KidsPoint Lessons

The Web

Have you ever seen the TV show Lie to Me? The Lightman Group (clever name, isn’t it, since light = truth, biblically speaking), made up of psychologists, researchers, and investigators, assist law enforcement and other government agencies in criminal investigations by detecting signs of deception in people’s voices, faces, and body language.

The premise behind it is simple and ordinary; the science complex and intriguing. Rather like honesty itself.

On the one hand, honesty is simple.

It always involves a choice.

We choose to tell the truth or to lie.

Honesty is ordinary, too.

Because every one of us,

from Adam and Eve to you and I,

chooses to be honest or dishonest on a daily basis.

On the other hand, honesty (and therefore

dishonesty) is complex and intriguing.

You can be honest (or dishonest) in your words, actions, and attitudes.

You can be honest (or dishonest) in what you don’t say or do, as well.

You can set out to lie, and

you can go along with someone else’s lie.

And then there are the multitudes of motives for

two-faced, duplicitous, and deceptive dealings.

So simple, honesty, but not always easy! Else no one would weave him- or herself into a tangled web in the first place.

Which is why, come March, we’ll be talking about honesty and some of the very practical reasons God teaches and guides us to be honest:

When you’re not truthful, you hurt the people you should care about most. Joseph’s brothers practiced so many forms of deceit in that whole sell-your-brother-as-a-slave episode you’ll weave quite a web recounting them all. (Genesis 37; 45)

Lying to hurt someone else really hurts YOU. Haman’s perfidious plot backfired on him. (Esther 3-5; 7)

Truthfulness builds friendships; dishonesty tears them down. Jesus gave even wee, little, fraudulent Zacchaeus a do-over. (Luke 19)

You can lie so much you forget what matters. Treacherous Judas forgot, or deceived himself, about what matters most. (Matthew 26; 27)

Honesty creates a safety net.

Honest thoughts, words, and actions weave together to

strengthen trusting, happy relationships with others and God.

Dishonesty creates a web.

Lies and deception weave a web that ensnares us,

tearing at the fabric of our relationships with others and God.

So, help kids be careful about what they weave.

By Melanie Williams. © 2010 The reThink Group * www.rethinkgroup.org * All rights reserved. Used by permission.

WeePoint Lessons

Jesus loves everyone. He loves me and you and the mailman and the person at the grocery store. He loves everyone! Isn’t that the greatest news? This month we will share stories with preschoolers that show how Jesus loved while He was here on earth. Jesus took time to talk to the woman at the well who had no friends, and He loved her. He chose to spend time with those considered not worthy of His love like Zacchaeus. Jesus loved everyone. Then, Jesus asked us to spread this love. He asked us to tell others that He loves everyone. The Bible says in John 15:12, “Love each other as I have loved you,” (NIV). Jesus is our very best friend. We can share His love with others by being good friends to them.

We end this month with Palm Sunday. Palm Sunday we will celebrate Jesus and His love for us. How amazing it is that Jesus came for us, for each and every one of us. He came to love us and show us how to love. He came to be the ultimate sacrifice. He loved us so much He was willing to die for us. What an awesome truth.