Worship on a Prayer! The day I forgot my egg...

I forgot to boil an egg and bring it to school. This would have been no problem if the egg was for my lunch, but this egg was for a worship talk-not just any worship talk. Today, I would be speaking to the entire school. When I realized it, my classroom was about to fill with children. I needed this scene for a little bit longer:

The truth is, every one of my students was there and one of them had just said, "Here they come..." referring to the rest of the school. Have you ever  volunteered to do something (if fact, it was my idea) and then wonder, "What was I thinking?"

I ran to my closet, praying, "Lord, help me find a good worship talk right away!" I often had different 'just in case' items in my closet, but it was the end of the year and I wasn't sure there was anything left.

I opened the door and looked down. There, in front of the first shelf, was an item that, through God's spirit, became my worship talk for the day. What was it? This:

Just common, ordinary duplo blocks that had never looked like a worship talk to me before! Of course, not just those blocks.  I also had a dollar store box with a "lego-like" set of blocks with blocks that were much smaller than Duplos and they were sitting on the shelf just above the Duplos. The two were suddenly a perfect match.

Somehow (actually, I know how-God answers prayers) the idea just fell together. As the younger students settled in their desks, I ran to my desk to grab the only other thing I needed-my Bible.

I dumped the blocks on a plastic tray and added a few Duplo blocks that I picked up at Goodwill. Then I stood in front of the kids, placing my tray on a tall stool.

It went something like this:

Have your ever played with blocks that came in a kit? I tore open the box. Sometimes, you need to have the instructions to figure everything out. Let's see-I need this little piece here and it goes on to this piece. Now it says I add this piece. 

(I continued on for five of six pieces, talking about them as I went. Then I picked up a Duplo block.)

Now, what about this piece. I wonder where it goes. Hmmm... 

(The younger students said, "It doesn't go with the others."

What? It doesn't go with the others?  Let me look at the directions. 

Hmmm, you are right! I don't see the bigger blocks in the directions. I guess it doesn't belong there.

You know, I have another set of directions here. 

(I held up my Bible.)

These directions tell me how to act like Jesus. I like to read them so I know how my life should fit together with someone who wants to be with Jesus in Heaven. It tells me to tell the truth, to be kind and loving. Just like these instructions tell me how to build this little car, my Bible tells me everything I need to do to make Jesus smile. If I am ever not sure about something fitting into my life as a Christian, just like I found out the big block didn't fit with this car, the Bible will let me know if something doesn't fit in with the life I am trying to build.

An example would be-does the Bible tell me anything about how I should act towards my mom and dad?  (They responded) 

Absolutely-it tells me, in the 10 Commandments, that I should honor them. If I am thinking about being rude to my mom, will my instruction book help me?

Today, I am going to ask you to use your instruction book-your Bible-to help you know how you should live your life. If you are not sure about something, also check it out with God's big instruction book.

Then we prayed. 

Teachers, you never know when God can use something as simple as a box of blocks to bring home a message your students need to hear. Have you ever created a successful worship on the spur of the moment? I would love to hear about it!