Here you can access a variety of activities, crafts, videos and music to help your child to grow in faith as they explore God’s word.
This week’s page is based on Matthew 13:24-30, the parable of the wheat and the weeds.
Storytelling
Jesus told a story:
A farmer planted wheat seeds in his field –
but someone else came to the field and planted weeds!
The wheat started to grow. And so did the weeds.
The weeds grew and grew. But still the wheat grew.
The farm workers wanted to pull the weeds up,
but the farmer said, “No, it will damage the wheat.”
The weeds grew and grew. But still the wheat grew.
When harvest time came, the farmer harvested the weeds and the wheat.
He separated them into weeds and wheat.
Please watch the video which explains it.
Let’s pray
Thank you Jesus, that we see the work of your hand all around us:
The rainbow after the rain
The smile of a person grateful for help
and the wobbly legs of a new born foal
There are some things in our world which are not of you,
People being hurt by anger and cross words
Our destruction of your wonderful world
Help us to be strong like the wheat in the story,
Not destructive like the weeds.
Amen.
Jesus is trying to explain that we are all loved by him. He wants us all to love him too. The wheat in the field represents those of us who know Jesus. He doesn’t get rid of the weeds straight away, the people who don’t love Jesus, just in case they grow to love him over time. It’s only at harvest time that the weeds are picked and destroyed and the wheat gathered in.
Crafts
Here’s this week’s first craft. There is a set of pictures below for each step.
- Collect together a small jar, some flour, some porridge oats, some glitter, some seeds or dried fruit.
- Put each of them into a jar
- Then put the lid on and shake the jar
- Everything gets mixed together. There are glimpses of glitter, fruit and oats amongst the flour but it would be difficult to sort it out. We have no idea what goes on inside each other, what hurts us, what brings us joy. The only one who can see that is Jesus. He loves us and knows us. He can tell whether we are like the wheat crop or like the weeds, but he will always give us the opportunity to change and grow more like him. Put a label on your jar with a bible reference on to remind you why you put such random things in it!
There is very little difference between wheat and a type of weed known as Tares:
It’s not for us to judge whether we are wheat or tares- that’s the job of Jesus.
Another image of the wheat and the weeds is like this:
The wheat and weeds grow side by side. Just as we live side by side with people who don’t yet know Jesus. The string represents Gods protection over us during our busy lives.
Here’s a maze to complete:
and finally a picture to colour:
Worship Song
Why not finish off by joining in with one of our favourite songs?
