Sunday, May 15, 2016 Pentecost; The Gifts of the Spirit Acts 2:1-4 and 1 Corinthians 12:1-13 1 Corinthians 12:7 Pentecost is when God gave the gift of the Holy Spirit to all of us, and it marks the official beginning of the Christian church. God has given each and every one of us our own unique gifts, and we are called to love our neighbor with these God-given gifts. We should celebrate the many different the gifts we have been given by God and give thanks for the beauty of God s kingdom where all are equally loved and valued. The Holy Spirit Fellowship After completing this lesson, students will be able to: Identify the meaning of the Holy Spirit as an unseen but powerful presence by creating a pinwheel and making it move. Demonstrate the story of the day by participating in a classroom skit with costumes. Illustrate the spiritual practice of Fellowship by creating special gift boxes that are physically empty but symbolically full of love for God and each other. 2014-2015 Spirit and Truth Publishing - All Rights Reserved 1
Activities a la Carte Activities Into the Story Gift Cards Surprise gift giving! Supplies 5 min. Index cards Red and black pens Bible Nuts and Bolts Pinwheel Create and demonstrate a Pinwheel to show the power of the Holy Spirit. Learning the Story God Given Gifts A story of gifts from God including the Holy Spirit. 5 min. Construction paper Markers Scissors Glue stick Pencil with eraser Push pin Optional: beads or buttons 10 min. Activity Sheet #2-34.A Highlighters Optional: Robes or Bible time costumes Living the Story A Gift of Love Gift boxes filled with God s love. 15 min. Small, empty boxes Wrapping paper Ribbons Tape Activity Sheet #2-34.B Note cards Pens 2014-2015 Spirit and Truth Publishing - All Rights Reserved 2
Activities a la Carte Activities Additional Activities Fill Us Up! Show how the Holy Spirit fills us up! Floating Flames Keep the flames of the Holy Spirit afloat in the form of red balloons! Supplies 10 min. Mural paper Marker Construction paper 10 min. Red balloons Stopwatch Student Bible Book: Pentecost; The Gifts of the Spirit Students continue their own Bible story book! 10 min. Each student s binder Copies of Activity Sheet #2-34.C A three-hole punch Pens Markers and/or crayons A sample page Closing Prayer 5 min. 2014-2015 Spirit and Truth Publishing - All Rights Reserved 3
Background for Teachers Story Connections Last week, your child learned about Jesus s death and the promise of the resurrection, connecting the triumph of Jesus s resurrection to the promise of a new beginning in the coming kingdom of God. This week, your child learned about a special day that occurred about 50 days after Jesus s resurrection, Pentecost. The gift of the Holy Spirit was given by God that day, the greatest of the many glorious gifts given to us all by God, gifts intended to be used to love and serve our neighbors. Your child celebrated the glory and goodness of God with their class, and left their last lesson of the year with positive thoughts about the wonderful gifts we are given by God, and our call to love our neighbor with the gifts we have been given. Story Summary: Pentecost, The Gifts of the Spirit The story of the day covered gifts in two readings that centered on the idea of God given gifts in separate but similar ways. In Acts 2, historic events are happening as a new relationship between God and God s people is established on a day called the Pentecost. Pentecost marks the day that a great gift was given to all of us to share the Glory of God among all people and nations, the gift of the Holy Spirit. This gift established the beginning of the Christian church. This is the greatest but not the only gift given to us by God as we learn in 1 Corinthians, our other reading of the day. Here, the focus is on the various discovered we have all been given special gifts from God, and that we are all called to share these gifts in loving and caring ways, serving God and our neighbor, today and every day. Bible Nuts and Bolts: The Holy Spirit This week, your child was introduced to the meaning of The Holy Spirit, which is a tricky idea to fully understand. One of the three persons of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit is sometimes described as wind, breath, fire, a dove, and other images as well. In the lesson today, the concept of the Holy Spirit was demonstrated to your child through a pinwheel activity, demonstrating unseen but undeniable power of the wind and correlating this with the unseen but undeniable power of the Holy Spirit. Story Themes Any passage of Scripture has countless themes and lessons for the student. The following themes are the focus of this lesson. Pentecost is when God gave the gift of the Holy Spirit to all of us, and it marks the official beginning of the Christian church. In Acts 1, just before our Bible readings begin, Jesus tells his disciples to wait in Jerusalem, where they will soon filled with the Holy Spirit and filled with God s love and grace. In Acts 2, historic events are happening as a new relationship between God and God s people is established. Pentecost signifies this new era; Pentecost signifies the dawning of the