Everyone knows what this is, don't you? That's right, it's a telephone. Most homes have at least one phone, and some homes have several telephones.
What do you use a telephone for?
You can use a telephone to talk to your friends, or to call Grandma, or for many other times when there's a need to talk with someone who isn't there with you.
But did you know there's another way to talk with someone without even using a telephone? You and I can talk to God any time we wish just by praying. Praying is simply talking to God right where you are. It's almost like having a little telephone inside of you, because whenever you talk to God, He hears you.
Isn't it nice to know we can talk to God anytime and anywhere–and we don't even need a telephone! (JMD)
This Little Light of Mine
(An object lesson using a flashlight)
Have you ever been out in the woods at night, maybe when your family or friends were camping, and it's been real dark? That's when it's nice to have one of these: a flashlight.
See how it works? You flip the button, and the light comes on. When you're in the dark, it sure can be nice to know that you have a flashlight around.
Many years ago, God looked down on our world and saw that we were in the dark. We were being disobedient to God, we were lost and confused–it was like being in the woods at night with no light. And so God sent Jesus to be the Light of the World. He came to show us the way back to God, so that we can live the kind of life God intends for us.
Without Jesus we'd still be in the dark. But because Jesus became a light for us, you and I can know God's love. And that's better than any flashlight! (JMD)
Cover Up
(An object lesson using a bottle of correction fluid)
If your family has a typewriter at home, there may be a bottle of this nearby. It contains a white liquid, and whenever you make a mistake on the typewriter, you pull out this bottle and put a little bit of this over the error. Then when it dries, you can type right over where the mistake had been. Isn't that terrific?
Wouldn't it be nice if all our mistakes could be covered over that easy? But they can't, can they? If you drop a glass and it breaks, it stays broken. There are some things that can't be fixed.
But when we sin–that is, when we disobey what God wants us to do–we can be forgiven. That's what Jesus makes possible in our lives. He wants us to ask Him for forgiveness, and then He can help us not to do those things again.
You see, this kind of fluid only covers over things. Jesus changes us inside, so that we become the kind of people He wants us to be. (JMD)
