PACT for first week of February

Corruption Sin Is Bad for Us Item needed: moldy bread (or other food) Find and offer some moldy bread or food (the moldier the better) to your kids. Or follow the steps to grow some mold. Collect dust on a cotton swab. You can slide the swab along a dusty shelf, floor, or any other surface with a thick coating of dust. Since dust contains the spores from which mold grows, you will want to collect as much dust as possible. (Mold spores exist in the air and can drop to the floor or onto objects as dust.) Rub the cotton swab over the entire surface of your bread slice, coating it with the dust. The moisture from the bread combined with the spores contained in the dust creates an ideal breeding ground for mold. You can also drop a few sprinkles of water on the bread slice. Seal your bread in an airtight environment (in a sandwich bag or wrap it in firmly in plastic wrap) to lock in the dust. Place your bread in a warm, dark environment to accelerate the growth process. For example, the website Science Fair Adventure recommends placing the bread in an old milk carton (preferably one with traces of milk still left behind) and sealing the lid. Leave the bread alone for approximately 24 to 48 hours and then remove. (Read more: How to Grow Mold Quickly on Bread Would you like to eat this? Why or why not? At one time, this food was good, but now it has become corrupted. We too can become corrupted by sin. With the right conditions and our sinful desires, we tend to give in to sin, which will be bad for us. How is sin bad for us? (It makes us feel guilty; it draws us away from God and what is right; it hurts our testimony; it leads us to do other wrong things, etc.) Who Are You "Linked" With? Items needed: strips of fabric or scarves (to tie legs together for a three legged race) Run a three-legged race, but with a little different twist. Pair up kids, but tie them together with one person facing one direction and the other one facing the opposite direction. At the instruction to GO, each pair should run toward the wall they are facing, which is the goal line. After a minute or so of struggling, untie them and talk about it.  Why was it so hard to get to your side of the room? (We were linked with someone going the opposite way.) Is it harder to do right if you are “linked” with people who want to do wrong? (Yes) Why? (They want to go the wrong way; they want to lead you in a wrong way; it is hard to stand by yourself and do right, etc.)  This week, we began studying the book of Judges. Joshua had died and the Israelites began following the gods of the Canaanites in the new land God had given them. God had given them strict instructions NOT to make an alliance with the Canaanites; neither were they to marry them or the people who still lived there. God was holy and He wanted His people to be holy. The people linked up with the Canaanites and were soon going away from God and worshiping false gods. They were corrupted by the Canaanites.  Link Up With Jesus As a family, read 1 Corinthians 15:57 and memorize it together. Ask your child to do something that he or she cannot do. (Pick up a heavy object, complete a difficult chore, write something, etc.) When they get frustrated or tell you they can't do it, come alongside of them to help. How were you able to do what I told you to do?(You helped me) The best way to do something hard is to ask someone stronger for help. How does the Bible verse say we can have victory—be a winner? (Through Jesus Christ) The best way to win over sin is to link up with Jesus. When we ask, He will take away our sin and then send His Holy Spirit to live inside us to help us do what is right. God will help us know the right thing to do and give us the strength to do it. When we link up with God, He will hold us tight. He is strong so we must stay as close as we can to Him. He will help us!  Pair up kids and have them help each other learn the verse. Toss a small ball (or stuffed animal) back and forth with each person saying the next word in the verse when they catch the ball.  On this journey with you, Pastor Beau