age of the Holy Spirit. Pentecost means the arrival of the Holy Spirit, a gift given to us for the Glory of God among all people and nations. One definition of Pentecost is "50th day. Pentecost is Greek for fifty, and traditionally was a day of celebration held fifty days after Passover. It was also called Shavu ot, which is Hebrew for weeks, signifying that Pentecost is a week of weeks from Passover. In other words, Pentecost is seven weeks from Passover. Pentecost is connected to the giving of the Torah to Moses just as it is connected to the gift of the Holy Spirit to the disciples, and Pentecost is seen as the official beginning of the Christian church. God has given each and every one of us our own unique gifts, and we are called to love our neighbor with these God-given gifts. We remained focused on gifts in our other reading of the day, (1 Corinthians 12:1-13), where we learned more about the gifts given to us by God and intended to be used to love and honor God and our neighbor. 2014-2015 Spirit and Truth Publishing - All Rights Reserved 4
Background for Teachers Reading from two different books in the Bible for a single lesson could be confusing, but not for us! When we took a closer look, we saw that the two passages are interconnected, and we discovered that we could use the passage in 1 Corinthians to explain more about what is meant by the giving of the spirit in Acts. Acts 1 is about gifts given to us by and through God, while 1 Corinthians is about using our Godly gifts to give glory and honor to God and show love and respect for our neighbor. We should celebrate the diversity of the gifts we have been given by God, and give thanks for the beauty of God s kingdom where all are equally loved and valued. God s generosity and the gifts given to us by God, from the Holy Spirit to our own individual and unique gifts were essential elements of the passages today. The fact that God celebrates our differences while loving us equally, was another important part of the readings today. There is such beauty in God s kingdom where all are equally loved and valued by God. The theme of the lesson and the importance of these gifts was summed up nicely in the key verse of the day (1 Corinthians 12:7), which told us our different and unique gifts are all the same in one important way they are all intended to be used for the common good. We are all called to love our neighbor with the gifts that we have been given. Encourage your child to think about the ways in which we might share our gifts, and how we can give the gift of God s love to others today and all days. Spiritual Practice: Fellowship The Living the Story activity had your child living the spiritual practice of Fellowship through creating special gifts to be given to friends or family members. But these gifts were not the type of gifts we might normally exchange on a holiday or birthday or anniversary. These gifts were empty boxes, signifying the unseen, but deeply felt, love we have for another. Much like many gifts God gives us, this gift is not tangible yet still carries the power and glory of love and faith in a variety of different and unique ways. 2014-2015 Spirit and Truth Publishing - All Rights Reserved 5
Lesson #2-34 (3rd-6th) May 15, 2016 Lesson Plan Into the Story (5 minutes) Gift Cards Surprise gift giving! You will need: Index cards Red and black pens Before class: 1. Write words or phrases from the verses of the day on enough index cards for each student in the class, plus extras for yourself and any new students or guests. During class: 1. As the students enter the classroom, give each one of the cards you have prepared. 2. When all students have arrived, gather together in a central point in the room, and hold up a card of your own. 3. The cards you all received when you entered the room are yours to keep, they are my gifts to you, and the words that you see on them are part of the verses of the Bible that we are going to talk about today! 4. What a joy it is to talk about the word of God! My hope for you is that by reading these words and other words in the Bible, you will learn and grow in God s word today and every day. 5. It is a wonderful feeling to give and to receive gifts from others, but even better than gifts to and from others are the gifts that God has given us. 6. God gives us each our own special gifts, gifts that are unique and special and specific for each and every one of us. 7. God gives us these gifts out of love, and wants us to use these gifts to love and serve others. 8. Even greater than the gifts God gives us each individually is the gift that God gave all of us on a day called Pentecost. This is the day that God gave the gift of the Holy Spirit. And this is the day that marks the beginning of the Church. 2014-2015 Spirit and Truth Publishing - All Rights Reserved 6
