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SSTN # 17 - March 8, 2004
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IN THIS ISSUE OF THE SSTN e-NEWSLETTER:
Egg-Shaped Easter Cards
1) Creative Challenge?
2) Unsure What To Do
3) Please pray
Goin' Buggie For Jesus - I'm A BEE-liever!
4) Sinless Living
5) No more teaching
6) Puppet Resource
Jesus Ascending Mini-Movie
7) Seventeen Year Old
8) Teluga Language?
9) Age for Passion
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Egg-Shaped Easter Cards
When the cards are cut, colored and assembled, players can play Easter Egg
Scramble and discover a secret Easter message! Now with two black and
white "cross" and "resurrection" drawings to color! Reproducible so your
whole class can make a set!
Find them in the Curriculum section at:
http://www.christiancrafters.com/curriculum.html
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1) Creative Challenge
I am starting a new feature for SSTN called, "Take The Creative
Challenge".
Each month I will present one item, usually a disposable item such as an
old CD, paper towel roll, shoe box, jar, etc. The challenge will be for
you to create a craft, game, or activity using that item AND have it apply
to a Bible truth. If this proves to be a useful resource, I will gather
the ideas and publish them on ChristianCrafters.Com.
This month's Creative Challenge is to present various uses for Paper Towel
Rolls (any size).
I hope you will participate in this new feature and find it useful in your
ministry to kids!
Your webservant,
Sarah Keith <><
http://www.ChristianCrafters.Com
"Home of The Sunday School Teacher's Network"
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2) Unsure What To Do
This message is for the 17 year old who is unsure of what to do about
struggling so much in the ministry. As someone who started out in ministry
at a very young age (an assistant Sunday School teacher at the age of 14),
and now someone who is still far younger than most of the other teacher's
at my church (22), I can truly sympathize with you and everything that you
are going through. I can only help but wonder if you have prayed on the
situation and asked God for your guidance and to lead you down the right
path. I can also understand the discipline program, and the sad truth is
that many children's programs rely solely on the teacher's to deal with
everything even when there is someone who is supposedly a "leader",
"children's pastor", or "children's director" over them. This does create
conflict at times and I can relate, my own problems in my classroom are
very minor to what you described, but if there's a will there's a way, and
I have learned that God Himself is the only way and also the only source
that the much needed will can come from even when it doesn't seem like
there is any hope. I have a system in my own classroom, as we have a
discipline policy in place, but there are two children in particular in my
room who could care less about policies, discipline, or even if I were to
call their parents, they just totally have a disregard and disrespect for
authority no matter what a person does, no matter who is teaching, or no
matter what is going on in the room. With students like that, I have
something called a warning system, the first time they do something that
is inappropriate I say the child's name and that's one, the second time I
say the child's name and that's two, the third time I say the child's name
and that's three, if I have to stop any time after that, the child sits in
a chair away from the other children (unless it's story time, and then to
these particular students listening to story time is often "punishment"
enough in their eyes). When it is time for music, snack, outdoor time
(when we have it), or when the other kids are being picked up, basically
whenever I have a moment when I do not have my eyes on so many other
children, I pull the child aside and remind them that Jesus is watching
them in all they do, and that as His child we should want to do good, want
to behave, and do what is right. I also sometimes add in a Bible verse
about being kind, respect for adults, or whatever else is appropriate.
Most of all, I remind the child that Jesus still loves him/her, and so do
I, and I usually give the child a hug. The behavior tends to improve after
a couple of Sunday's of this, especially when the child is kept slightly
after all of the other children have left and talked to one on one. My
only advice to you, is do what your heart is telling you to do, it may not
be that you as a teacher are the problem at all, but instead the problem
could be much deeper with the way that your church handles the children's
ministry. Pray about the situation, and ask God to help make clear to you
your calling. I did this in 2001 and left a church that I had been
teaching at since I was 14 years old, I was scared to death to go to
another church because of how unfairly I had been treated at my previous
church. I gave my fears to God and I found myself sitting in a church
again on Christmas Eve 2001, and knowing from that moment on that I wanted
that church to be my church home. I wanted to dive right into the
children's ministry there, and I did, and I found a loving, caring,
supportive environment where everyone is a team with God as the leader
despite the fact that we have a children's pastor and a children's
director. No children's ministry, or any ministry will be successful
without God as the real leader, ask Him for guidance, and you will receive
it, just make sure you are ready to hear and follow through with what He
has to say as sometimes that is the hardest part of all. I wanted you to
know that you are not alone, as many teacher's have been there, and
sometimes they think they are the problem, and that's not at all the case.
Hang in there, pray about the situation, and receive Gods guidance, He
won't steer you wrong. I will be praying for you that the path you should
take will be made clear to you.
