​Blessing of the Backpacks PARTY with FOOD TRUCK

Sunday, Sept. 12th, 2021
@ 10:00AM
 
SCOTTSDALE, AZ – North Scottsdale United Methodist Church would like to celebrate the milestone of a new school year with a blessing, party and yummy pretzels from the MUSTACHE PRETZEL FOOD TRUCK!  NSUMC will be offering blessings on students, educators, their mobile devices and backpacks during their worship service on Sunday, September 12th @ 10:00AM PLUS a “Welcome Back to Sunday School” party complete with balloon making, photo booth, crafts and gourmet pretzels.  For those that did not send a student off to school, they welcome your financial donation that will be blessed and shared with   Vista del Camino.

FREE backpack tags will be given to all that attend the service and party.  The backpack tag is constant reminder that God is with the students of our community in their daily life and that their church family will be praying for them throughout the year.
 
The Sunday School PARTY will include balloon making (including whale balloon art), Jonah crafts, photo booth, and FREE pretzels from Mustache Pretzel Company FOOD TRUCK to the first 50 students.

Don't have any students at home? All are invited to be a blessing to other less fortunate children by making an ONLINE DONATION. The financial gifts will be blessed and distributed to Vista del Camino Recreation Center to support families that need extra help at the beginning of a school year.  Vista del Camino is a recreational facility in south Scottsdale that offers after-school care, clothing, food and financial support to less fortunate children.
 
North Scottsdale United Methodist Church celebrates the love of God through Christ by offering a 10AM ONLINE  and in-person service on Sunday.  Sunday school is available in-person and online @ www.nsumckids.info.  They have children and youth activities including; children’s choir, volleyball, mission trips, small groups, festivals and youth groups.  N.S.U.M.C. also offers ONLINE and in-person adult Bible studies, men and women’s groups. 
 
If you are interested in additional information about N.S.U.M.C. or any of these events, please contact the church office at (480) 948-0529, office@nsumc.com; check out their website or find them on   Facebook    or   Pinterest.                  ###

 ​Has anyone ever broken a promise they made to you? How did that make you feel? You were probably very disappointed and said something like, "But you promised!" Sometimes we aren't very good at keeping our promises.

Our Sunday School lesson today is about a promise that God made to Noah. Noah built an ark and made sure that there were two of every kind of bird and animal on that ark. He kept all the animals safe on that boat for 40 days.  

As the flood waters receded Noah sent out a dove to find dry land.  When the dove came back with a leaf Noah knew that they could all depart the ark safely.  God made a promise to Noah that he would never again destroy the whole earth with a flood. Then he did something to remind Noah of that promise. He placed a rainbow in the sky and he said to Noah, "I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be a sign of the promise between me and all life on the earth." God said that every time he saw the rainbow, he would remember the promise that he made.
 
This is our second week learning about Noah and this week we will learn about God’s Rainbow Promise.  Your children and grandchildren can make a rainbow crafts or recreate rainbow experiments. They can pretend that they are a chef and make fruit salads, veggie kabobs, waffles, and popcorn, all in rainbow colors!  The next time you see a rainbow; remember God’s promise to us.  You are loved!

Do you like to construct things?  Puzzles?  Legos?  Recipes?  What if I gave you a set of instructions and told you I wanted you to build a boat that was 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet high. Do you think you could do it? You would probably say, "No way! That is bigger than a football field! I can't build a boat that big!"

Well, that is exactly what happened to a man named Noah. One day God looked down on the world that he had created and he saw how unkind the people had become. It broke his heart to see the way people were acting.

But God saw that Noah was different. God saw that Noah was a good man, so he decided that he would spare Noah and his family. God told Noah about his plan to send a great flood to destroy everything on the earth. He told Noah to build a big boat called an ark and to fill it with animals -- two of every kind. Noah obeyed God. He built the boat and then he put two of every kind of animal into it.

Soon the rain began to fall. The raindrops made little puddles, then bigger puddles. The big puddles became streams and rivers, then mighty seas. Soon the whole earth was covered with water. The ark tossed up and down on the waves, but Noah, his family and all the animals were safe and dry inside the ark.

It rained for forty days and nights until finally, the rain stopped. It took many days for the flood waters to go down. When it finally did, Noah, his family, and all of the animals left the ark. Noah thanked God for keeping them safe.

God had a plan for Noah's life. Because he was faithful and obeyed God, Noah and his entire family were saved. God has a plan for your life too. God has told us about his plan for us in the Bible. Listen to what he said, "I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."
​
Sometimes it seems that there are challenges too big for us. But when we remember to put our trust in God, anything is possible!
 
We will be enjoying Noah and his Ark for two weeks.  This week’s Sunday School lesson we will focus on the animals.  We can recreate animals to add to the ark!  Noah thought the task was too big but God helped him and He can help you, too!

​If you make something for fun, you can decide how it should look. You get to construct it all by yourself. You can be as creative as you want because it’s your design!
Did you know that God created the world and everything in it in almost the same way?

