The Big Questions:
What is gentleness? Gentleness is being loving, tender, calm, and humble in the things you say and do instead of being harsh or mean.
Who is most important to Jesus? EVERYONE is important—even sick people, even tax collectors, even kids just like you!
How did the disciples react to the kids trying to come to Jesus? They acted like guards, telling people to keep their kids away from Jesus.
How did Jesus react to what He saw happening? He actually got upset —but in a gentle way. Read Mark 10:14-15
Challenge: this week practice reacting with gentleness, instead of being harsh or mean. Share a creative picture of gentleness with us on the Parents of FV Kids Facebook page.
Parent At Home Activity: Gentle Heating
Heat salt, then heat chocolate and melt it to a heart shape. Discussion point: God’s Spirit softens our hearts with His love, helping us be kind and gentle. In this activity, kids will change solids to liquids to learn about the importance of allowing God to shape a gentle attitude in their heart.
You will need solid chocolate, a teaspoon of salt, aluminum foil, scissors, a desk lamp and a stir stick such as a wooden skewer or a drinking straw.
Directions
Cut two squares of tin foil approximately 10 cm wide. Fold the edges up on all sides, pinching the corners to make two small square dishes.
Put some chocolate into one foil dish; put the salt into the other dish.
As the adult supervising the experiment, you need to adjust the lamp until it is about 2 cm above the boxes. Turn the lamp on.
While you are watching and waiting, tell a story about gentleness or review the bible story from FV Kids Online this week. After five minutes, turn the lamp off and put it aside so no one will accidentally get burned.
Use the stir stick to see if there have been any changes in the substances. As you stir the chocolate, mould it into a heart shape. Try to do the same with the salt.
Tell your children that after it has cooled, they can taste your experiment. As the substances cool, read Zechariah 7:11-12, Hebrews 3:7-10 and Luke 6:45.
Prior to sampling the substances, explain to your children that when we refuse to allow God to soften our hearts and put His love in them, we are like the salt that was not changed by God’s Holy Spirit (represented by the lamp). But when we listen to God’s directions in the Bible and allow Him to put His love in our hearts, we are like the chocolate. God softens our hearts with His love, and we are kind and gentle with our words and actions.
Sample the substances, then pray, asking God to send His Holy Spirit to put His love in your hearts and to help you to speak with words that are sweet like the chocolate.
Memory Verse:
Galatians 5:22-23 “But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control. There is no law against these things!”