Sparks Highlights 9.23.15

  Again, after the flood, the people on the earth began to sin and do what was right in their own eyes.  Yet, again, one man named Abraham and his wife Sarah, were found to be faithful to God.  God promised great things to Abraham as he was obedient to God – including the fact that Abraham would be the father of a great nation.  This would seem impossible because Abraham and Sarah were very old without any children.  God fulfilled that promise in the birth of Isaac.  When Isaac was young, as a test of Abraham’s faith, God told Abraham to sacrifice his own son.  This seemed so improbable to Abraham, because after all, he was old and God promised him to be a great nation.   Out of great faith and obedience to God, though, Abraham obeyed.  He believed God’s promise to him even though the situation seemed improbable.  He took his son to the place God commanded and began to prepare Isaac as a sacrifice.  How puzzling it must have been to Isaac, but Isaac trusted his father and was obedient – obedient to the point of understanding his own father would sacrifice him.  He did not struggle, but obeyed even unto the point of death.  When God saw Abraham’s obedience, God halted the sacrifice and provided a substitute for Isaac. A ram was caught in the thicket and Abraham sacrificed the ram in place of Isaac, a substitute  – so Isaac wouldn’t have to die.  God provides us today the substitute for our own eternal death – that in his own Son Jesus Christ.  Jesus Christ willingly laid down his life on the alter as a sacrifice for our sins.  The Bible states, like Isaac, he didn’t struggle – he willingly layed down.  Jesus Christ was like the ram who died in Isaac’s place.  Jesus Christ died for our sins so we wouldn’t have to.  He didn’t stay dead, as the ram stayed dead, because He conquered the power of death when He rose from the grave.  In order to enjoy that freedom from eternal death, we must have faith in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for our sins and be obedient to God, trying to live for Him by being repentant of our sins and turning away from them.  This can be found recorded in Genesis 17-21.  Tonight their decorated photo albums are to remind them of how God is faithful to all generations.  You are welcome to join us anytime at Sparks!   You can also check out the AWANA program at www.fbc.littletonil.org .    

Mrs. Jennifer Schroeder, Mrs. Barb Stein.

Sparks Highlights 9.9.15

  Last week we marveled about God’s creation – the world.  He created it in six literal, remarkable days. Everything God made was perfect – because everything about Him is perfect.  In fact, after each thing he created he noted and saw that it was good.  God created man in His own image, and Adam and Eve lived in the perfect Garden of Eden and had communion with God.  They did not know sin until Satan himself in the form of a serpent came into the garden and deceived Eve. Satan is called “the great deceiver” and still deceives us today.  Adam and Eve had been given a command to move freely about the Garden of Eden and that they could eat from every tree – except that of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.  Satan deceived them so that, with their own free will, they took of the fruit and ate.  This was the first sin and their communion with God was broken forever.  God’s penalty of sin - as we are told in the Bible – is death and it was at that point they began to die. That sin has been passed down through all the many generations of humans.  But, God in His mercy, provided a promise to Adam and Eve that their sin could be forgiven and the relationship with Him restored with a substitute for their death penalty.  They needed to be saved from that death.  The penalty of sin for a perfect, holy God still needed to be paid, but He provided salvation from that by substituting someone else.  That substitute was and is Jesus Christ and we are going to spend the rest of the Sparkie year learning more about that promise.  You can read of this in Genesis chapters 2 & 3.

You are welcome to join us anytime at Sparks.   You can also check out the AWANA program at www.fbc.littletonil.org. 

Mrs. Jennifer Schroeder, Mrs. Barb Stein.

Sparks Highlights 3.2.15

 Welcome back old Sparkies and welcome new Sparkies!!  We are going to have a great year as we have many new shining faces for Jesus!  This year we are going to do as last year working our way through the Bible – The Old and New Testaments - from Creation to the time of Jesus on this earth.  We will learn how the Old Testament gives us glimpses of Jesus and then in the New Testament learning about Jesus – Who He is and how He can be our Savior.  Sure, many of these accounts in the Bible are referred to as stories – but they are more than that.  These accounts are true life biographies – each of these biographies sheds some light of why we need Jesus Christ as our Savior and who He really was and is today.  Besides our study time together, each child works independently in their books memorizing Bibles verses, so please work with your child to help him/her – and you can commit them in your memory too.  The Bible tells us that we are to hide God’s Word in our hearts that we might not sin against Him. 

