Family Faith Seeds: All Saints day, Week of November 1st, 2020

I hope you find this to be a great faith activity for the whole family of all ages. This week’s theme of All Saints Day and the scripture from the service.

Scripture

Isaiah 49: 15- 16a

• (NRSV) Can a woman forget her nursing child or show no compassion for the child of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you. See, I have inscribed you on the palms of my hands your walls are continually before me.
• (Message) Can a mother forget the infant at her breast walk away from the baby she bore? But even if mothers forget, I’d never forget you—never. Look, I’ve written your names on the backs of my hands. The walls you’re rebuilding are never out of my sight.
• (Spark) Can a woman forget her nursing child, or show no compassion for the child of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you.  See, I have inscribed you on the palms of my hands; your walls are continually before me. 

Questions and Family Wonderings Based on Above Readings

• What kind of writing do you think this is?  Is it part of a novel, or a history lesson, or maybe a poem?
• How does the writer inscribe someone on the palms of their hands, do you think?
• I wonder if there is someone in your life that you could never forget.

Thoughts from the Director of Faith Formation

This is some beautifully poetic stuff from Isaiah.  What I love most about poetry is that, as the reader, I get to breath a bit of my own life into the words.  How does this scripture pertain to me and my life’s walk?

This Sunday’s Time with Children is about my grandma and her parents.  My great grandparents Mary Jane Smith and David Tarswell were married in November of 1917 in Michigan, after the start of World War I and just before the start of the flu pandemic of 1918.  Great Grandpa was a pie baker, and he would sell his pies going from door to door.

In September of 1920, great grandma and great grandpa Tarswell gave birth to my granny, Agnes Marie Tarswell.  But, no one was allowed to called her Agnes.  Marie was what most called her.  I called her granny.  She inherited her dad’s baking skills.

So, if you do some pregnancy math, you’ll figure out that my grandma was conceived during the flu pandemic of 1918.  If you are unsure what the word conceived means, you are invited to ask the adults in your life what that means.

My great grandparents are brave to me.  They endured a World War and a pandemic enough to have 12 children, one of those being my sweet but feisty granny.  During a time when there was a lot of death happening, kind of like right now, my grandma was born.  This story about my family’s history helps me to carry a little hope.  That, though things are really hard right now, and there is so much sadness and loss, there will be an end to this.  Folks like my great grandparents were really brave.  We can be brave too.  

I guess this is how I my great grandparents and granny are “inscribed on the palm of my hand”.  Their story is part of me, helping through difficult times.

All Saints Day—Remembering Someone Who Impacts Your Life

“Spending extra time talking about the person who died can make all the difference to a child, while helping them develop healthy coping skills. Encourage them to express their feelings. Listen as they try to make sense of what happened. Support them as remember what they loved most about that special person.” (moloneyfh.com, 10/31/20)

• Having some quality time as a family to remember those important to us, the Saints in our lives, can be a real growth moment.  You are encouraged to think of someone who has impacted your family, prepare their favorite foods, and have a meal together.  You could even play their favorite music in the background.  And, I offer this meal time prayer:
• When you love somebody, their memory becomes like a treasure.  God, please let our memories of ____________ make us happy.  Amen. (from Prayers for Faithful Families by Traci Smith)

Additional Resource

The idea above came from a great online resource.  I hope you take a moment to check it out.

Family Faith Seeds: Democracy—All Folks are Created Equal Week of October 25th, 2020

I hope you find this to be a great faith activity for the whole family of all ages. This week’s theme is based on Sarah's sermon and the scripture from the service.

Sacred Texts

• A Portion of the Declaration of Independence
• We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all [humans] are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
• I’m also including the School House Rock Video we’ll watch during Virtual Sunday School.

• Genesis 1: 27
• So God created humankind[a] in [God’s] image, in the image of God [we are created];[b]

Questions and Family Wonderings Based on Above Readings

• Are all humans treated like we are created equal?
• If you answered yes, why do you think?
• If you answered no, why do you think?
• What is an example of where you have seen someone being treated unfairly?
• Why are some people treated unfairly while others seems to get treated better?

Thoughts from the Director of Faith Formation

I really like Richard Rohr.  He says that we are all born with divine DNA.  And, I believe that!  And, it’s the reason why I get really disturbed by unfair treatment of folks who do not fit into dominant western culture.  Folks like, queer communities, POC, disabled communities, and immigrants, to name a few.

And, this is in part due to laws that exist.  If all folks are created equal, and we are all entitled to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, why is that so impossible for some?  In order for this to really be the case, we have to let our voices be heard when we see injustices.  We have to teach our children to do the same.  And, we have to find effect ways of doing that.

Democracy — Raising our Voices of Faith

One way we can make sure our voices are heard is through writing letters to our elected officials.  It is their job to represent us.  We love writing letters to our elected officials at Mayflower!  Usually, the immigration team will have a letter neatly created for us, so all we have to do is sign it, and address to our representative.  

I wonder what kind of letter your family would write if you didn’t have one neatly prepared for you?  What issue would you want to address?  What would you want to see changed about that issue?  Why is this issue important to you?

