Hebrews

Story contributed by Kristen

Click here for the theological background

Remember, repetition helps children internalize and make connections. It might be a good idea to read the same story every day for a week. You can add different activities every day.

“Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight.”
Hebrews 4:13

My dear friends,

The word of God is alive. It is moving, dancing, breathing, expanding, rising like bread dough. The word of God is sharp, like the wind on a cool fall day. It is strong, like a waterfall thundering down a mountain. The word of God is loud and soft, big and little, soft and firm. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. God knows about the tiniest bug crawling under a leaf. God is with that tiny bug. God knows about the dog lost from her family, hungry and alone. God is with that frightened dog. God knows about the salmon, swimming up the river to lay their eggs. God is with the salmon. God is with the waterfall, the sharp wind, the bread dough. God is with you, my precious one, as you move and breathe and dance and expand.

I know this because of Jesus, who came to tell us more about God. And the miracle is that Jesus knows what it’s like to be a person. He knows how it feels to be hungry, and tired, and lonely, and angry, and sick, and weak, and afraid. He knows what it’s like to make a mistake, or hurt someone’s feelings, or say the wrong thing. So when we feel lost and alone, we can turn to Jesus. And he can say, “it is hard to be a person.” And he isn’t just saying that! He really knows.

Because of that, Jesus is like a tree with a secret doorway. Sometimes when you look at the tree, you just see the tree. But other times, when you look really closely, you see that hidden way down at the bottom, beneath the gnarled trunk, there’s a little door with a red doorknob. And if you turn that doorknob and go through the door, you find that you are still in the great big beautiful world. The door just turned you around to look at the earth again. And you see that the hill you climbed to get to the tree is shimmering in the sun, green like emeralds. And you see that the river next to the tree is dancing with life, singing her heart full. And you see that your heart is beating, and your lungs are pumping, and you are glad to be alive in the world. And that’s what Jesus can do for us. When we look at Jesus, we see the wind, the rain, the running waters, the scattered sunshine, the soft green grass. And we find that we are ready to believe in the world again, to be brave and kind.

This is called faith. It is having confidence that all will be well, even when things feel terrible. We remember Queen Esther, who held her chin up high and spoke for her people. We remember Ruth and Naomi, who loved and protected each other, and Miriam who sang of freedom, and Deborah the prophet. We remember Gwen’s grandmother Hazel, who brought flowers to the lonely. And Naomi’s grandmother Emma who came from Sweden to Salt Lake City before settling in Idaho to live a farm life that she loved. We remember Emmeline, who was a mother, an editor, a poet, and a president for the Utah Woman’s Suffrage Association.

Since we are surrounded by such a cloud of witnesses, let us hold on to each other. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, who looks back at us and smiles. Let us lift up our friends who have fallen and put our arms around their shoulders. And then let us walk toward the mountain, toward that great tree with a door inside, spreading our toes on the mossy grass and marveling that we are alive here, together.

Hold on, precious ones.

Love,

Anonymous

Ideas for play:

Contributed Kristen

Who are in your cloud of witnesses? Tell the stories of some ancestors or spiritual heroes.
Read Be a Good Ancestor
Talk about Dia de los Muertos (the day of the dead). Maybe watch Coco and talk about honoring our dead
Read Door and Journey and talk about imagining. What can Jesus help us imagine?
How can we lift up those who have fallen and strengthen each other? Brainstorm ideas as a family
Act out “walking to the mountain” together. Help each other or use stuffies to practice helping each other
Watch Climb Every Mountain
Watch an high priest of good things to come