Today we are here to celebrate the
dedication of John Paul and in our two
readings we have heard about two other boys
who were brought to God’s house to be
dedicated to the Lord.
Hannah prayed for a son
and the LORD graciously answered her prayer.
Hannah dedicated her son, Samuel, to work in
the temple from the time he was a little boy
because God had given him to her and she in
return gave him back to God as she had
promised that she would.
Mary and Joseph took baby
Jesus to the Temple to show that He was from
God and belonged to God and they praised God
by offering their sacrifice as the Law
required. When God guided Simeon to the
temple that day, God kept His promise and
allowed Simeon to witness to and bless the
family.
So what does it mean to be
dedicated to God? Does it mean performing a
special ceremony when a baby is born to make
God happy? Can only babies be dedicated to
God?
BOX 1
Well I think we might need
some help unwrapping what “Dedicated to
God” really means. So I have brought
this box with me and I hope that some
volunteers will help us to see what is inside. (Large Box 1, inside 2 smaller boxes
- 2 and 3)
If you look in the
dictionary for the word “dedicated”, it is
explained with two meanings:
Devoted or faithful to
a task or purpose
Exclusively assigned
or allocated to a particular purpose
(set aside for a particular purpose)
OK so inside our big box,
we have one box, which says
“Devoted and
Faithful to God”
and a second box which
says “Set aside for God’s purpose”.
So do we understand what
Dedicated to God means now? No I think we
are going to need to open these boxes too.
BOX 2
Let’s start with this box
(Box 2) to find out how we can be Devoted
and faithful to God (label on box)
[Inside the box is a
Bible, pictures of a child praying, a heart
and a woman listening.]
Right, so if we are to be
devoted and faithful to someone, we need to
get to know them, to be able to speak with
them and to trust them. So how do we get to
know God? Let’s see if the box can help us.
1. The Bible and Jesus’
teachings tells us about God
(Child holds the Bible up)
When we read the Bible
we learn how much God loves us, that He
wants only the best for us, which means
to be close to us. Hannah knew that
only God had the power to give her
the son she longed for to heal her
unhappiness. Mary and Joseph knew
God had chosen and trusted them to raise
His Son according to His Laws, and they
faithfully brought him to be dedicated
at the Temple. Simeon knew God would
one day send a Saviour for Israel, who
he faithfully waited for.
2. We can talk to God
through Prayer (Child holds Praying hands and heart up)
When we focus on God
and pray from the heart we can trust
that He will answer our prayer in a way
that will give us true happiness.
When Hannah
desperately wanted a son, she did not
seek help from anywhere else. She
planted her trust firmly in God and
expected the Lord to answer her prayer.
Eli knew that when
someone prays with such faith to the
Lord, He answers their prayer.
3. God keeps His promises
(Child holds up a
listening women picture)
All the people in
today’s readings had faith in the power
of God, because they spent time learning
about Him, praying and listening to Him
and then seeing Him fulfil His promises.
Simeon was faithfully
waiting for God to save Israel and he
heard from the Holy Spirit that he would
see the Christ the Lord (The Messiah,
The Saviour) before he died.
Our God is a God of
covenants (of promises) and He always
keeps them.
To understand the
promises that God is making to us, we
must be willing to listen for those
promises, to trust Him and respond, just
as Mary and Joseph, Simeon, and Hannah
did.
BOX 3
So if we are learning
about God from the Bible, praying and
listening to Him, and trusting Him to keep
His promises, isn’t that enough to be
dedicated to God? Why do we need this other
box. Hold up (Box 3) Set aside for God’s
purpose (Label on box) what is that all
about?
Let‘s see what is inside
this box to find out what “Set aside for
God’s purpose” means. [Inside the box is
Instructions for Life (Matt. 22 v37 &
v39), pictures of hands giving a present,
Jesus on the cross, a banner with the word
God, and a red first rosette.]
1. Following God’s
instructions (Child holds up Matt. 22 v37 & v39 text)
Samuel grew up in
God’s temple and he followed God’s
instructions by wearing a special vest,
praying and listening to God. So when he
grew up, God chose him to be his loyal
Priest in the temple.
Simeon followed the
instructions from the Holy Spirit to go
to the Temple that day. Because he was
obedient to God’s will, he was there
when Mary and Joseph presented Jesus,
and Simeon finally saw the Saviour he
had waited for.
John the Baptist
dedicated his life to preparing people
for the time when Jesus would come to
offer God’s Kingdom and salvation to
everyone. John knew that God wanted him
to tell His people that they must change
their hearts from wanting the wrong
things and turn back to God‘s
instructions, faithfully waiting for the
Saviour.
2, Giving sacrificially
(Children hold up
hands giving a present AND Jesus on the
cross)
Hannah promised the
Lord that if He would grant her a son,
she would give him back to God to serve
Him all the days of his life. Hannah gave God her
most precious gift, her long-awaited
son. When we give to God,
we should give our very best to HIM. Our
praise, worship, offerings, service, and
time should all be sacrificial gifts to
God. God deserves the very best
portion of our blessings and our time
because He gave us His very best, His
only Son, Jesus Christ, who died on the
cross to take away our sins that were
blocking the doorway to God (John 3:16. Hannah, Mary and
Joseph dedicated their blessings to God. They recognized that children are gifts
from God and belong to Him. When we understand
that we are only stewards (caretakers)
and not owners of the blessings that God
Gives Us, we can freely give the things
that already belong to God.
CIRCLE
[Bring children back with
items one by one to form a circle]
So, if we bring all these
things together we can see how we too can be
Dedicated to God by :
Taking the time to
learn about Him from the Bible,
and from what Jesus taught us about God
Speaking to Him with
prayers from the heart
Listening
to Him through the voice of the Holy
Spirit within us.
Following what God
asks us to do (instructions):
Telling people about Jesus and
what He did for us
Helping people when
they need it and giving to God what is
His (hands with gift)
Then through our faith
in the open door that Jesus opens for
us, we can build a friendship and trust
in God.
That way God is right here
in the centre of our life (Child holds “God”
banner with 1st Rosette). He is
the best, He wants only the best for us. So
today let us make sure that we allow Him to
be right in the centre of our life. Amen