Junior School (age 7-11) Assembly
"Man Looks On the Outside"
Equipment: 1 Can Dog Food, and one of those plastic can lids
1 packet of Orange Jelly (Jello)
1 Mars Bar
Can Opener
Spoon
Preparation: Open the BOTTOM of the dog food and feed it to your dog, clean the inside of the can and then chop up the mars bar and put in the can, make up the jelly with three-quarters of a can of boiling water and pour in. Seal the bottom with one of the can lids and leave to set in the fridge. You’ll be amazed how lifelike this ‘dog food’ really is. You can then open the ‘dog food’ in front of the children from the top.
The Lord be with you
And also with you
I’ve been in such a rush today, trying to get around the parish and visit everyone I need to this morning, visiting someone in hospital and praying with them, and taking part in a worship of God in the church. So busy, in fact, that I’ve not really had chance to have my lunch yet. So, if its all right with you, I’ve brought my lunch with me; and I’ll just get it ready.
[produces can of dog food and opener]
Right, here we are then, lovely. Now, I don’t know about you, but I really like this for my lunch. [opens can]
It really is tasty and nutritious, and it does wonders for my coat – leaves it nice and shiny [eats] Mmmmmm! [expect a pretty outraged reaction]
Oh, sorry, I realise that’s a bit rude, would anyone else like some – would you like to try some of my delicious lunch? Really tasty.
So, what do you reckon my lunch really is? Do I really eat dog food? No, of course, I don’t – it’s a trick done with a melting mars bar and orange jelly, and it really is quite delicious. I just put it in a can like this to make you think about something.
The thing is, you probably all saw me take the lid off of a can marked ‘dog food’ and reckoned that I was eating dog food. You judged what I was eating by what it said on the label.
In the same way, we often judge people; we look at the outside of them – how they dress, the colour of their skin, what religion they are, whether they are a grunger or a townie, whether they like S Club 7 more than HearSay, and we make a judgement – we look on the outside.
But God does not do that – God does not judge people by their outsides, he is much more interested in what in on the inside, and in a book from the Old Testament, the first book of Samuel, he hit the nail right on the head when he said this:
“People look at the outside of a person, but God looks at the inside”
And I’d like you to take this thought away with you this morning. God doesn’t care what clothes you wear, he doesn’t care what music you like, he doesn’t care how rich or poor you are, but he cares about what you are like as a person – he cares that you care for others, that you are kind, and loving to your friends and your family, your brothers or sisters.
God cares for you. It is he who created us, and who wants us to be the best we can possibly be, he cares so much for us that he sent us his Son, Jesus Christ, and he simply wants us to love him.
So, take this thought away with you this week:
“People look outside, God looks inside”
And we will finish this afternoon with a prayer, for if we are to love God as truly as he loves us, then we need to be able to talk with him. In the next few weeks, we will be learning more about this prayer, what it means and how important it is to Christians. If you don’t want to pray, that’s fine, just remain in a moment of quietness and think your own prayers, in your own way and respect those who might want to.
If you know the prayer, then please join in, if you don’t, just listen quietly.
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come; thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord
Thanks be to God