"In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth."
​
God created the world, so He was the one who got to decide how it should be. He created night and day, the stars in the heavens and the fish in oceans, the plants and the animals of the sky and sea.  He created all of that and said it was good.

But God didn't only create the world; He created all of us in His likeness and did you know what he said?  He didn’t just say that we are “good.”  He said that we are “VERY GOOD!”
Next time you look in the mirror, remember that “YOU ARE VERY GOOD & LOVED” by your creator! 

This week our Sunday school lesson is about creation.  We have collected geode cookies, stain glass cookies, and rock candy recipes.  We also have rock art ideas to spark your creativity!  While you are creating all of these, please remember that the creation He is most proud of is YOU!

​ Blessing of the Backpacks PARTY with FOOD TRUCK
Sunday, Sept. 12th, 2021 @ 10:00AM
 
SCOTTSDALE, AZ – North Scottsdale United Methodist Church would like to celebrate the milestone of a new school year with a blessing, party and yummy pretzels from the MUSTACHE PRETZEL FOOD TRUCK!  NSUMC will be offering blessings on students, educators, their mobile devices and backpacks during their worship service on Sunday, September 12th @ 10:00AM PLUS a “Welcome Back to Sunday School” party complete with balloon making, photo booth, crafts and gourmet pretzels.  For those that did not send a student off to school, they welcome your financial donation that will be blessed and shared with   Vista del Camino.

FREE backpack tags will be given to all that attend the service and party.  The backpack tag is constant reminder that God is with the students of our community in their daily life and that their church family will be praying for them throughout the year.
 
The Sunday School PARTY will include balloon making (including whale balloon art), Jonah crafts, photo booth, and FREE pretzels from Mustache Pretzel Company FOOD TRUCK to the first 50 students.

Don't have any students at home? All are invited to be a blessing to other less fortunate children by making an ONLINE DONATION. The financial gifts will be blessed and distributed to Vista del Camino Recreation Center to support families that need extra help at the beginning of a school year.  Vista del Camino is a recreational facility in south Scottsdale that offers after-school care, clothing, food and financial support to less fortunate children.
 
North Scottsdale United Methodist Church celebrates the love of God through Christ by offering a 10AM ONLINE  and in-person service on Sunday.  Sunday school is available in-person and online @ www.nsumckids.info.  They have children and youth activities including; children’s choir, volleyball, mission trips, small groups, festivals and youth groups.  N.S.U.M.C. also offers ONLINE and in-person adult Bible studies, men and women’s groups. 
 
If you are interested in additional information about N.S.U.M.C. or any of these events, please contact the church office at (480) 948-0529, office@nsumc.com; check out their website or find them on   Facebook    or   Pinterest.                  ###

Most children love mac and cheese!  Macaroni noodles remind me of a story in the Bible. It is the story of the prophet Ezekiel. God took Ezekiel and showed him a valley that was filled with dry bones. These bones were scattered all around and there was no life in them. God spoke to Ezekiel and asked him, "Can these bones live again?"
 
Initially, Ezekiel didn't know what to say.  Then he responded: "O LORD, only you know the answer to that."

God spoke to Ezekiel again and said, "Speak to these bones and say to them, 'Dry bones, listen to the word of the LORD! This is what the LORD says: Look! I will put breath into you and you will come to life.'"
 
When you look at uncooked macaroni -- it is dry, hard and not very appetizing at all. It looks like nothing can help it - nothing good can come of it. But don’t we know better? We know that if we boil macaroni for ten minutes and add some milk and cheese, we will have something very yummy.

That's the way it is when we face something that is very hard in our lives. Sometimes it is hard to think that anything good can happen.  That everything is like it was in the valley of dry bones and we are without hope. But just as those dry uncooked noodles can be turned into macaroni and cheese, we know that the hard things in our life can become a lot better. Just as God brought life to the valley of dry bones with the breath of his Holy Spirit, God can make bad things better in our lives too. He does this for us when we trust him.

Next time your family prepares mac and cheese ask your children to think about how dry, crunchy and bland uncooked noodles are. Then as your family is devouring the mac and cheese reflect on how things can transform to something yummy!  It’s important to remember that when we face hard things and life seems hopeless there is always something YUMMY for God’s people.

​That yummy ingredient is HOPE!

​This week’s Sunday School Lesson includes yummy mac and cheese cupcakes, skeleton puppets and many ways to label your skeleton!  But most of all it offers reminders that with God there is always hope!

How do you face your giant’s?  Run straight at them. Avoid them. Pray about them.

There’s a story about a boy named David and a giant man named Goliath. Goliath was a Philistine warrior who kept challenging the men of Israel’s army to come to fight him. But because he was so big – over nine feet tall – none of the Israelites would do it. Everyone was too afraid.

Until a young man named David had so much faith that he knew God would help him defeat the giant. Of course, David wasn’t a warrior. He wasn’t used to wearing armor or swinging a sword. So, instead, he went to the stream and found five stones. He was going to use those stones in his sling to swing them at Goliath.

