 12 - 31. Talk about your bodies; what are you able to do well? What other things can you think of where different bits or parts fit together? What happens when bits are missing? Why do you think Paul (the letter writer) talks about a human body rather than a machine? What’s the difference?
Can you imagine what The Well Sheffield would be like if we were all the same? Part of the fun of being family is enjoying each other’s differences and celebrating the different things we are good at. It is great to have some people who are gifted musically and can lead in the worship group and others who like to be friendly and greet people on the door and others who like to be in the background helping out with technology for example and still others who like being creative with paints or words to express what Jesus means to them and so on.
What 1 Corinthians was trying to show wasn’t so much about human bodies, more about understanding that even though we are all different, we are all important to God and we all have a role to play in helping people learn about God’s love, just like the body has different parts that all work together to make a complete, functioning, healthy body. Together, the church family at The Well function better together to help others learn about God’s love and to support us when we are out at school and work and in our day-to-day lives to still be able to share God’s love.
Activity Suggestions:
Home cinema!
Watch Toy Story or Ice Age together as a family. Discuss:
- How and when do they work together as a team?
- Could they have been just as successful on their own?
- Were there times when things went wrong because they didn’t work together?
- How did they help each other?
- What lessons does this show us about being part of the wider church family?
Reflection:
Spend some time in the quiet thinking about how God has made you special and unique and just you. What have you already realised are the gifts that God has given you? If you aren’t sure, then do talk with your family and friends and ask them to tell you what is so great about you! Why not also encourage your friends and family by telling them about their special gifts and traits too?
If there is something that you would like to get better at, like one of the gifts mentioned in 1 Corinthians do pray and ask God whether you might receive that gift. We can always ask!
It is really important to remember that you are special and unique and God loves you unconditionally (totally) just as you are!!