9. God has given us the Holy Spirit and God gives us our own special gifts, and God wants us to share our gifts with others in the spirit of love and friendship. 10. Optional: If time, encourage the students to each read the word or phrase on their card out loud for the rest of the class. Bible Nuts and Bolts (10 minutes) Holy Spirit Pinwheels Create and demonstrate a pinwheel to show the power of the Holy Spirit. You will need: Construction paper - enough for each student Markers Scissors Glue stick Pencil with eraser - enough for each student Push pin Optional: beads or buttons Before class: 1. Make a sample pinwheel to use as an example for the class. During class: 1. In the Bible, sometimes the Holy Spirit is described as the wind. It is invisible, but it is strong. We can t see it, but we can feel it. 2. The Holy Spirit is invisible, but it is very real. Sometimes it can be hard to understand the power of the Holy Spirit. One way to understand the Holy Spirit is to think of it as the wind. 3. It is hard to understand something we cannot see, but there are some ways to make the invisible a little more visible. 4. For example, we can see the power of the wind when we watch a pinwheel spin. 5. Pass out a piece of construction paper to each student. 6. Cut two identical squares from your piece of paper. 7. On each of your squares, write the words, Holy Spirit. 8. Glue the undecorated sides of the two squares together by spreading the glue across the entire back of each square (not just the edges). 2014-2015 Spirit and Truth Publishing - All Rights Reserved 7
9. Cut halfway from the edge towards the middle from each of the four corners of the glued together double square. 10. Pull the four corners in towards the center without creasing the paper. Glue the corners together in the middle. 11. Push the pushpin into the center where the corners are glued together, and push the pin through the paper into the eraser of a pencil. Be careful not to push too tight in order to allow the pinwheel to move freely! 12. Optional: If desired, put a bead or small button between the paper and the eraser in order to let the pinwheel rotate better and keep the pin point from going through the other side of the eraser. 13. When your pinwheel is complete, blow on the edges in order to make it spin! (Loosen the pin if the blades don t turn freely.) 14. After everyone has tested their pinwheels, gather students back together in a circle. 15. Even though the wind is invisible, we know it is real and powerful. In the same way, even though the Holy Spirit is invisible, we know it is real and powerful. Learning the Story (15 minutes) God Given Gifts! A story of gifts from God including the Holy Spirit. You will need: Activity Sheet #2-34.A Highlighters Optional: Robes or Bible time costumes Before class: 1. Print copies of Activity Sheet #2-34.A for each student. During class: 1. Before passing out copies of the script and highlighters to your students, either assign roles to individual students or allow students to select roles of their own choosing. 2. After roles are chosen, pass out scripts (Activity Sheet #2-34.A) 3. Now that we have decided who will play what role, go through your scripts and highlight your part. If you are using costumes, have students put them on at this point. 2014-2015 Spirit and Truth Publishing - All Rights Reserved 8
4. Gather the students in a central area of the classroom, and guide the lead characters to stand in visible locations where the rest of the cast and the students in the classroom not participating in the skit can see them. 5. Actors perform the skit for the rest of the class. 6. After the skit, gather all students together for a short discussion. 7. What gifts has God given you? [Answers will vary.] 8. How can you share God s gifts with others today and every day? [Answers will vary.] Living the Story (20 minutes) A Gift of Love Gift boxes filled with God s love. You will need: Small, empty boxes Wrapping paper Ribbons Tape Activity Sheet 2-34.B Note cards Pens Before class: 1. Print copies of Activity Sheet #2-34.B for students to copy on note cards. During class: 1. In the story of today we talked about gifts. Gifts given by God. Gifts to be shared with others. And the greatness of the gift of the Holy Spirit. 2. God has given us many gifts to use for good, and to share with friends, family, church, and the world. 3. Every single one of us is given gifts from God, but sometimes our gifts are hard to see. 4. Today we are going to make gifts that are hard to see and yet filled with love. 5. Pass out boxes, ribbons, wrapping paper, and prepared note cards. 2014-2015 Spirit and Truth Publishing - All Rights Reserved 9
6. Encourage student to open the boxes and look inside and notice that they are empty. 7. Select a student to read Activity Sheet #2-34.B out loud to the class. 8. Copy this verse on your notecards, and tape them to your boxes after you have wrapped them with the wrapper paper, ribbons, and bows. 9. These gifts are so much more than empty boxes! These are gifts full of love. These are gifts to give to others that bring love and joy and faith in unseen yet very important ways. 10. Bring your gifts home today, and give to someone special. Just as God gives us so many gifts, give your gifts to others with a generous spirit! Additional Activities Fill Us Up! (10 minutes) With pieces of construction paper, show how the Holy Spirit fills us up. You will need: Mural paper Marker Construction paper in a variety of colors Glue Before class: 1. Rip the construction paper into small pieces. Alternatively, you may have students do this during class. During class: 1. The Bible tells us that the Holy Spirit fills us up. But what exactly does that mean? 2. Is it like filling a gas tank? A mug? A bucket? In some ways it is something like that, but since the Holy Spirit is invisible, it s harder to imagine. 3. Ask for or select a student volunteer. 4. Trace the outline of the student on the mural paper. 5. Gather the class around the tracing. 6. This shape represents all of us. 7. Pass out the pieces of construction paper, instruct students to rip them into pieces if you have not already done so. 8. And this paper represents the Holy Spirit. 2014-2015 Spirit and Truth Publishing - All Rights Reserved 10
