Lent. 

Among Christians who observe this forty-day journey with Jesus, many use this time to connect to the suffering of Jesus, specifically his Jerusalem experience, by giving up (doing without) something of significance to their daily life.  Other followers choose to add something to their living, as a way to understand how Jesus lived and perhaps serve those with whom Jesus associated during his journey.  Many communities of faith offer special studies or host mid-week meals during Lent to build community and, though perhaps not explicitly stated, to create accountability loops for those who have chosen a discipline to follow during Lent.  Lent could be a time of intentional hospitality or an invitation for your community to participate in a study, conversation, or weekly meal as an introduction to the practice of Christianity.  If followed, a spiritual discipline can provide a person (believer, practitioner, or skeptic) with a foundation for personal growth.  Like Lent, a spiritual discipline is about the journey, not the destination.  It is a time to challenge a “belief” in or a “belief” about Jesus as a savior by personally practicing the way of Jesus, which can lead to the Truth about God and give meaning to life, even a life of faith.  John Dominic Crossan’s book, The Power of Parable: How Fiction by Jesus Became Fiction About Jesus, would be good for your study or for a small group to read together and discuss during Lent.

A favorite suggestion I offer to persons seeking a spiritual discipline during Lent, for the first time or as a seasoned follower, is to write your own gospel.  Thomas Jefferson completed his The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth in 1820.  This is a way to begin journaling by spending thirty minutes each day writing your account of the life of Jesus of Nazareth.  Like the writer of John, take the synoptic Gospels and some of the non-canonical writings as source material for your gospel.  Weigh those accounts with your experiences.  What would your gospel account include?  What would be the focus of your telling of the story of Jesus?  What does your gospel say about the person of Jesus and the character of God?  Would you be willing to share your gospel account with the youth group or your Sunday school class?  Can you imagine someone reading your gospel as scripture?

One option for the children’s sermons during Lent would be for you to choose the parables of Jesus you think are important for the children to know and then use one each week as the topic for your time on the sacred steps.  What five parables would you choose?  That question would be good to ask in an adult Sunday school class and to explore during Lent.  You might ask several groups in your congregation to identify their top five parables and see what parables are popular.  Your process of choosing and studying these five parables could be your spiritual discipline, as well as the core of the gospel account that you would write.  How will you journey with Jesus to Jerusalem this Lenten season?

Psalm 91:1-2, 9-16

  • “My refuge and my fortress; my God, in whom I trust.”  What does this verse mean to you?  You could craft a children’s sermon around your thoughts on that verse.  What might it mean to the children?
  • Does trusting God mean that bad things will not happen?  What happens when your trust in God is broken?  Children may have experienced “broken trust” in many different ways: through the loss of a pet, moving from one community to another, or losing a parent to death or divorce.  Be cautious when talking about “trusting” in God, friends, or family.
  • You could bring out the images of God poster and add “bird” to the list: “The Lord will cover you with pinions, under the Lord’s wings you will find shelter.”  God provides “shelter”.  Can the children think of other images for that word?

Deuteronomy 26:1-11

  • This is an opportunity to talk with the children about the offering ritual (practice) that your congregation observes.  Is there an “offertory sentence” or an “invitation to give” followed by the receiving of “tithes and offerings”?  Does the “doxology” and/or a prayer follow the receiving of the offering?  You could talk with the children about the “why” behind what you do during worship.  Take a risk and ask the children to help you understand what the “offering time” means for your congregation. Then, piece together their observational knowledge on your own to teach them about the meaning of the offering during worship in your congregation.
  • This is an opportunity to talk with the children about how your congregation’s offering supports the different ministries in which your congregation is involved.  What exactly does your congregation do with the monies received or the time volunteers give?
  • Does your church have a creed or statement of belief that you could teach to the children?  If you are part of a non-creedal tradition, is there an important “story/history” in the congregation’s history that you could teach the children?  The words in Deut 26:5-10a are a way that Israel could briefly recount the “story” of their ancestors.  How can the children claim this story as their own?

Romans 10:8b-13

  • If you have not done so, this is an opportunity to talk with the children about Paul. Who is he, what do we know about him, and why is he a key character in the Christian story?
  • If you have an older group, one way to put the children into the story is to engage them in the following exercise: “What is more important – to believe in Jesus or to live how Jesus lived?  If you think it is to believe in Jesus, move to the left side of the steps.  If you think it is to live the way Jesus lived, move to the right side of the steps.”  Once they are divided, if they move, you could talk about the story from Romans and how the church that Paul was addressing was having this same conversation.  How are we similar or different from those people in the story?  What did Jesus teach?
  • Consider talking with the children about balancing their beliefs with how they practice what Jesus taught.  How would you build the phrase “actions speak louder than words” into a children’s sermon?

Luke 4:1-13

  • This is an opportunity to talk with the children about the humanity of Jesus.  Are there common elements of what tempted Jesus and what tempts us today?  One could talk with the children about the motivation to do good or bad things.  How do we make choices in difficult situations?
  • In this story, we see an image of Jesus choosing an unpopular path rather than an easy way to answer.  What do Jesus’ answers to the temptations tell us about God and about Jesus’ belief in God that can help us today?
  • If you have an older group, you might talk with the children about being tempted or motivated to do something charitable or the right thing, even when it is a hard choice.