Kids of the King, Arise!

By Samuel and Jason Upton

Jason a Christian songwriter shared on a DVD how he was talking with his young son Samuel one day. Samuel asked him, can I write a song with you? His dad said sure so…he started with “Hey Jesus”…and after awhile this is what resulted.

Hey Jesus,
Are you still on the cross
Or are you feeling better?

Hey Jesus,
Come play with me
I’m ready and willing

Won’t you come
Down, down, down,
Down to the ground

To the next to me place
With a smile on my face
And a song in my ear

Around and around
and around and around
and around we go

Hey Jesus,
When I wave at you
Do you wave back too?

Hey Jesus,
When I’m feeling sad
Do you feel sad too?

Won’t you come
Down, down, down,
Down to the ground

To the next to me place
With a smile on my face
And a song in my ear

Around and around
and around and around
and around we go

Hey Jesus,
If we throw these books
Do you think they will fly?

Hey Jesus,
Can I touch the moon
Throw me into the sky

And then I’ll come
Down, down, down,
Down to the ground

To the next to me place
With a smile on my face
And a song in my ear

Around and around
and around and around
and around we go

Jesse age 11
British Columbia

While we were praying over a map of Canada at the National House of Prayer, I saw a vision. I saw a whole bunch of crosses all over and each cross represented someone. A bunch of the crosses could move, but some could not. Out of the ones that could move, some were gray (like the ones that couldn’t move) and some were bright yellow and shone brightly. The gray ones that could move, started to go over to the yellow ones and tried to beat them up. Whenever they got close to the yellow ones though, it was like they got pushed back.

We felt that the yellow crosses were Christians. They had the light. The gray crosses were very deceptive because, although they were in the same cross shape as the others, and pretended to be “Christians’ were not. The gray ones that moved represented false teachers and people that were trying to deceive the Christians. The gray ones were also trying to tell others that they were Christians, but really they weren’t. When the gray ones were trying to attack the yellow ones, it represented deception and even persecution that many believers are going through. But as hard as the gray crosses tried, God still protected the yellow ones.

Here is a picture that Jesse drew on the computer trying to capture what he saw.
Pretty good hey!

Wheat or Tares
Tares or Wheat


Matthew 13:24-30
Jesus presented another parable to them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went away. But when the wheat sprouted and bore grain, then the tares became evident also “The slaves of the landowner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?’ And he said to them, ‘An enemy has done this!’ The slaves said to him, ‘Do you want us, then, to go and gather them up?’“But he said, ‘No; for while you are gathering up the tares, you may uproot the wheat with them.‘Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather up the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them up; but gather the wheat into my barn.”

Just like in the picture that Jesse had Jesus warns us in this scripture that there are will be people who will in many ways look like and act like Christians but are actually not. We need to be careful to stay close to the Light of God’s word so that we will not be tricked into believing something other than the truth. Just like Satan tricked Eve to believe a lie he will try to trick you as well.

Jesus on the other hand when Satan was trying to trick and tempt Him, replied by quoting Bible verses. He Knew the Truth.

Look up Mathew 4: 1-11
Some people think that because Jesus didn’t give in to what was offered, the temptation must not have been real. But that won’t do, the Bible tells us that these were very real temptations that really tempted Him. After all he was VERY hungry after not eating for 40 days! The good news is that because He was tempted He is also able to help you when you are tempted and the enemy tries to trick you. (Hebrews 2:18) He completely understands what you are going through and how to do what is right anyways.

Stay on the side of the LIGHT! and don’t get burned!

Over the last little while there were a number of people, some of whom are kids, that have had dreams or visions that are very similar. I will post them this week for you to pray about.

Gina

I saw “deception”, she was beautiful, dressed in a long black dress with long black hair. She had pale skin and a purple cloak. She looked so good and felt so right to be with. She would move close to a person and then move away to make the person want to be with her. People would do anything to be near her because it looked so good and felt so right. If you called her ‘Deception’ or mentioned to someone that they were being deceived, they would think you were crazy because it just seemed so right. I was so stunned by how easily people could be swept away by her.

