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October 2024
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Shepherd and Door

Did you know that in Bible times, a couple thousand years ago, being a door was part of a shepherd’s job? The sheep pen was usually a stone wall built in a circle with only one opening. So after the shepherd had gathered all the sheep into the pen for the night, he would have to lie down across the opening to guard the sheep. The only way a wolf could get in was through that door, so the wolf would have to deal with the shepherd first. Do you think a good shepherd would let a wolf through that door? No sir! The shepherd would drive the wolf away!

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Following the Lamb

This is why Jesus was sent to earth. He was sent to save us from our sins; sent to die in our place on the cross. And this is why John called Jesus, the “Lamb of God.” Even though John the Baptist did not know exactly what was going to happen to Jesus, he was inspired by the Holy Spirit to call Jesus the Lamb of God. Jesus came to save us from death and to bring us to eternal life. We follow a Lamb who saves us.

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Listening to the Shepherd

Jesus is our Good Shepherd and he knows us and He calls to us. In the Gospel of John, chapter 10, it says, “My sheep hear my voice. I know them and they follow me. I give them eternal life and they will never perish.”

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Career Change

Our ideas about what we want to do or be probably will change as we get older; but they may not. Some people decide at a very young age what they want to do as an adult, and that desire stays with them. They end up doing the very thing they had always planned on doing.

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God’s Hug

I know I can hug at least one person. I’ll show you, if someone would volunteer to be hugged. (Give one volunteer a hug.) And I’m pretty sure that I can hug two people at once. (Give two volunteers a hug.) But in order to hug all of you at once, the way our Father in heaven can, I will need some help. (Have your volunteer adults come forward to help out.) Now let’s see if we can give all of God’s lambs a hug at the same time, the way God can. (Give a group hug.)

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King and Shepherd

Ezekiel 34 tells us what kind of shepherd our Lord is: “I myself will search for my sheep. . . . I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak” (Ez. 34:11, 16 NRSV). Even when the sheep are scattered all over the place, the shepherd will gather them up and bring them back. God always looks for us when we’ve turned away from him and have taken the wrong and dangerous path. Our Lord never gives us up for lost.

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Find the Sheep!

Hurrah! We found the lost sheep. I am so happy. Do you know that Jesus is like that shepherd who went looking for the one lost sheep? Jesus wants everyone in the world to be a part of his flock. He wants everyone to know God’s love. It’s wonderful that some of us grow up in God’s family and have always known that God loves us. But there are lots of lost sheep out there, a lot of people who don’t know Jesus. And Jesus is looking for those lost sheep. He wants to rescue those sheep.

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The Shepherd’s Voice

4th Sunday of Easter From “Scolding the Snakes” Scripture Reference:Â John 10:25-30 and Ps. 23

Following the Shepherd’s Voice

How many of you answer the telephone in your home? (Let kids raise their hands.) Now, tell me this: how many of you have answered the phone and guessed who was calling, just by his or her voice—before the person on the other end told you who it was? Are you good at recognizing voices? (Let kids respond.) If we hear a voice that

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The Fox and the Hen

2nd Sunday in Lent From “Scolding the Snakes” Scripture Reference:Â Luke 13:31-35

Preparation: Bring pictures of a fox and/or a hen and baby chicks to illustrate talk.

In today’s Gospel lesson from Luke, we are told that some leaders of the Jewish people (called Pharisees) came to Jesus after he had finished preaching to a crowd of people. They told him, “You’d better get out of here if you want to live, because Herod Antipas wants to kill you.” Herod was the ruler of

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Sheep on the Lam

Pentecost Proper 11 From “Sitting on the Rainbow” Artwork by Elsa Ingulsrud Scripture Reference:Â Mark 6:30-34

The Gospel reading for today talks about sheep without a shepherd. Mark 6 says that when Jesus saw the crowds of people who came to listen to him, he felt sorry for them because they were like sheep without a shepherd.

You may never have seen sheep without a shepherd, but have any of you ever seen a child without a parent? A lost child is a very sad

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