Stand Up for Jesus!

Boys and girls, and welcome back to Graceville, where God's love is everywhere. It's me, Past Anastasia, and I'm so super duper excited that you've joined me today as we learn more about our best friend, Jesus. Today's special feature comes to us from right here in the United States, where my friend, Jemima, has prepared a beautiful song to remind us to always shine for Jesus. Let's listen in. That was awesome! Boys and girls, remember, if you want to share the cool things that you're doing at home this summer, please ask your parents or guardians to inbox me, and I'd be happy to share it with our friends. It's so cool to learn about God's amazing creation with our friend, Ryan, from Canada. Let's see who or what we're learning about today. Hello, boys and girls, and welcome again to Nature Time at Graceville. Today, we're gonna be talking about the black-tailed prairie dog. The black-tailed prairie dog gets its name from the black tip on its tail and also its preferred habitat. Short and mixed grass prairies from North America, northern Mexico, and Saskatchewan, Canada. It resembles a squirrel with its short legs and small ears. In fact, they're cousins. They eat insects, seeds, stems, grass, leaves, and even weeds. These rodents get most of their water from the plants that they eat. They are most active during the daytime and are very social animals. They love to burrow and have very impressive tunnels under the soil. They live in tight-knit family groups called coteries. We are also part of a very important family, God's family. We should be kind to one another, pray for each other, share encouraging words, and help out wherever we can. Galatians 6, verse 10, it says, therefore, as we have the opportunity, let us do good to all, especially those who are of the household of faith. Let's pray that God gives us gifts to help his family. Bye, boys and girls. Thanks for tuning in, see you next time. Hurry up, I heard Nico is feeling pretty down today. I don't know what's going on. You wanna find out with me? Let's go. Hey, Pastor Anastacia, I'm so glad you're here. Well, I was playing volleyball until some older kids started picking on some younger kids. So I decided to bravely stand up to them. But they decided to turn on me. And what hurt me the most was nobody came for my rescue. Oh, no, completely understand. But I'm super proud that you stood up for your friend. When we choose to courageously do what's right, sometimes it may seem as if we're all alone. But the truth is God never abandons us. He's with us every step of the way. Oh, wait a minute, that reminds me of our theme for this week which simply says, stand up for Jesus. Let me hear my little friend say it. Stand up for Jesus. And our memory verse is found in Deuteronomy 31 verse eight. And it simply says, God goes before you and will be with you. Let me hear my little friend, Ava, say it. The Lord goes before you and will be with you. Deuteronomy 31, eight. Great job, everyone. I understand what you're saying, Pastor Anastasia, but I could really use God's help. God may not always do things the way we want. Sometimes our fate may be tested, but never doubt he'll always show up just when we need him most. Actually, that reminds me of three Hebrew boys who seemed all alone until God showed up just in time to rescue them from a fiery furnace. Can you guess who today's story is about? I know this one, Pastor Anastasia. It's the story of the three Hebrew boys. What were their names again? Oh, yes, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. That's right, Deandre. Today's story is about the three Hebrew boys, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Finally, King Nebuchadnezzar's humongous golden statue of himself was finished. He was so proud of it that he decided that everyone in Babylon should bow down and worship the image when they heard the music. He warned that anyone who refused would be thrown into the fiery furnace. People came from far and near just to worship the image. The fearful people did not wanna be tossed into the fire. So, as the music played, they all bowed down except Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. They stood tall because they worshiped God and God alone. When Nebuchadnezzar discovered what they had done, he was furious and commanded that they be thrown into the furnace immediately. Just when it seemed like they were all alone, Nebuchadnezzar noticed that they were unharmed by the fire and there was a fourth person in there with them. It was Jesus. He showed up just in time to rescue them. Talk about standing. God was literally walking with them through their trial. He sure was, Nico, and he's willing and able to do the same for us today when we boldly stand up for Jesus. As we put our faith in him, we will discover that we're never alone because God is always with us. 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