A children's messaged delivered to First Church Phoenix UCC on 5/18/2025 based on the Book of Nehemiah.
Good morning, wonderful kids! It's so good to see your smiling faces today.
You know, the Bible is full of amazing stories! Some stories teach us about God, some teach us how to be good friends, and some even help us figure out what to do when things are tricky. Today, we're going to talk about how sometimes we can look at a Bible story that happened a long, long time ago and find really helpful advice for our lives right now! It's like the Bible is a special treasure chest, and when we look at the stories in different ways, we find hidden gems of wisdom.
Let's dig into one of those treasures today! Our story comes from the book of Nehemiah.
A super long time ago, about 2,400 years ago, the city of Jerusalem had a big problem. The wall all around the city was broken and torn down. This wall was super important because it helped keep everyone inside safe. Nehemiah was a leader who helped the people decide to rebuild the wall!
Listen to what happened, in kid's language! The people started working super hard to build the wall back up. They stacked stones, they put things in place, and they worked with all their energy! The Bible says in Nehemiah 4:6, 'So we rebuilt the wall till all of it reached half its height, for the people worked with all their heart.' They were doing a great job!
But, like in many building projects (or even when you're just trying to do something good!), not everyone was happy about it. There were people who didn't want the wall to be rebuilt, and they started to cause trouble. They said mean things and tried to make the builders afraid so they would stop working.
Nehemiah saw that the people were getting worried. So, he did two smart things. First, he made sure that some people were ready to stand guard and protect everyone who was building, especially in the places where the wall was still low. And then, he gathered everyone together and said (this is from Nehemiah 4:14), 'Don’t be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes.'
He told them to remember God, who is bigger than any problem, and to be brave and protect each other and their families. And they kept building!
Now, raise your hand if you've ever built something – maybe a block castle, a pillow fort, or even a really cool drawing? (Allow hands). Awesome! Has anyone ever accidentally (or maybe on purpose!) knocked down something you built? (Allow hands). How did that feel? Did you want to protect what you made? Maybe you asked someone to help you, or maybe you tried to fix it yourself.
Nehemiah and the people had to protect what they were building too! But they weren't just protecting their building with their hands; they were ready to use swords and arrows! That's a bit different than how we usually defend our block towers, right?
This story about rebuilding the wall in Jerusalem really happened a long, long time ago – like I said, about 2,400 years! That’s ancient history! But the amazing gift of the Bible is that even a story from way back then can teach us important things about living our lives today.
You see, building isn't just about blocks or stones. In our lives, we build all sorts of things that you can't even touch! We build friendships, we build relationships with our families, we build skills when we practice something, and someday you might even build a career or work towards a big dream! That's building too!
Let me tell you a story about a time I was trying to build something. I tried to build a career as a fitness instructor once. You know, someone who teaches exercise classes. (Gesture to yourself). Now, I'm a big guy, and sometimes people think fitness teachers have to look a certain way, maybe really skinny. But I really wanted to do it! I thought I could be good at helping people get healthier, and it was important to me.
It was hard work learning everything! And guess what? I had some people who weren't trying to help me build that dream; they were trying to tear down my wall, just like in Nehemiah's story. They told me things like, 'You don't look like a fitness instructor. You're not skinny enough.' Those words felt like they were trying to break down my dream!
Did I defend my dream all by myself? Nope. Like Nehemiah got help, I asked for help from my community! I talked to my boss, I talked to my friends, and I talked to other people who were also becoming fitness instructors. When they saw how much I wanted it, how important it was to me, and how hard I was working, they helped me. They encouraged me, they supported me, and they helped defend that dream against the people who were trying to tear it down.
And you know what? With God's help, and the help of my community, I kept going. And I became a really awesomefitness instructor and got to help lots of people get stronger and healthier!
So, think about it for a moment. Has there ever been a time in your life when you were trying to build something important – maybe learning to ride a bike, trying out for a team, working on a difficult school project, or even trying to be a really good friend – and it felt like someone or something was trying to make it hard or tear it down? Did you ask for help? Did someone help you defend your effort?
Just like Nehemiah and the people building the wall, and just like me trying to build my fitness career, we don't have to build alone. God is always with us, giving us strength, and God often puts people in our lives – our family, our friends, people right here in our church community – to help us build our dreams and defend them when things get tough.
Let's say a prayer together."
"Dear God, Thank you for this story from long ago that still helps us today. Thank you for being with us when we are trying to build important things in our lives, like friendships and learning new things. Thank you for the people you give us – our families, our friends, and our church community – who help support us and encourage us. Help us to remember to ask for help when we need it, and help us to be helpers for others too. Thank you for helping us build our lives and our dreams. Amen."