9. Working together, let s fill up this body with the Holy Spirit! 10. Encourage students to glue the pieces of the construction paper inside the outline, working together until the entire shape is filled. 11. Offer assistance to students as needed. 12. After the body outline is filled, gather the students around to admire the finished project. 13. By filling up the outlined body shape with the paper pieces, we can better understand the rather abstract idea of being filled by the Holy Spirit. 14. The symbolism of being filled up can be tricky, but this activity can help you picture the abstract idea in a concrete, visual way. Floating Flame (10 minutes) Keep the flames of the Holy Spirit afloat in the form of red balloons! You will need: Red balloons Stopwatch Before class: 1. Blow up at least enough balloons for each student in the class and extras as well if possible. During class: 1. God fills the people with the Holy Spirit in the verses of today. 2. The more we read about the Holy Spirit in various sections of the Bible, including the two focus areas of today - Book of Acts and 1 Corinthians - the more we see that the Holy Spirit can be described as taking many forms. 3. The Holy Spirit is described as the wind. 4. The Holy Spirit is described as a dove. 5. The Holy Spirit is even described as flames of fire, but not a fire that can burn people, a fire of love and goodness. 6. Hold up a balloon. 7. These are our flames of fire, representing the Holy Spirit. 8. We are going to work together as a class to keep our flames afloat, for God has given us this wonderful gift of the Holy Spirit, and it is our joyful honor to keep it alive and well in our hearts and with others. 9. Pass out balloons, making sure each student has at least one balloon. Toss the balloons in the air and encourage the students to work together to keep them afloat as long as possible. 2014-2015 Spirit and Truth Publishing - All Rights Reserved 11
10. Optional: Start a stopwatch and record how long the class can keep all balloons afloat. As soon a one touches the floor, stop the time and star the game again. 11. Repeat as often as time allows. 12. After the game, gather the students back together. 13. We have been given the gift of the Holy Spirit, the flames of fire that do not burn but that bring us joy and faith and love. Let us give thanks to God for the gifts we are given, and most of all for the gift of the Holy Spirit. Student Bible Book: Pentecost; The Gifts of the Spirit (10 min) Students continue their own Bible story book! You will need: Each student s binder Copies of Activity Sheet #2-34.C on 8.5 x 11 cardstock paper or plain paper A three-hole punch Pens Markers and/or crayons A sample page (See below) Before class: 1. Make copies of Activity Sheet #2-34.C 2. Create a sample page using the instructions below to demonstrate to students approximately what their page could look like. During class: 1. Hand out a copy of the Student Bible book page (I Learned That ) 2. Show students the sample page you made before class. 3. What are some of the important things we have learned from this story? [Answers will vary, see story themes for suggested answers] 4. On the bottom of your page, please write one or two important things you have learned from this story. In the middle of the page, draw a picture from the story or illustrate one of your important things you ve learned. 5. When students are finished, have them put their names on the back and collect the pages. 6. Three-hole punch the papers and put them in individual binders for each student. Binders are to be kept at church until the end of the year. 2014-2015 Spirit and Truth Publishing - All Rights Reserved 12
Closing Prayer Before ending class, make a point to come together to pray. Use the following or say your own prayer. Allow any students who would like to include a personal petition to do so at the appropriate time. 2014-2015 Spirit and Truth Publishing - All Rights Reserved 13