Look up these verses and write down the different ways that “deception” works.
2 Peter 2: 1 False ________________ that secretly teach_______________
Mathew 24:24 For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great ________________, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect.
Genesis 3: 1 …__________________________ you must not eat from any tree in the garden?

The last verse what is it about the question posed that can lead you to be deceived? Think about it.
(It makes you question what God has already said, and it twists the truth of what God said.) Not a good thing.

ACTIVITY:
As you go through your day today put on your Kingdom Goggles and ask the Holy Spirit to alert you to any lies that the enemy is trying to convince you of. Pray in the opposite spirit and declare the TRUTH.

Eg. Eve should have said, No God said we could eat from all the trees except one…BIG difference.

DEVOTIONS BY KIDS FOR KIDS

 

Josh, age 11
Winnipeg, Manitoba

Have any of you ever thought of what you can buy for $40 million Dollars ???
Well I did some research and found that you can buy…

-1050 dodge trucks [$38 000]
-105 average Winnipeg homes [$ 380 000]
-13 Million bags of hot chocolate & marshmallows [$3]
-20 Million big bags of Old Dutch chips [$2]
-727 272.7272 I pod shuffles

Well….you might not believe it but…..
I prayed for $40m and I got it
It’s True!

Well we all know I didn’t actually get 40million dollars for myself
…..But I did get it……….Let me explain…..

I’m part of a group called Daniel Prayer Group. Daniel Prayer Group is a group of kids that meet once a month to pray for what ever God puts on our hearts.

Last Fall, the Lord really had us focus on the needs of the poor in our city. We went on a prayer walk through Point Douglas.

Here the Daniel Prayer group kids are praying at a church wall in the Pt. Douglas area. (Josh has the brouwn jacket on)

Point Douglas is an area of town just off Main Street that used to be wealthy but over the years has become more and more run down. There is a lot of need there, drugs, violence and poverty.

On our prayer walk we prayed that God would once again bring finances into the area and also that he would close all the crack houses. Then we went home.

Well, about 6 months later there was a big story in the newspaper. It was on the front page and it was even in a big font!

The Story said…that $40 Million Dollars was going to be spent to help clean up Main Street.

In fact the story said, that the project was to breathe new life into the desolate strip. “When you remove decay and replace it with functioning spaces and people coming and going, it results in a renewal that changes the reality of life in the area.” Do you hear the words they used? “Breathe new life”, “renewal”? Sounds like something God would do hey?

If THAT wasn’t enough read what the CBC news shared a week later!

People who live in the Point Douglas neighborhood are celebrating the closing of what they say is the last major crack house in the area. Last fall, a group of residents identified about 30 houses believed to be used for drug-dealing and use in the central Winnipeg neighborhood.
By working with police and landlords, neighbors have been able to shut them down, said Sel Burrows, spokesman for the Point Douglas Residents Association. Police have told the group the crime rate in the neighborhood has dropped 70 per cent, Burrows said.

Now, I realize that we ourselves didn’t give the money or close the crack houses. But I feel that our prayers somehow made a difference. I believe that God answered our prayer. I believe in the power of prayer.

The Bible says in Matthew 7:7 “Ask and it shall be given to you.”
Then later in Matthew 21:22 it says “and all things you ask in prayer, believing, you shall receive.”

It’s clear; the Bible says we are supposed to ask. We are supposed to pray.

Now I am not telling you to pray for $40 Million Dollars, but I am telling you that, God wants us to pray. Ask Him what is on His heart, after all he sees everything and knows what is going on. This is called intercession.
I also believe that God will honor those kinds of prayers when we pray on behalf of others, especially if it is for others who are in need

Why don’t you try it?

I dare you to change world.

I dare you to pray.

