Fwd: Sharing Good Friday and Easter with children

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Shine curriculum published by Brethren Press and MennoMedia <contact@shinecurriculum.com>
Date: Fri, Mar 31, 2017 at 10:04 AM
Subject: Sharing Good Friday and Easter with children
To: info@gehmanmennonitechurch.org

Stay with me. Remain here with me.              Watch and pray. Watch and pray. Years ago, I attended a Good Friday service in the home of a friend. The room was lit only with candles. We read the account of Jesus' suffering and death. After each passage, we extinguished a candle and sang a song with these words: "Stay with me. Remain here with me. Watch and pray. Watch and pray." The repetition of those words challenged me not to shy away from the suffering, but to remain close to Jesus, to imagine myself next to him, to feel the pain he felt. Eventually, all the candles were extinguished and we left in silence. That Easter Sunday, I found myself deeply moved by the resurrection story, in a way I hadn't been before. I was reminded that we serve a God who desires to wipe away all tears, pain, and suffering. A God who desires that death would be no more! (Revelation 21:4).                    Chrissie Walls, Curriculum Editor Sharing Good Friday and Easter with children The death and resurrection of Jesus are central stories of the Christian faith and we want to tell them wisely. But how do we share a story of torture and execution with children? Wouldn't it be easier just to dye Easter eggs and hand out chocolate bunnies? In Shine, we seek to tell both the Good Friday and Easter stories in age-appropriate ways. They are told in two different sessions, however, and this can pose some challenges. Attendance is often irregular and many churches do not have Sunday school on Easter Sunday. This means that some children might only hear about Jesus' death. Younger children may feel scared or deeply saddened at the idea that Jesus died, and may not know that he was raised from the dead. Plan ahead to address these challenges. If you won't have Sunday school on Easter, combine elements of sessions 6 and 7 the previous week so as to tell the whole story. There are free combination sessions for Early Childhood, Primary, Middler, and Junior Youth to download from our website at www.ShineCurriculum.com/Extras. Even if you will be meeting on Easter, give a preview of the resurrection story for younger children by showing the Early Childhood story picture for session 7 or the picture on page 271 in Shine On. The idea is not to "hide" the resurrection from children; rather we want to give adequate time and attention to the events preceding the resurrection. As always, whenever you see a child having a strong emotional reaction to a Bible story, pause to attend to that child's needs. It's likely that other children are having a similar reaction, even if they aren't expressing it. Offer compassion and empathy. Do not brush off children's concerns or make light of them by giving "pat" answers. Reaffirm God's constant love and presence with us, no matter the circumstances.      All of us at Shine wish for you and for all those you teach a blessed Holy Week and a joyous Easter!   Copyright © 2017 Shine: Living in God's Light, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you viewed Shine samples on our website or requested to receive Shine email updates. Our mailing address is: Shine: Living in God's Light 1251 Virginia Avenue Harrisonburg, VA 22802 Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list