Obvious Secret
Children's sermon
Lent can be an odd time for church kids. They are intuitive and can sense that something has changed. If we do not seek to explain why the mood and tone of the community has changed it can be a scary time. We talk more about death, especially Jesus dying, so we need to prepare kids for what is coming.
Say something like:
Today is an important day for churches. That’s why we are here on a Wednesday which is not something we do too often. Today is called Ash Wednesday. This day starts a 6-week time period where we focus on the sacrifice Jesus made for us when he died on the cross. These 6 weeks are called Lent.
Lent can feel like a sad time in the church because we make some changes in how we do things. We change the music we play to more sad and slow songs. We don’t say the word “Hallelujah” because that is a joyful word. We also talk more about our sins and even death. You can see why this time can feel sad. What we are doing is getting ready for the big party on Easter.
Before you have a party at home you probably must clean the house. First you make a list of all the things that need cleaning or fixing, then you get to work, so that when the party day comes everything is ready. Today on Ash Wednesday and we will be marking ourselves as things that need to be cleaned.
We have all made mistakes and sinned and even though we confess each Sunday, lent gives us a chance to really think deeply about our mistakes. Hopefully so we don’t make the same ones again. We mark ourselves with ashes, which are mixed with oil so they stick to our forehead or hands. You may have seen some people walking around today with a cross on their forehead. It also may have looked like they have some dirt on their face. That means that they know they have made mistakes and want to be better.
Let’s say a prayer to help us think about how we can be better this Lent.
Loving God, We know was have sinned and we are sorry. We are excited to have 6 weeks to really work on being better people and making the world more loving. Amen.
Say something like:
Today is an important day for churches. That’s why we are here on a Wednesday which is not something we do too often. Today is called Ash Wednesday. This day starts a 6-week time period where we focus on the sacrifice Jesus made for us when he died on the cross. These 6 weeks are called Lent.
Lent can feel like a sad time in the church because we make some changes in how we do things. We change the music we play to more sad and slow songs. We don’t say the word “Hallelujah” because that is a joyful word. We also talk more about our sins and even death. You can see why this time can feel sad. What we are doing is getting ready for the big party on Easter.
Before you have a party at home you probably must clean the house. First you make a list of all the things that need cleaning or fixing, then you get to work, so that when the party day comes everything is ready. Today on Ash Wednesday and we will be marking ourselves as things that need to be cleaned.
We have all made mistakes and sinned and even though we confess each Sunday, lent gives us a chance to really think deeply about our mistakes. Hopefully so we don’t make the same ones again. We mark ourselves with ashes, which are mixed with oil so they stick to our forehead or hands. You may have seen some people walking around today with a cross on their forehead. It also may have looked like they have some dirt on their face. That means that they know they have made mistakes and want to be better.
Let’s say a prayer to help us think about how we can be better this Lent.
Loving God, We know was have sinned and we are sorry. We are excited to have 6 weeks to really work on being better people and making the world more loving. Amen.
