   sheep card
decorated goat
crafting
sheep card
Edinble sheep
Dog Pull
separating the sheep
Sheila tells story
The puppets
The other puppets
Katie teaches activity
Leading the song actions
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| | | Messy Church - 26 January 2020 |
Crafting tables
The
theme for Messy Church on Sunday 26 January was Jesus’ story of
the sheep and the goats, which is often referred to as the
‘judgment of the nations’. Jesus is describing his second
coming, this time not as a humble baby born in a stable, but as the Son
of Man sitting on the throne of glory. All people will be gathered
before him and then the sheep (the righteous) and the goats (the
unrighteous) will be separated.
What is it we need to do to be
righteous? In a way it seems quite simple, but for some reason we
struggle with doing the right thing. Jesus was saying: feed the hungry,
give the thirsty something to drink, be hospitable, clothe the needy,
visit the sick and those in prison. By doing these things for the
‘least of these’, we are doing it for Jesus. We are to be
Jesus’ hands and feet in this world, to share what we have, to
care for the sick and needy, to visit the prisoners and to provide
water for those who are thirsty.
How are we doing? Do we get so
caught up in the riches of this world that we struggle to give and
share what we have? Are flashy cars, extravagant holidays, the best
clothes and posh houses our actual goal in life, or is our true goal to
be righteous, to share our resources and care for the ‘least of
these’?
 There
is a saying that goes, ‘Live simply, so others can simply
live.’ It is certainly how Mother Teresa lived as she cared for
the poorest of the poor. We can’t all do what Mother Teresa did,
but we can ask Jesus to help us have our eyes open to the needs around
us, give us generous and compassionate hearts and help us to share what
we have with the ‘least of these’ for, by doing so, we do
this for Jesus.
• Where have we been goat-like in our own lives?
• How can we support each other with encouragement to correct that behaviour?
• How do we then implement that behaviour in our Messy Church planning?
This
parable shows what it takes to be on the sheep side. Sheep, by
nature, depend highly on their shepherd. They follow closely and look
to their leader for guidance. Goats, on the other hand, are much more
independent. They don’t look for guidance, but instead take
matters into their own hands and do as they please.
God calls
us his sheep because he longs for us to treat him as our own shepherd:
faithfully follow him, love others the way he loves us, help others the
way he helps us, and depend on him and his word completely. We must try
to stay away from goat-like behaviour at all costs. Selfishness and
stubbornness will not be rewarded by our perfect and loving God. This
is a crucial daily reminder for us to do the things God requires of us
if we are truly to be his sheep.
We asked
• if we could name three ways in which we were a sheep every day?
• What are some goat-like things we do in our everyday life that we could change?
• Who in our life can we tell this important story to?
Our craft activities included
SHEEP AND GOAT MODELS
Using Large sheep and goat cut outs, stones/shells, string/rope, and
glue we made the cut out sheep and goat into something more life like.
We talked about how by working together, sharing our skills, we can
make something we probably couldn’t have done by ourselves
– it’s important to share our resources. We had a look
at the sheep and the goat we had made – did they look so much
different on the outside?
PAPER-PLATE SHEEP’S HEAD
 Cutting
the middle part of a paper plate out, leaving about a 2.5-inch paper
ring. Using the inner circle we cut out two ovals and glued to the top
of the ring as ears.
Finally an elastic string was tied
to hold the mask in place on our head. The ring was covered
with glue and cotton balls covered the ring completely. We
talked about a time where you’ve seen someone exhibit sheep like
behaviour.
EDIBLE SHEEP
 On
a paper plate place four biscuits in a square and cover them in
icing.Stick one more right in the centre of the square and ice it as
well. Next, stick marshmallows all over the icing. Use another biscuit
for the sheep’s face (draw a face using writing icing).
Break
two Matchmakers in half and place them as the sheep’s four legs.
Admire your work, and take it home to eat afterwards. Talk about what
makes a faithful sheep (or person).
DOG PULL TOYS
We
cut three strips of cloth from old Tee shirts, tying them together
with a solid knot at one end. We talked about how, in the same way we
intertwine the fabric to make these toys, we can intertwine giving into
our everyday lives. We can also think about the fact that our sheep
like behaviour is not just about how we behave towards other people,
but towards the whole of God’s creation: animals, the earth, etc
etc.
HOW GOOD A SHEPHERD ARE YOU? (SEPARATING GAME)
Six
white balloons. On three of the balloons we drew the face of a sheep,
and on the other three, the face of a goat. With
our shepherd’s staff made out of old newspaper we took turns
guiding the sheep balloons into one pen and the goat balloons into the
other using only the staff. Winner was who got them all in
their right places the quickest!
Talk about how we respond
to Jesus: do we all go in the right direction (Jesus’ way) or are
we more like goats? Was it easy to get any of the balloons to go to the
right place? Do the sheep get it right all of the time? Did you
get fed up after a while if the balloons didn’t go the right way?
Does Jesus get fed up with us?
CELEBRATION TIME
Sheila
Anderson led the time in the church, assisted by the puppets, with two
groups at the front, and another up in the pulpit. The children had
brought over some of their crafts which were at the front. We could see
the sheep and the goats. The puppets sang 'I wanna be a sheep' song,
that we would all sing later.
 Sheila
explained how Jesus is our shepherd, just like the shepherd that looks
after the sheep. Crystal played the part of the shepherd, with the
other children splitting into sheep and goats. We heard how sheep will
follow the leader, whereas goats do just what they like. Our goats and
sheep were sent out around the church. How would Crystal as the
shepherd get the sheep back? She called them by shouting 'come to me',
as Jesus did to call us to him. Those playing the sheep returned to the
front on hearing Crystal call. The goats were not interested and were
lost. Our craft activities, story and song taught us that we should
follow Jesus, as the sheep follow the shepherd.
Mealtime
Messy Church; learning about God and Jesus through story, craft and song.
The next Messy Church will be Sunday 23 February
Published - 28 January 2020
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