The Treasure Of Christmas
Children's sermon
Cows In Church
80 Biblically Based Children's Sermons
Object:
Two quarters.
"Have any of you ever found something that surprised you because it was in a place where you didn't expect it to be?" The children think about this question a moment, then a few of them nod affirmatively.
"Well, I have too, several times just recently. The Friday after Thanksgiving I was visiting the Churchill Memorial in Fulton. Walking outside to see the newly acquired section of the Berlin Wall, I noticed something shiny in the grass. When I went to investigate, guess what I found?"
"A dime?" one child asks. I shake my head negatively.
"A quarter?" another suggests.
"Yes," I answer, "in fact, not one, but TWO quarters!" I hold up two quarters. "I was very surprised to find money just lying there in the grass. It was quite an unexpected treasure. Then last Monday, I saw something shiny on the bottom of the swimming pool at the YMCA. Guess what it was?"
"Another quarter!" nearly all of the children respond together.
"No, not a quarter -- but a nickel. I had to dive all the way to the bottom -- of the deep end! -- to see for sure what it was. I was very surprised to find a coin at the bottom of the pool.
"Now I would have missed both of these treasures, the quarters and the nickel, if they hadn't been shiny. But shiny things tend to get our attention. What are some of the shiny things that get your attention at this time of year?"
"Snow!" comes the first gleeful response.
"Yes, snow sparkles when the sunlight hits it," I agree, "and some of you consider it to be quite a treasure, especially when it causes the cancellation of school."
"Ornaments," comes another reply.
"Lights!"
"Icicles!"
Answers begin to erupt from the children right and left. Faintly I hear the suggestion for which I am looking and ask the young man who said it to repeat his idea.
"Stars?" he questions.
"Oh, yes!" I encourage him, "definitely stars. In fact, a very special star nearly 2,000 years ago was so bright and shiny it caused several people to notice it. Who were those people?"
"The wise men!" Somehow I didn't think the kids would have any trouble coming up with that answer.
"And what did they do when they saw the star?"
"They followed it."
"Yes, they followed it. And my, oh my, what a surprise they got when they came to the end of their journey. They were going to find a king! We usually think of kings in palaces and castles, don't we?" The children agree with nods.
"Was this king in a palace?" Vigorously, the children shake their heads.
"Well, where was he?"
"In a stable."
"In a stable? Wow! What a place to find a king, in a stable where animals are kept. But that's where the star led the wise men. And they were wise enough to understand that God could come to us anywhere God chose.
"That's still true today. God can surprise us by coming to places we may not be expecting. And sometimes, if we aren't paying attention, we may not notice God. That's one reason it's nice to have shiny ornaments and tinsel and stars as decorations, to remind us to pay attention, to remind us that God can be present with us in unexpected places.
"During this week, whenever something shiny catches your eye, I hope you'll remember that star the wise men saw. They found Jesus when they paid attention, in a place they probably didn't expect to find him.
Perhaps you'll remember their story and think of Jesus too when ornaments, tinsel, and stars sparkle into your awareness. For Jesus is the true treasure of Christmas."
"Well, I have too, several times just recently. The Friday after Thanksgiving I was visiting the Churchill Memorial in Fulton. Walking outside to see the newly acquired section of the Berlin Wall, I noticed something shiny in the grass. When I went to investigate, guess what I found?"
"A dime?" one child asks. I shake my head negatively.
"A quarter?" another suggests.
"Yes," I answer, "in fact, not one, but TWO quarters!" I hold up two quarters. "I was very surprised to find money just lying there in the grass. It was quite an unexpected treasure. Then last Monday, I saw something shiny on the bottom of the swimming pool at the YMCA. Guess what it was?"
"Another quarter!" nearly all of the children respond together.
"No, not a quarter -- but a nickel. I had to dive all the way to the bottom -- of the deep end! -- to see for sure what it was. I was very surprised to find a coin at the bottom of the pool.
"Now I would have missed both of these treasures, the quarters and the nickel, if they hadn't been shiny. But shiny things tend to get our attention. What are some of the shiny things that get your attention at this time of year?"
"Snow!" comes the first gleeful response.
"Yes, snow sparkles when the sunlight hits it," I agree, "and some of you consider it to be quite a treasure, especially when it causes the cancellation of school."
"Ornaments," comes another reply.
"Lights!"
"Icicles!"
Answers begin to erupt from the children right and left. Faintly I hear the suggestion for which I am looking and ask the young man who said it to repeat his idea.
"Stars?" he questions.
"Oh, yes!" I encourage him, "definitely stars. In fact, a very special star nearly 2,000 years ago was so bright and shiny it caused several people to notice it. Who were those people?"
"The wise men!" Somehow I didn't think the kids would have any trouble coming up with that answer.
"And what did they do when they saw the star?"
"They followed it."
"Yes, they followed it. And my, oh my, what a surprise they got when they came to the end of their journey. They were going to find a king! We usually think of kings in palaces and castles, don't we?" The children agree with nods.
"Was this king in a palace?" Vigorously, the children shake their heads.
"Well, where was he?"
"In a stable."
"In a stable? Wow! What a place to find a king, in a stable where animals are kept. But that's where the star led the wise men. And they were wise enough to understand that God could come to us anywhere God chose.
"That's still true today. God can surprise us by coming to places we may not be expecting. And sometimes, if we aren't paying attention, we may not notice God. That's one reason it's nice to have shiny ornaments and tinsel and stars as decorations, to remind us to pay attention, to remind us that God can be present with us in unexpected places.
"During this week, whenever something shiny catches your eye, I hope you'll remember that star the wise men saw. They found Jesus when they paid attention, in a place they probably didn't expect to find him.
Perhaps you'll remember their story and think of Jesus too when ornaments, tinsel, and stars sparkle into your awareness. For Jesus is the true treasure of Christmas."