Love in Christ,
Sarah in California
living_life_my_way@earthlink.net
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3) Please pray
Hello sisters and brothers,
Some of you might remember my story. I am the leader of a children's
ministry and I was having problems with the parents not picking there kids
up on time, and using what we called super saturday for the kids as a baby
sitting service. I also had a lady that was supposed to working along side
with me, rather she was speaking negative comments about the childrens
ministry with the parents.
Well, things have gotten a lot worse. My co-worker has written a leader
address to me as well as the pastors of the church stating that the
leaders of the church had been coming to her speaking negative comments
against me and how they wanted me off the childrens ministry and how it
was making our relationship bad and she felt very un comfortable about the
whole thing.
I am hurting so much inside with pain at the actions of my church family.
I feel like the whole congragation has been speaking against me, when I
was doing the best I could with what I had. I had no support from leaders,
as well as the people working on my team, but I keep right on going. The
parents would tell me what a wonderful job I was doing and all along they
were speaking ill behind my back. And on top of all that the pastors
refuse to talk about the letter they have decided to let this go and never
address the real problem.
What should I do? please help me, pray for me, send me your comments
Thank you so much.....dellaboo1@yahoo.com
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Goin' Buggie For Jesus - I'm A BEE-liever!
Reproducible buggie crafts, games, lessons, and yummy devotions
to coordinate with your summertime programs or midweek classes.
In the Curriculum section:
http://www.christiancrafters.com/curriculum.html
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4) Sinless Living
This is in reply to the comments: "I am glad you can live
a holy and sinless life, I would love to meet you! No other
Christian I know of including myself claims to be without
sin, I am a poor miserable sinner who relies on the saving
blood of Jesus everyday."
I must say this...I claim to be without sin since I became
a Christian and here's how and why...
a. In John 8 Jesus encounters the Pharisees and the
adulterous woman. Jesus told the woman in verse 11 to "Go
now and leave your life of sin." Why would he tell her to
do this if it were not possible?
b. Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates His love for us in this:
while we WERE STILL sinners, Christ died for us. NOTE:
past tense WERE STILL.
c. The entire chapter of Romans 6 declares that we were
crucified with Christ so that the body of sin would be done
away with (verses 6 and 7) and freed from sin.
d. Exodus 20:20 Moses said to the people, "Do not be
afraid. God has come to test you, so that the fear of God
will be with you to KEEP YOU FROM SINNING." (being tested
doesn't mean that you are a sinner, it is God's way of
making you stronger because you rely on him for strength to
resist sinning.)
e. 1 Corinthians 15:34 Come back to your senses as you
ought, and STOP SINNING; for there are some who are
ignorant of God-I say this to your shame.
f. Hebrews 10:26-27 IF WE DELIBERATELY KEEP ON SINNING
AFTER WE HAVE RECEIVED THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE TRUTH, no
sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation
of judgement and of raging fire that will consume the
enemies of God.
g. 2 Peter 3:14 So then, dear friends, since you are
looking forward to this, make every effort to be found
SPOTLESS, BLAMELESS, and at peace with him. (Can't be a
sinner and be blameless and spotless at the same time!)
h. 1 John 2:1 My dear children, I write this to you so that
YOU WILL NOT SIN. But if anybody does sin, we have one who
speaks to the Father in our defense-Jesus Christ the
Righteous One.
i. 1 John 2:5-6 But if anyone obeys His word, God's love is
truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in
Him: Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did.
(Do you believe Jesus sinned? Yes, He was tempted, but He
did NOT sin.)
j. 1 John 3:5-6, 9 But you know that he appeared so that
he might take away our sins. And in him is no sin. NO ONE
WHO LIVES IN HIM KEEPS ON SINNING. No one who continues to
sin has either seen him or known him. NO ONE WHO IS BORN OF
GOD WILL CONTINUE TO SIN, because God's seed remains in
him; HE CANNOT GO ON SINNING, because he has been born of
God.
k. Titus 1:6-7 talks about the responibilities and
characteristics of elders and overseers, that they must be
BLAMELESS.
l. 1 Thessalonians 4:3-8 tells us that we are to be set
apart for God's use (sanctified) and that we are to be PURE
and HOLY. (can't be pure and holy if there is sin in you)
m. 1 Thessalonians 5:23 May God himself, the God of peace,
sanctify you through and through. May your whole Spirit,
soul and body be kept BLAMELESS at the coming of our Lord
Jesus Christ.
n. Genesis 6:9 says that Noah was "a righteous man,
BLAMELESS among the people of his time."
o. Genesis 17:1 God told Abram to "walk before me and be
BLAMELESS." Would God tell him to do the impossible?
I can send you many more scripture references, but didn't
include them because of space. These were all taken out of
the NIV version, but I will look up other translations if
you are still not convinced. God would not tell us to live
a holy, blameless, spotless, sinless life if it were not
possible. Perhaps you are confusing being tempted with
sinning? Sin is the willful disobedience to God. Doing
what your conscience tells you not to do is a sin, as your
conscience is the Spirit of God trying to help you remain
faultless before God and man. It is possible, and it is
the responsibility of Christians everywhere to step up to
the challenge. Remember, our strength comes from He who
has called us, and with Him, all things are possible!
Sincerely,
Teresa W.
Corunna, MI
--from SSTN: it would be impossible to be sanctified and kept holy apart
from Jesus' redemptive work on the cross. He is the one that has made me
pure and faultless. It is not my ability to lead a blameless life, but
Jesus' righteousness instilled in me. Check out Philippians 3:7-11, and
Paul's struggle with sin in Roman's 7:14-24. Christ's redemptive work
occurred before I ever committed a single sin. But, in this present time I
am now "in Christ" presented as holy. In fact, the Bible says that I am
sitting in the heavenlies...yet in "realtime" or from my perspective, this
hasn't occurred yet, but this is my present state in God's eyes. PTL! In
the same way, I am blameless in God's eyes because of Jesus, not because
of my ability, or lack thereof, to be sinless. See Ephesians 2:6. Jesus
saves me, sanctifies me, and glorifies me. It is ALL his doing, because
there is no good thing in me apart from Jesus.
Your webservant,
Sarah Keith <><
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5) No more teaching
Response to "No more teaching" - Sarah I agree with you whole
heartedly. There is no way I would have allowed a 17 year old
to teach a class on his/her own in the first place. That this young
person has had such a huge burden all year and is getting discouraged
is so sad and perhaps will stop their witness entirely. Will be in prayer
with this youngster during this time. NFlohr5948@verizon.com
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6) Puppet Resource
The person who requested the puppet resources in the SSTN newsletter
provided the wrong e-mail address, could you please give her mine, and let
her know that if she is interested in resources to contact me. Thank you
and have a blessed day and may God continue to bless you and your
ministry,
Love in Christ,
Sarah in California
living_life_my_way@earthlink.net
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Jesus Ascending Mini-Movie
A unique flip-card pattern that children color and assemble, then watch
the resurrected Jesus ascend into the clouds. Kids make it and take it
home! Print out as many patterns as you need for a onetime fee. To see a
picture and to learn more, follow this link:
http://www.christiancrafters.com/curriculum.html
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7) Seventeen Year Old
How wonderful it is you want to teach.....how terrible the experience you
have had to endure. I went through something similar not too long ago.
I was much older than you though. I was teaching a class of about 20
kindergartners with no help. I felt helpless. I couldnt even send a
child off to the bathrooms because they would be alone....if I went with
them, then the class was alone.....I needed help....I came up with an idea
that seemed to help. I arranged the class into small groups, each with a
teen or adult helper....although the story time, puppet time and singing
were as one large group, each team was responsible for their little
group. Craft time, book work time and other times became easier because
each group was small and the ratio of adult to student was smaller. I
usually had four groups of four to six children. You may try this, even
if the ages are older....Usually one other adult in the room makes all the
difference in behavior. You could start out by asking an adult to help
you in an object lesson.(that way they are in the room) or be your helper
for memory work time....Frankly...I think it stinks that so many people, a
lot of times, think we are just baby sitters.....make them see
differently.........If you don't get the help you need you may need to go
on strike.....I have done this before, too.....for two weeks straight....A
note on the classroom door stating there was " no teacher this week " did
the trick....parents didn't like the fact the children were in their
classroom or the sanctuary. When people ask you what happened....don't be
afraid to tell them..............DR AL
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8) Teluga Language?
thank you for your kind reply.My problem is mainely medium problem.(i.e
english).I am a telugu girl age of 27,un married. with my parents i
serves god through many kind of his works.My sunday school childrens are
also knowing Telugu only.I understand english but fluiently I did’t write
English letters and stories.i.e my problem.so please understand my
problem.any of telugu stories kitts send for my Sunday school childrens
please inform.I am also conduct youth retreats on every Sunday evenings.we
are not having any kind of books about youth.please under stand my
English.and send mail for your kind instructions.please pray for my
future.I very like to serve God’s feet.plese pray for my family and my
evangilical work.
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9) Age for Passion
Based on the reviews of several friends who have seen the film, I would
*not* take my 13- year old son to see it. He is extremely sensitive, and
I think this movie would probably upset him terribly for weeks afterward.
He's a mature boy for his age, but I don't think he can handle this movie
- even adults are having a difficult time absorbing it.
--from SSTN: Dr. James Dobson was on TV last night and said that children
12 and under should NOT see this film. He went on to say that for some
middle-school children, parents should decide based on their own child's
sensitivity. He also said that he wished he could have shown this movie to
his own children when they were in their early teens. ysic, sarah keith
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