A Hero is Selfless

This week in the Kids Church (1st-6th grades), we continued our Be The Hero series by learning that heroes are selfless.

The kids learned the value of putting others first, and not making everything about themselves.

We talked about John the Baptist, who chose to deflect any praise that came his way so that Jesus was given the honor he deserved.  We also discussed what the Bible says about being humble, and that every person is equally important to God.

Our verse for this week is Philippians 2:3 (CEV): "Don't be jealous or proud, but be humble and consider others more important than yourselves."

Here's what we talked about in our small groups:

• Who do you know that is selfless?
• We talked about people in our lives who are selfless, and how those people make a difference in our lives.
• Why is important to be selfless?
• God wants us to see others as important, because they are important to Him.  When we are focused on ourselves, we can't do that.
• As a group, we listed some examples of times that we put ourselves first.  We talked about how the lives of the people around us would be changed if we were selfless in those situations.
• How will you be selfless this week?
• We asked the kids to come up with some ways that they will be selfless this week.  We encouraged them to show their friends how important they are to God this week.

Next week, the kids will learn that The Hero is Cool-Headed.

The Hero Honors Others

This week in the Kids Church (1st-6th grades), we continued our Be The Hero series by learning that heroes honor others with the things they say.

The kids learned the value of being encouragers to their friends and families, and that we should use the things we say to build people up, rather than tearing them down.

We talked about Barnabas, who traveled with Paul, encouraging new believers as they began their lives as Christ-followers.  We also discussed what the Bible says about the power of our words, and that everything we say, good or bad, has a long-lasting impact on the lives of others.

Our verse for this week is 1 Thessalonians 5:11a (NIV): "Therefore encourage one another and build each other up..."

Here's what we talked about in our small groups:

• What is it like to be an encourager?
• We talked about times that we have encouraged others, and how we thought that encouragement impacted them.
• How does being an encourager make us a hero?
• A little encouragement can go a long way.  When we build people up with our words, we help them to see how special they are to God.
• As a group, we talked about some scenarios in which a person might make a difference.  We talked about how that encourage could make a difference to someone.
• How will you be an encourager this week?
• We asked the kids to think of a friend or family member that needs encouragement this week.  We talked about what they would say to build them up this week.

Next week, the kids will learn that The Hero is Selfless.

Be The Hero!

In every story, there is one person who stands out from the rest.  This person is the one that lives by a different code, makes sacrifices that others won't, and makes the world a better place.  This person is the hero. 

This past Sunday, we began a new series in the Kids Church (1st-6th grades) called Be The Hero.  Over the next 6 weeks, the kids are going to be looking at the attributes of a hero, based on the definition of love in 1 Corinthians 13.  The kids are going to learn that the hero is content, honoring, selfless, cool-headed, forgiving, and protective.

Our goal in this series is to teach kids that God has called us all to be heroes in the lives of our friends, families, and acquaintances.

In our first week of the series, we learned that The Hero is Content.  We talked about how jealousy hurts our relationships with others because it means instead of wanting good things for others, we are focused on ourselves.  We also learned that jealousy hurts our relationship with God because it means we are not satisfied with the blessings he has already given us.

We talked about Jesus' teaching on Treasures in Heaven (Luke 12:13-34).  The kids learned that Jesus wants us to focus on the Kingdom of God, rather than material possessions that do not last.

Our memory verse for this week is, "It's healthy to be content, but envy can eat you up." -Proverbs 14:30 (CEV)

Here's what we discussed in our small groups:

• Have you ever felt really jealous?
• Why is important to be content?
• When we focus on what we don't have, we lose sight of the ways that God has blessed us.
• As a group, we came up with a long list of the ways that each of us are blessed.  We pointed out that every kid is blessed in different ways.
• How can jealousy keep us from being true friends?
• When we are jealous of our friends, we don't truly want what's best for them.  A true friend wants others to be blessed.
• We asked each kid to think of a close friend and then come up with a way to pray for that friend to be blessed.  We encouraged the kids to pray that their friends would be more blessed than they are.

This coming Sunday, the kids will learn that The Hero Honors Others, as we discuss what it means to encourage and build people up, rather than tearing them down.