Lesson #2-34 (3rd-6th) May 15, 2016 Characters: Luke Jesus Disciples 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 God Given Gifts Luke: Hi there! My name is Luke, and I wrote the Book of Acts. The Book of Acts has a lot of interesting facts in it and a lot of information about Jesus and God, including one of my favorite stories, the story of the Pentecost, the day God gave us the gift of the Holy Spirit. Jesus: 10 days ago, I was crucified, died, and was buried. Disciples: 10 days ago, Jesus told us to go to Jerusalem and wait there for the Holy Spirit. Luke: The disciples did what Jesus told them to, and went to Jerusalem to wait, but they were not the only ones there that day, for it was Pentecost, a day of feasting and celebration. Pentecost was a very important day in the Jewish culture. It was a day for the Jewish people to gather and give thanks to the glory of God. It was a day where the people gave gifts and offerings to God. Jesus: We celebrate Pentecost, because that is the day God, our father, gave a wonderful, glorious gift to all people. Disciple #1: And what a gift it was! Disciple #2: When suddenly Disciple #3: from up above Disciple #4: we heard a noise 14 2014-2015 Spirit and Truth Publishing - All Rights Reserved
Lesson #2-34 (3rd-6th) May 15, 2016 God Given Gifts Disciple #5: that sounded like Disciple #6: a rush of mighty wind! Luke: This wind filled the area where the disciples were gathered, but that wasn t all that happened. The wind was then followed by what seemed to tongues of fire that rested on the disciple s heads. Disciples: [touch heads and look surprised] Jesus: All who were gathered there were filled with the Holy Spirit and suddenly able to speak in other languages. Disciples: [babbling in many languages, smiling, hugging, joyfully nodding] Luke: God gave the ultimate gift that day, the gift of the Holy Spirit, but God didn t stop giving gifts there and then. God keeps on giving to the people. Jesus: God gives the gift of the Holy Spirit to everyone, equally, but God doesn t stop there. God still gives individual, specific, unique gifts to each and every person among us. Gifts that are special and one of a kind, and meant to be shared with others. Luke: Jesus wanted to be sure all God s people understood that the Holy Spirit is the ultimate gift, and that God gives us other gifts as well. Gifts that are meant to be shared. Jesus: God, my father, gives many different kinds of gifts to many different kinds of people, but God gives the Holy Spirit to all of us. Disciple #1: So we all have the gift of the Holy Spirit? 15 2014-2015 Spirit and Truth Publishing - All Rights Reserved
Lesson #2-34 (3rd-6th) May 15, 2016 God Given Gifts Jesus: Yes. Disciple #2: But our own gifts can be different? Jesus: Yes. Disciple #3: I think my gift is always telling the truth. Disciple #4: My gift is knowledge. Disciple #5: My gift is faith. Disciple #6: My gift is healing. Jesus: Just like all of you, all of God s people have unique and wonderful gifts, from working miracles to prophecy to speaking in many languages and more. It is important to remember that all of your gifts are from the Holy Spirit. And to remember that you are all called to love your neighbor with the gifts you are given. Disciples: We will remember to give and share our gifts with each other, today and every day. Jesus: It s always a good idea to remember these things! God gives gifts to all people, gifts for the common good plus gifts meant to be shared with others. Remember to share your gifts, and remember that God gives us all gifts out of love for us and for the good of the church. Luke: And so it was that the church began on that Pentecost after Jesus death, a beginning marked by God s gift of the Holy Spirit given lovingly to all of us. 16 2014-2015 Spirit and Truth Publishing - All Rights Reserved
Lesson #2-34 (3rd-6th) May 15, 2016 A Gift of Love This is a very special gift That you can never see. The reason it's so special is It comes to you from me. Whenever you are lonely or even feeling blue, You only have to hold this gift, And know I think of you. You never can unwrap it, The ribbon will stay tied. Just hold the box up to your heart: It's filled with love inside! -Author Unknown 17 2014-2015 Spirit and Truth Publishing - All Rights Reserved
Lesson #2-34 (3rd-6th) May 15, 2016 Pentecost; The Gifts of the Spirit Acts 2:1-4 and 1 Corinthians 12:1-13 I learned: 18 2014-2015 Spirit and Truth Publishing - All Rights Reserved
The Story @ Home Narrative Lectionary, Year 2 Story Connections Last week, your child learned about Jesus s death and the promise of the resurrection, connecting the triumph of Jesus s resurrection to the promise of a new beginning in the coming kingdom of God. This week, your child learned about a special day that occurred about 50 days after Jesus s resurrection, Pentecost. The gift of the Holy Spirit was given by God that day, the greatest of the many glorious gifts given to us all by God, gifts intended to be used to love and serve our neighbors. Story Summary: Pentecost, The Gifts of the Spirit The story of the day covered gifts in two readings that centered on the idea of God-given gifts in separate but similar ways. In Acts 2, historic events are happening as a new relationship between God and God s people is established on a day called Pentecost. Pentecost marks the day that a great gift was given to all of us to share the Glory of God among all people and nations, the gift of the Holy Spirit. This gift established the beginning of the Christian church. This is the greatest but not the only gift given