Tonight we have studied one of the most amazing feats of time – God creating the world in 6 literal, remarkable days.  Everything God created was perfect – even the first man and woman.  But something very bad happened – sin- with that first man and woman that caused the perfectness to die.  These two needed something to save them from death, which was the penalty of their sin.   – We, a few thousand years later, have inherited that sin and that need for salvation from the penalty of our sin.  We are going to spend the rest of year discussing that sin and that need for salvation – from our Savior Jesus.

You are welcome to join us anytime at Sparks. You can also check out the AWANA program at www.fbc.littletonil.org.  The Sparks do have homework by working through their books.  Your child will earn “sparks jewels” and other adornments for their Sparks uniform as they work through their books and also with attendance.  To earn an attendance award, a child can only miss one unexcused absence per quarter.   (Excused absences include: sickness, deaths, inclement weather, attendance at another church’s AWANA.)   

Mrs. Jennifer Schroeder, Mrs. Barb Stein.

Sparks Highlights 2.11.15

****Sparks Highlights****   Last time in Sparks, we learned about the three Hebrew friends that God saved from the fiery furnace – how about being saved from the mouths of hungry lions?!  Again, a Hebrew young man by the name of Daniel obeyed God.  There was a law in the land that no one could bow or pray to anyone but King Darius.    Daniel knew he was to pray only to God, so he continued to do so.    The Bible describes that he purposed in his heart to obey.  When you purpose in your heart to do something, it means you put that ideal above all else, no matter what the cost.  That is exactly what Daniel purposed – to obey God.  And when he was found out that he was obeying God rather than King Darius, by punishment of that law, he was thrown into the lions’ den.  God shut the mouths of the lions and Daniel was unharmed.  God again was able to prove Himself – obey and trust Him, and He will save.  He will save and show that he is mighty and powerful.  Read about this other exciting story of God’s salvation of His people in Daniel Chapter 6! 

You are welcome to join us anytime at Sparks!    You can also check out the AWANA program at           www.fbc.littletonil.org.     

Mrs. Jennifer Schroeder, Mrs. Carol Sheley, Mrs. Barb Stein.

Sparks Highlights 11-12-14

   Veteran’s Day is observed on November 11^th and it is just not a day to take off, but a day we should also be thanking God for our freedoms in this country and thanking any man or woman that has served in the United States military.  This day is also known as Armistice Day or Remembrance Day as it was the signing of the treaty to end World War 1 – the war that was to end all wars as it was said in those days.  The treaty was signed the 11^th hour, the 11^th day of the 11^th month in 1918.   In this country we have many freedoms that are only still alive because of the sacrifices of many brave men and women over the last two hundred-some years.  We have many brave men and women who still sacrifice themselves for our freedom today serving all over the world and in our borders.   One of the symbols of our freedom is our flag of which your Sparkie designed a flag star tonight.  Make sure your Sparkie tells you about the colors and what our flag symbolizes.  The Bible says in John 15:13 ‘Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends’.  Jesus was referring to Himself and the life He laid down for us to pay the penalty of our sins – and to believe also in that that He calls us His friends!  We can say also say that of our veterans as they have and continue to lay their lives down for our freedoms.  If you know a veteran, tell him/her thank you for his/her service and his/her love for America and our freedom.  And, if you don’t know a veteran, go find one! 

You are welcome to join us anytime at Sparks!    You can also check out the AWANA program at www.fbc.littletonil.org.     

Mrs. Jennifer Schroeder, Mrs Carol Sheley, Mrs. Barb Stein.

Sparks highlights 11-5-14

  Last week, we learned how obedience and trust go together to obey God – and when we obey God, He gives us the victory.  That is what happened in the case of Joshua and the Battle of Jericho.  They followed God’s commands to the letter and the walls of the city came tumbling down.  Tonight, we learned about a man named Gideon and his army of just a few men were able to defeat the large enemy, the Midianites.  See, brute strength, might, smarts and plans don’t win our battles for us.  Our strength, might, smarts and plans come from the Lord.  We simply have faith in Him, obey Him, trust Him and God takes care of the rest!  Gideon learned that with just his three hundred men against the thousands of Midianites!  Your Sparkie has made a sword to remember Gideon and remember to have faith like Gideon.  Read about this exciting true life battle in Judges 6 & 7!

You are welcome to join us anytime at Sparks!    You can also check out the AWANA program at www.fbc.littletonil.org.     

Mrs. Jennifer Schroeder, Mrs. Carol Sheley, Mrs. Barb Stein.

