5th Week of Lent, Monday

"In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen."

"The Lord is my shepherd;
there is nothing I shall want. 
He guides me along the right path;
he is true to his name.
You are there with your crook and your staff;
with these you give me comfort.
In the Lord's own house shall I dwell
for ever and ever."

(From the Psalm)

(Read the quote, then each line slowly, with a pause to allow the children (and us!) to reflect on the questions.)

The Lord is my shepherd. Jesus called Himself "the Good Shepherd". 

What do I think of when I think of a shepherd? (An image of the Good Shepherd might be helpful.) (Possible answers: someone who looks after sheep; someone with a tall stick; the shepherds that visited Baby Jesus.)

If Jesus calls Himself the Good Shepherd, what might He be trying to tell us about Himself? (That He has sheep and He looks after the sheep.)

Who do you think the sheep of the Good Shepherd might be? (This can take the children quite a long time to figure out - after a year of exposure to the idea and at 6.5 and 5, my two boys still haven't figured it out. Others might click straight away.)

What does the Lord the Shepherd do in the psalm? (Read it again.) (He guides me along the right path; He is true to His name; He gives me comfort.)

How does it make me feel to know He is doing these things?

What might I want to say to God in response to this knowledge of what He does?





Thank you, Lord, for guiding me, for being true to Your name, for looking after Your sheep. Thank you for being such a good Shepherd.



(Allow any spontaneous prayers, perhaps leading by example. 3-6 year olds relate most naturally to God through prayers of praise and thanksgiving; 6+ will have started thinking about their needs and the needs of those around them in prayers of intercession. Some children may also just want quiet time to speak with God in their hearts.)

(Sing a simple hymn or chant if your children like singing. Or even if they don't ;) This can also be done at the beginning. )

"In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen."