Props: Paper copies of the palm of a hand (below), pens or pencils.
Hello boys and girls. You know I usually bring my little blue bag when I come to talk to you. This morning I have baby Hunter and his Mum, and there were some problems fitting them in the bag ... . But I’m glad they are here.
We have lots of babies in our church ... you may have noticed! Around a month ago we celebrated Christmas, and that seemed to be about babies too! What was that? ... Yes, at Christmas we celebrate the birth of a very special baby, the baby Jesus. This baby was called ‘Immanuel’, God with us, so he was very special indeed. I’ll come back to the Christmas story in a moment.
One of the things I love about babies is their hands. Look at Hunter’s tiny hand, and compare it with mine! Just think, once my hand was about as small as that. would you like to compare the size of your hand with Hunter’s? Be gentle ... . I think his hand is the smallest!
Now on the first Christmas, Mary the mother of Jesus would have ben cuddling her baby, and holding his hand like this. I wonder if she ever thought: I’m holding the hand of God!? That’s a lovely thought. We often think of walking through life with God at our side, perhaps hand in hand. And for Mary it was literally true!
Now, thinking about hands, I wonder if any of you write on your hand? Mum asks you to get some milk at the shop, so you write ‘Milk’ on your hand, so as not to forget. Or you can’t think of a phone number, so you write it on your hand. The Bible tells us that God writes on his hand. It’s in Isaiah 49:16, 17. It says if a mother loves her baby (and of course this mother loves her baby!), she will never forget him. And God says, I love you, and I will never forget you, for I have written your name on the palm of my hand.
What a wonderful thought ... . Now in my bag I have some photos of hands, and some pens. To help you remember this verse I want you to take a pen and write your name on the palm of the hand in your picture.
Prayer. Thank you Father God for loving us, and never forgetting us. My name is written in the palm of your hand! Thank you, in the name of the baby Jesus. Amen.
|