to us by God as we learn in 1 Corinthians. Here, the focus is on the discovery that we have all been given special gifts from God, and that we are all called to share these gifts in loving and caring ways, serving God and our neighbor, today and every day. Bible Nuts and Bolts: The Holy Spirit This week, your child was introduced to the meaning of The Holy Spirit, which is a tricky idea to fully understand. One of the three persons of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit is sometimes described as wind, breath, fire, a dove, and other images as well. In the lesson today, the concept of the Holy Spirit was demonstrated to your child through a pinwheel activity, demonstrating unseen but undeniable power of the wind and correlating this with the unseen but undeniable power of the Holy Spirit. Story Themes Pentecost is when God gave the gift of the Holy Spirit to all of us, and it marks the official beginning of the Christian church. Pentecost (Greek for fifty (days) ) was also called Shavu ot (Hebrew for weeks, as Pentecost is a week of weeks from Passover). Pentecost is connected to the giving of the Torah to Moses just as it is connected to the gift of the Holy Spirit to the disciples, and Pentecost is seen as the official beginning of the Christian church. God has given each and every one of us our own unique gifts, and we are called to love our neighbor with these God-given gifts. We remained focused on gifts in our other reading of the day, (1 Corinthians 12:1-13), where we learned more about the gifts given to us by God and intended to be used to love and honor God and our neighbor. We should celebrate the diversity of the gifts we have been given by God, and give thanks for the beauty of God s kingdom where all are equally loved and valued. God s generosity and the gifts given to us by God, from the Holy Spirit to our own individual and unique gifts were essential elements of the passages today. The fact that God celebrates our differences while loving us equally, was another important part of the readings today. Spiritual Practice: Fellowship The Living the Story activity had your child living the spiritual practice of fellowship by creating special gifts to be given to friends or family members. But these gifts were not the type of gifts we might normally exchange on a holiday or birthday or anniversary. These gifts were empty boxes, signifying the unseen, but deeply felt, love we have for another. 2014-2015 Spirit and Truth Publishing - All Rights Reserved
LIVING THE WORD Try it @ HOME Last week, your child learned about Jesus s death and the promise of the resurrection. This week your child learned about the gift of the Holy Spirit, the individual gifts we are given, and the importance of using our gifts to serve others. Celebrate these gifts with your child, talk about the glory of God, and give thanks for our ability to answer God s call to love our neighbor with the gifts we have been given. As you learn the stories this week and every week, reflect upon what God has to say to you and your family. Let the power of prayer in your heart and in this story help bring your family closer together this week, perhaps with these prompts below. Sing praises to God and proclaim God s glory as you celebrate God s love together. Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 1 Corinthians 12:14-27 Leviticus 23:15-21 Habakkuk 2:14 John 14:16-17 Matthew 28:19-20 John 13:35 John 3:8 We read the verses leading up to this one in class this week. Reading these verses and using the words of the Bible to create a visual image is a great way to see the body. Read these verses together aloud and use the words to draw a group picture on a large sheet of paper. Pentecost began as a special feast where Gods people brought gifts as offerings to God. What would you bring as an offering to God? Go around the table and share your gift ideas. An important part of Pentecost is mission. A mission is often sharing the word of God. Your mission today is to share the word of God plus a sweet treat with someone who doesn t live with you! Bake a batch of cookies and hand deliver them to a neighbor along with a short prayer. We give thanks to God for the gifts given us, just as the disciples surely thanked Jesus for sending the Holy Spirit to be with them forever. Join hands and one at a time, say thank you to Jesus and God for love and grace and joy. 2014-2015 Spirit and Truth Publishing - All Rights Reserved Sometimes we might forget God is always with us, no matter where, no matter what. Tie a small string around your finger today to remember that God will be with you forever, God will always remember. Jesus shared with everyone. Jesus cared for everyone. Jesus is the perfect example for us to follow. Show you care by sharing a favorite toy, a homemade treat, a song, or a handwritten letter with someone else today. The wind is invisible but undeniable. Set up a small fan and take turns standing in front of it, keeping back a safe distance. Shut your eyes and feel the wind on your face and in your hair. Feel the power of the invisible breezes and say, Thank you, God, for giving us the gift of the Holy Spirit.