Dad likes me best!

Do you ever wonder what it would have been like for those friends of yours that are an only child? They did not have to fight with someone taking their toys, they didn't have to share a room, they did not have to try to out do brothers and sisters for the attention and love of their parents. Sometimes that sounds nice.  A few years ago, my mom made me a pair of lounge pants that said "Mom's Favorite" across the backside. (Gee, Thanks' Mom!) The joke is, my brothers and I, found out later that we each got an identical pair of those lounge pants. My mom wanted to show my brothers and I, in a fun way, that she loved us all the same. However, in this Sunday's lesson, we learn about Joseph, who was given a special gift by his dad, Jacob. But unlike my mom who gave us each a pair of pants as a joke, Joseph was the only one to receive a gift in our story. Come join us this Sunday to find out what this special gift was, and see what his brothers thought about it.

"As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good . . ."  

Genesis 50:20

What'll ya' gimmy?!

Can you remember "trading" as a kid? What was your best trade? Mine was a single action BB Rifle. Can you remember how easy the skill of manipulation came as we would try and out trade our friends. Sometimes knowing we were taking advantage of them. This was the case with my BB Rifle. It became my prized possession, but it also became my worst nightmare and the source of fear a few times. Once, at home alone, a group of the neighborhood bullies congregated on my front lawn to taunt me. In hopes to get them to leave, I grabbed my faithful rifle, took aim at the dirt bike one of the  bullies was sitting on. With the intent only to scare them, I quickly ran back inside as the shot hit the bullie's leg instead of the bike I aimed at. Another instance found my brother and I out in a field. Being bored, we were out hunting for lizards, when I realized the rifle was cocked and decided to "un-cock" it by firing it at the ground. Lo and behold, the BB ricocheted off a rock, pelting my younger brother in his back-side. Although, I could not contain my laughter, my brother felt quite differently. In KidzQuest we learn about some bartering that left another set of brothers at odds with each other. But we also get to see redemption and reconciliation as God chose to use this liar and manipulator to become the beginning of a great nation, Israel. 

Who you callin' crazy?!

Have you ever been told that something you wanted to do was crazy, but you did it anyway. The Wright brothers wanted to fly. People scoffed at them, yet now about 42% of Americans travel by airplane. That's almost half! 

Visionaries like Steve Jobs, cofounder of Apple, said their would be a computer in every home, at the time when most computers were bigger than a home. Now, not only is that true, but most of us carry them around in our pocket as cell phones. 

Noah, listening to God, built a giant boat when it was believed that nobody had even heard of, or even seen rain before, let alone enough to need a boat. 

Just as with the Wright brothers or Steve Jobs, people thought Noah was crazy, but he followed through on what he knew was right, and changed the world as we know it. What do you have in mind to change the world? 

Go Crazy!

This week think of some things that you as a family could do to change the world. Maybe it just as simple as helping your neighbor or as huge as raising money to build an orphanage in a third world country. Here is the challenge, once you brainstorm and decide on the best way to change the world. . . do!

Trusting God . . .

How many of you can remember the first time you took the training wheels off your bike? You were excited to imagine the open road ahead of you, but at the same time, terrified at the thought of getting to know that road, up close and personal. When you had your training wheels, you could cruise with confidence, maybe even pulling off a "Look Mom, no hands!" But going from 4 wheels to 2, thatʼs a whole other matter. So you muster up the courage to get on the bike as Dad holds it up. He runs beside the bike as you peddle along, and then says, "Ok Buddy, Iʼm gonna let go now." So you do what any child about to get their first taste of freedom does, you scream and cry and beg Dad not to let go. But eventually you have to trust that Dad is not going to let you fall. He will run beside you, letting go at just the right time as you cruise off down the street. 

This Sunday at KidzQuest we will learn about trusting in our heavenly Dad. Just like when we learned to ride a bike, He is always there beside us, keeping us safe, and when He knows we can handle it, lets us go. But even then, He is never far away, so when we do fall, He is there to pick us up, dust us off, and get us back on the bike.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5&6 (ESV)

Make It Stick

This week, take some time thinking about all the things that you trust God to do for yourself and as a family. Write them down and put them on the fridge so that everyone can be reminded that God is always faithful and we can trust Him no matter what.