Theme Conversation: The Power of Care (with the science demonstration: The Egg Drop)

Theme Conversation: CARE

You might wonder why I’m beginning our Theme Conversation by pulling along this mother duck who’s carrying her egg.  If we help the mother duck carry her egg with care, see, it’s just beautiful; the Mother duck is happy. The egg is happy.

Some of us who participated in VBS last summer would know what ‘Action Word’ we learned with the science activity Drop Egg. Of course, this mother duck will never drop her egg, as long as I lead her with care.

Yes! CARE!

I’m going to show you The Power of Care!

(DEMONSTRATION OF THE DROP EGG)

Fill a large plastic drinking glass about three quarters full with water.

Center a pie pan on top of the glass.

Place the toilet paper roll on the pie pan.

With care, set the egg on top of the tube!

“I’m going to have to act with CARE so that, hopefully, eggs and water don’t go everywhere!”

Look! What has just happened?

Has the egg been safely dropped right in the water? With CARE, everyone is safe, happy, included.

Today, we start our children’s church with excitement and SWEETS! Are you excited knowing that you’ll get be able to build your own sundae with the sprinkles of your choice? Our Fellowship Committee made sure that you will have some cool toppings to choose from! That will be really tasty & colourful!

Today, we also learn that we build our community together, with our friends and families and other adults, as we are called to serve one another with love and CARE!

As the body of Jesus, we learn to care for one another as Jesus loves every single one of us equally and with great love. With Jesus, everyone is important; no one is considered more important than anybody else. In today’s Gospel story, Jesus welcomes a very young child, just like you, and lets the child sit on his lap, and says, “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.” You know, that was a revolutionary statement in Jesus’ day. 2000 years ago, children were totally powerless - adults never really listened to kids  - they were treated as being unimportant. One source says children were referred to as “it” rather than as ‘he’ or ‘she’. What the children thought or wanted mattered to no one, not even their own parents. However, Jesus says, welcoming such a young child with all their questions and their fresh view of our world is just like welcoming Jesus himself.

As we learn Jesus’ message, let’s give a warm welcome to our youngest members of the Children’s Church. Today, we welcome BB, JG, TP. Let’s all say together, “Welcome, B, Welcome J, Welcome T in Jesus’ name!” (Handing out a lamb to B, T, J)

Theme Conversation: Crocus-Minded (Sept 13, 2015)

Last week, I asked a teen girl, “Have you had a poem or prayer that has inspired you recently?” She did have a poem, and she shared it with me. The title of the poem she recommended was  “Crocus-minded”. I searched for it and found that it’s in the book, Bless this Mess and Other Prayers, written nearly 45 years ago!

(Children) Have you seen crocuses? You’ve probably read this book, The Runaway Bunny, and seen this picture. It’s one of my younger son’s favorite books. Here’s the crocus that the little bunny turns into, hoping that his mother can’t find him, but - she finds him anyway, even disguised as a flower.

I always loved crocuses when I was on Vancouver Island; they look like beautiful gems of the early spring landscape. They poke their heads up from the cold earth, even above the snow after a long winter, signaling that Spring is coming.

Well, it’s not Spring right now, but the fall is quite obviously arriving. We are very alert to the arrival of Fall! I guess it’s because we know what’s coming up following the fall! (Please don’t frown at me, telling you all this stuff related to winter! :)

I learned that the floral emblem of Manitoba, our own province, is the prairie crocus, which is also the floral emblem of South Dakota. I was amazed when I learned that my favourite flower - now in Manitoba, the prairie crocus (botanical name: Anemone Patents) - used to be everywhere in the spring before our prairies were replaced by farms, cities and roads. From my conviction that the gift of the earth is the gift of God, I would like to share this poem, Crocus-Minded, with you, just as that teenage girl shared it with me. Whatever challenges you may face now and in the future as we are called to act and speak for justice and for God, I hope Crocus-Minded finds a home in your heart today and inspires you to take courage.

It takes courage
    to be crocus-minded.
 
Lord, I’d rather wait until June,
    like wise roses,
    when the hazards of winter are safely behind,
    and I’m expected,
    and everything’s ready for roses.
 
But crocuses?
    Highly irregular.
    Knifing up through hard-frozen ground and snow,
        sticking their necks out.
    because they believe in spring
    and have something personal
    and emphatic to say about it.
 
Lord, I am by nature rose-minded.
    Even when I have studied the situation here
    and know there are wrongs that need righting,
    affirmations that need stating,
    and know also that my speaking out may offend–
        for it rocks the boat–
    well, I’d rather wait until June.
    Maybe later things will work themselves out,
    and we won’t have to make an issue of it.
 
Lord, forgive.
    Wrongs don’t work themselves out.
    Injustices and inequities and hurt don’t just dissolve.
 
Somebody has to stick his neck out,
    somebody who cares enough
        to think through
        and work through hard ground,
    because he believes
    and has something personal
        and emphatic to say about it.
 
Me Lord?
 
Could it be that there are things that need to be said,
    and you want me to say them?
 
I pray for courage.
 
                    Amen.