Your family is invited to write a letter to your representatives, thinking about the questions above.  You can click here for an example of a draft letter.  And, I’d love to see your letter if you don’t mind sharing it with me.  I may even print them off and send them to my representatives.

Additional Resource

There are lots of things you can do as a family to live out your faith values through justice.  If the above activity doesn’t hit the spot for you, that’s OK!!  Check out this website that offers a ton of great resources.

Family Faith Seeds: Let Us Pray Week of October 11th, 2020

I hope you find this to be a great faith activity for the whole family of all ages. This week’s theme is based on Reverend Christian Briones’ sermon and the scripture from the service.

Scripture

Romans 8: 26- 27

• (NRSV) 26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes[a] with sighs too deep for words. 27 And God,[b] who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit[c] intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.[d]
• (Message) 26-28 Meanwhile, the moment we get tired in the waiting, God’s Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don’t know how or what to pray, it doesn’t matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That’s why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.
• (Spark) Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words.  And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.

Questions and Family Wonderings Based on Above Bible Story

• Is there a “right” way to pray, do you think? 
• What noises do you make when you can’t find your words? (We all do this!!  I know I do!)
• When you think of the word Spirit, what comes to your mind?

Thoughts from the Director of Faith Formation

When we think of prayer, we think of eyes closed, hands met at the center of our chest, maybe our heads bowed slightly, and words.  Lots and lots of words.  Yes.  That is one way to pray.

Sometimes, we don’t have words though.  Or, we can’t think of the words.  Or, we’re like, “this thing that our world needs is beyond words.”  Prayer isn’t just words.  Prayer can be our thoughts and dreams made flesh, or putting our hearts into action, following God’s will as well as we can.

Prayer can be our protest, our songs, our food donations, our financial contributions, our tears of frustration, our laughter and joy.  We can live prayerfully in a state of communication with the Divine through how we live, and not just what we say when our eyes are closed, heads bowed, and hands met.  Though, there is a lot of solace in praying that way too!

Really, there is no right or wrong way to pray!  And, I can tell you from personal experience, I’ve prayed all the above ways and more.

Spiritual Food — A Family Activity: Let Us Pray

Supplies Needed:

• An open heart
• Piece of paper
• Writing utensil
• All willing family participants

Do you pray as a family? Like, the word kind of prayer. If not, would you like to?  How about creating a family prayer together?  Something that y’all say together at meal time, or the start of the day, or at the end of day just before story time or bed time.

Creating a prayer can be as simple as this, “Dearest God, thank you for the day.  Amen.”  And, it can be more personalized too. Maybe you would like to have a kind of gratitude prayer to end the day off together.  Or, maybe a hopeful prayer for the start of the day.

You can for sure find prayers in books.  And, I encourage you to write your own prayer as a family.  It could even be a new family tradition you start.

Family Faith Seeds: Spiritual Food Week of October 4th, 2020

I hope you find this to be a great faith activity for the whole family of all ages. This week’s theme is based on Reverend Christian Briones’ sermon and the scripture from the service.

Scripture

From John 6: Children of God Storybook Bible

Questions and Family Wonderings Based on Above Bible Story

• Why were thousands of people listening to Jesus?

• What do you think God’s dream is?

• How did all those people eat?

Thoughts from the Director of Faith Formation

“With God’s love, five loaves and two small fish fed more than five thousand people.”  We hear in this story today that because of a little boy who offered five loaves and two small fish, a super-duper giant crowd was able to eat.

I wonder about this.  I wonder about the giving and humble child in this story as being an example to others.  I wonder how many other people also came forward to offer what they had, in order to share with those of the crowd who had nothing to eat.  I wonder how we spread around what we have so that others may experience joy and abundance.

Do I think that this story is a kind of miracle?  For sure!  But not because Jesus turned five loaves and two fish into enough to feed thousands of people.  It is a miracle because one tiny child was so inspired by hearing about God’s dream that day, that this child was moved to share what they had so that others may have too.  And, that one child perhaps inspired many others to do so too.  Sharing is a miracle.  Inspiring others to give joyfully and abundantly is a miracle.

This story is more than just sharing food.  It’s about making sure we all know there is more than enough.

Spiritual Food — A Family Activity: Mosaic Art to Share Outdoors

Supplies Needed:

• Painter’s tape

• Sidewalk Chalk

Sharing food is one way to give abundantly.  Another way is through art.  Art can bring joy, and also inspire us to be our best.  Joy and inspiration is more like spiritual food!  I wonder how you can bring joy and inspire folks to be their best through creating chalk art outdoors.  See the picture below for one example.

The cool thing about mosaic art is that when one of these shapes is all by itself, it’s just one shape.  But, when one shape is with another shape with another shape, it creates something really beautiful and inspiring.

When planning your chalk art, think about these questions when deciding what to draw/write:

• What message do we want to send in our art?

• What symbol do we want to use to send that message?

• Or, do we what to write in order to spread our message of joy and abundance, or whatever your message is?