Sparks Highlights 10.15.14

****Sparks Highlights****   The nation of Israel worshipped God after the triumphant delivery (salvation) from Egypt.  God provided the nation of Israel a leader in Moses as God gave direction to Moses specifically of what was expected of the people.  A nation has laws and God had laws for the nation of Israel.  His laws show us how we are to love/serve God and how we are to love/serve others.  These laws, though, were not to be just a set of rules, but a clear picture of God’s perfect holy standard.  Any action opposite those laws is sin – and the penalty of sin is death eternal.  In God’s eyes when one law is broken – when one sin is committed - we are guilty of all of them.  That should sound familiar to your Sparkie as the K in SPARKS refers to James 2:10 that says ‘whoever shall keep the whole law and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all’. No one can live up to this perfect standard of keeping all the laws/not sinning because no one is good enough.  Keeping laws or doing good things to live by the laws doesn’t earn us to Heaven because we are never good enough.   The Bible says that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God and that no one is righteous, no not one.  The penalty of that sin is death eternal, but the gift of God is eternal life. That gift is Jesus’s shed blood, dying, for our sins; and we believing in that shed blood to cover our sins and save us from the penalty of our sins.  By accepting that gift, we have eternal life.  Jesus is who all of our Old Testament accounts, of people being saved/delivered from something, are all about.   You are welcome to join us anytime at Sparks!   You can also check out the AWANA program at www.fbc.littletonil.org .  
Mrs. Jennifer Schroeder, Mrs. Carol Sheley, Mrs. Barb Stein.

Sparks Highlights 9.24.14

Again, after the flood, the people on the earth began to sin and do what was right in their own eyes.  Yet, again, one man named Abraham and his wife Sarah, were found to be faithful to God.  God promised great things to Abraham as he was obedient to God – including the fact that Abraham would be the father of a great nation.  This would seem impossible because Abraham and Sarah were very old without any children.  God fulfilled that promise in the birth of Isaac.  When Isaac was young, as a test of Abraham’s faith, God told Abraham to sacrifice his own son.  This seemed so improbable to Abraham, because after all, he was old and God promised him to be a great nation.   Out of great faith and obedience to God, though, Abraham obeyed.  He believed God’s promise to him even though the situation seemed improbable.  He took his son to the place God commanded and began to prepare Isaac as a sacrifice.  How puzzling it must have been to Isaac, but Isaac trusted his father and was obedient – obedient to the point of understanding his own father would sacrifice him.  He did not struggle, but obeyed even unto the point of death.  When God saw Abraham’s obedience, God halted the sacrifice and provided a substitute for Isaac. A ram was caught in the thicket and Abraham sacrificed the ram in place of Isaac, a substitute – so Isaac wouldn’t have to die.  God provides us today the substitute for our own eternal death – that in his own Son Jesus Christ.  Jesus Christ willingly laid down His life as a sacrifice for our sins.  The Bible states, like Isaac, He didn’t struggle – He willingly layed down His life.  Jesus Christ was also like the ram who died in Isaac’s place.  Jesus Christ died for our sins so we wouldn’t have to.  He didn’t stay dead, as the ram stayed dead, because He conquered the power of death when He rose from the grave.  In order to enjoy that freedom from eternal death, we must have faith in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for our sins and be obedient to God, trying to live for Him by being repentant of our sins and turning away from them.  This can be found recorded in Genesis 17-21.  You are welcome to join us anytime at Sparks!   You can also check out the AWANA program at www.fbc.littletonil.org

Sparks Highlights 1.23.14

 Last week we learned about the three Hebrew friends that God saved from the fiery furnace – how about being saved from the mouths of hungry lions?!  Again, a Hebrew young man by the name of Daniel obeyed God.  There was a law in the land that no one could bow or pray to anyone but King Darius.    Daniel knew he was to pray only to God, so he continued to do so.    The Bible describes that he purposed in his heart to obey.  When you purpose in your heart to do something, it means you put that ideal above all else, no matter what the cost.  That is exactly what Daniel purposed – to obey God.  And when he was found out that he was obeying God rather than King Darius, by punishment of that law, he was thrown into the lions’ den.  God shut the mouths of the lions and Daniel was unharmed.  God again was able to prove Himself – obey and trust Him, and He will save.  He will save and show that he is mighty and powerful.  Read about this other exciting story of God’s salvation of His people in Daniel Chapter 6! 

You are welcome to join us anytime at Sparks!    You can also check out the AWANA program at           www.fbc.littletonil.org.     

Mrs. Jennifer Schroeder, Mrs. Carol Sheley, Mrs. Barb Stein