But David had great faith in God and he didn’t need five stones. He ended up only needing one.
​
Now, I hope that none of us will ever be in a battle, but we might have other giants in our lives.  It could be a friend, school, sports, addictions or family member.  No one is void of struggles.  How we approach these challenges makes all the difference. Praying about them is important but truly having faith that God can support us during our struggle will help us conquer our giant!
 
Always remember that if God can help David defeat Goliath with only a single stone, He will walk with you on your journey with your giant.
 
This week’s Sunday School lesson encourages children to name their giant though children books and videos that allow children to reflect on fear.  We also have challenging games and crafts about faith.  

​Can you name the parts & elements that are used in a Worship service?
 
Customarily, there are slightly more than a dozen elements in a Methodist service.  At NSUMC, we traditionally open our worship service with a hymn, participate in the call to worship and then invite the children to the chancel area for a short children’s sermon.  We end Children's Moments  with the  Lord's Prayer.   Next our choir shares the  anthem (song); our pastor reads  scripture  and presents the sermon.  The sermon is followed the   offertory prayer    and singing praise to God after we have offered our gifts (Doxology) The service closes with a hymn, benediction and then an invitation to be in community with each other in the   fellowship hall.
 
During Sunday School we teach the children about the items on and near the chancel area.  These are items that are used prior-to or during the worship service.  We enter the church through our narthex (lobby).  Altar is a word that the children generally know but they think that the entire “stage” is the altar.  Actually, the entire “stage” area is called the Chancel area and the table in the middle is the altar.  We point out to the students that the Adult Chancel choir sits in the choir loft.  There is also a door at the northwest corner of our Chancel area.  That door leads to our   sacristy.  A sacristy can include the items needed for the worship service and the vestments that the pastors wear.  The  kneeling rail  is a place that we may go to after we have taken communion.  We may kneel there and offer our personal prayers to God.  We also have a   pulpit.  It is located in front of the organ and it is where pastors and the liturgist can stand to present the scriptures and sermons.
 
This summer we are offering online Sunday School lessons as well as “Busy Bags” for our children to use (and then take home).  These bags have activities for the children to use during the worship service.  Additionally, NSUMC is offering “Sermon Notes” to the youth (ages 10-18).  These notes are journal pages to be completed during the service.  These pages ask I wonder questions, favorite hymn, favorite bible passage, their most meaningful quote from the sermon, etc. All items are free and can be found on the counter in the lobby.

​Do you remember your last birthday party?  Did you have candles to light your cake?  Those candles can shine so brightly that they can light up the room.  We get to share the light of those candles with all of our friends  and family at the party!
 
God calls us to be the light.  This means that God wants us to tell people about Him, and share His grace with others. In the Bible verse for today, Jesus tells us to let our light shine so that more people can also experience His great light.
The good news of Jesus is so amazing that we don’t want to hide it. We want to share it with other people. We want to light up the whole world with God’s love!  But the “light” does not come from our own power.  We are not called to shine our own light; we are called to reflect His!
 
So how can we stay “lit,” like that joyous birthday candle, to reflect His light?  We can read the Bible.  We can discuss this verse with our family.  We can watch ONLINE church.  We can share our gifts and be a good example for our brothers, sisters and friends. 

We can also pray.  God always wants to hear from us.  When we pray we can ask Him to help us reflect His grace in all we do so we can be THAT sparkly birthday candle to everyone we meet!
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Today’s Sunday School lesson includes light and salt experiments, shadow puppets, salt paintings, salt circuits, kaleidoscope and lantern DIY’s!  Your children can make one and share one!  Yes! You are invited to be THAT light!

St. Francis of Assisi enjoyed a very rich easy life growing up because of his father's wealth and the permissiveness of the times. He did poorly in school and was very rebellious. His rollercoaster life led him through extravagant times of chasing idols all the way to living on the streets.
​
In St. Francis' younger years he made a few mistakes.  Some say he sinned.  The Greek word for sin is hamartia.  But did you know that the word is derived from the  Greek     ἁμαρτία, from ἁμαρτάνειν hamartánein, which means "to miss the mark" or "to err."  It is so comforting to know that if we "miss the mark" we are still welcomed to make amends and join Jesus.  We are still loved and accepted.

St. Francis went on to do great things.  He ended up rebuilding a church and creating a religious order.  He was able to rebuild a healthier personal life as well and his love for creation blossomed.  His contemplative prayers helped him to share compassion with those of two and four legs!

His prayer is a comfort to many.  He just asks, "Lord make me an instrument of PEACE."
 
Our Sunday School lesson this week includes videos, crafts, games and snacks.  We have bird feeders to share compassion with the animals of the air; palm-frond animals to create; exercises incorporating animal sounds; and animal sandwiches for lunch fun!  We also share St. Francis’ wonderful prayer:

… Where there is hatred, let me sow love   💝🧡 💛💚💙💜