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Week 2 - Day 2

Big Idea: God’s champions lift the weight of others!
Bible Memory Verse: 1 Corinthians 9:26-27. “Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.”

Coach’s Corner: Have you ever run an obstacle race? They can be lots of fun. A good obstacle race might include tubes to crawl through, beams to balance on, netting to crawl under, and lots of markers to run around. Did you know that once in the Olympics there was an obstacle race for swimmers? It was only in the 1900 Olympics. The athletes had to climb over a pool, scramble over a row of boats, and then dive into the water and swim under another row of boats. The winner was Frederick Lane of Australia. Instead of a gold medal, he was awarded a 50-pound bronze statue of a horse. We often face obstacles in our lives. Problems with health, friends, and family, and even with ourselves often get us down. But God always promises to help us through all the obstacles.

Today we learned the story of Naaman, who was general commander of the armies for the king of Aram. He was well respected and very wealthy and had lots of servants. But Naaman had a serious problem: He had leprosy. In Naaman‘s house there lived a young servant girl who was taken from her home in Israel. Although she was no longer with her family, she always remembered what she was taught about the Lord. One day the servant girl boldly came forward and told her master that he should visit the prophet Elisha, who lived in Samaria! He could cure him of his leprosy.

So why does she matter? What if the parents of that servant girl had never taught her the love and power of the Lord? What if that servant girl had dismissed her former teaching and grabbed onto the heathen ways of Naaman’s people? What if the girl had been too timid to tell her mistress about Elisha? What if the servant girl had forgotten about the prophet Elisha? If any of these things had happened, Naaman would have died a leprous unbeliever.
 
But she DID remember the Lord, she DID give witness to her faith, and Naaman’s body and soul WERE both healed of sickness and sin. The same questions can be asked of the children. What if you don’t share Jesus with those around you? If you don't, who will? We can learn some powerful lessons from this one unnamed little servant girl. She did Naaman a great service by telling him where to find healing. So, too, we should not be hesitant to offer help to those around us, especially by telling them about our loving God. Truly she was a champion willing to lift the weight of those around her!
 
Mission Moment: Today in missions, we learned that Colombia is named for Christopher Columbus.  Parts of the Middle East are 99% Muslim and closed to those of us with a US passport but are still open to others from Latin America. Don't forget that we will be collecting change all week, and it will be tallied on Friday.
 
Games Fun: God blessed us with another day without storms, and we had fun in the water playing Typhoon! 
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