Christina
Age 9
Winnipeg
Manitoba

My Daniel Prayer Group went to Siloam Mission to put a pair of socks, a chocolate kiss, a home made card of encouragement and to pray for each bed. I liked that because I like helping the poor so I like learning about them. Siloam Mission is a building that is home to many poor men and women. One day Hannah was walking down a poor part of Winnipeg with her mother. As they turned a corner, Hannah spotted a man in rags digging in a garbage can. Hannah asked her mother, “Mommy, why is that person not dressed nice and why is he in a garbage can?” Her mother answered,”That person is looking for food. He is not dressed well because he has no other clothes.” At that moment, Hannah knew that something had to be done,and she was the one to make a difference and she did. Hannah was only six at the time. She made money some how and used every cent to make a building for poor people to sleep in at night. In Siloam Mission, there is a booth called “Hannah’s Place.” In that booth is towels and soup. Every night, hundreds of poor people enter Siloam Mission for a supper, but not even half of the people get to sleep there. Siloam Mission needs more beds. Do you care about the poor?

How can you show God’s love to the poor in your city? Have a look at what the Bible says.

Luke 3:11 (The Message)
“If you have two coats, give one away,” Jesus said. “Do the same with your food.”

Isaiah 58:6-7 (The Message)
What I’m interested in seeing you do is: sharing your food with the hungry,
inviting the homeless poor into your homes, putting clothes on the shivering ill-clad,and being available to your own families

Cole
Edmonton, Alberta

A few months ago I (Carolin) was in Edmonton at a Regional Gathering with Watchmen for the Nations. During one of the sessions in the Kid’s track, Cole had a prayer picture when we were waiting on the Lord. He was not the only one among the children that had a picture similar to it. One boy drew a picture of Joseph, another drew a picture of a rainbow coloured banner. One of the leaders thought of the story of Joseph and Cole had this picture below. When we come together and ask God to speak to us and a whole bunch of us hear similar things, we know that God is trying to say something. That is called corporate hearing. Now it doesn’t need to come in prayer pictures but can come when a number of people think of the same Bible verse or have a similar idea, or ideas that all fit together like the pieces of a puzzle.

God really likes it when we come together as one and work together and try to hear His voice together. We are answering His prayer that we can find in John 17:11 “Father Let them be one, even as we are one.”
This is what the Disciples were like in Acts 2:42-46 when the Holy Spirit came in power. Do you remember what Key of the Kingdom that reflects? (*Answer below)

So what do you think that God was trying to highlight? Cole discribed his picture by saying, I saw a church that had stripes on it like Joseph’s coat. Behind the church is a star (like the morning star which is Jesus) and above it is a golden cloud (like the canopy of God’s presence in the wilderness). We asked the whole group to think about these pictures and what they thought God was saying. It can be summed up with this sentance.

When the church reaches out to the poor and the hungry of the nations, God’s presence will rest there.

Because we had been praying and asking God about HOW His presence could stay with us and we had shared about the names of God this made total sence.


Read: Genesis 38-45 or in a bible story book read the story of Joseph
As you read the story over the next few days, in your journal write down as many ways as possible that you could see the church acting like Joseph did.
* UNITY

Kayla, Age 8
Winnipeg, Manitoba

Hebrews !3: 5
I will never leave thee nor fosake thee

Once at Daniel, Prayer Group. I had a prayer picture come to mind of an angel coming through a doorway into the darkness and everything lit up. The angel was smiling and holding its hands up which reminded me that God is always with us.

By Joshua (10)
Regina,
Saskatchewan

SCRIPTURE: Read  Acts 7:1-60…The Stoning of Stephen

Today we are going to be looking at Stephen and his death.
Now you probably know all this, but Stephen was the first martyr.  If you
don’t know what a martyr is, it is someone who is killed because of his belief in Jesus Christ.  Stephen, was the first person who died because he loved Jesus.  The reason he was the first martyr was because he preached so powerfully, and people didn’t want to believe what he said. 

One of the greatest men who ever walked the Earth, the Apostle Paul, watched him being stoned to death.  I know that what Stephen did must have taken a lot of courage, but since the Lord our God died for us, we should be willing to die for Him.

What the Lord did for us is the most powerful thing anyone could ever do for
us. Even though it would be very hard to die for Jesus, I know that you
and I would both want to do it because of what Jesus did for us.  I think that once in a while we should take the time do think about what Jesus did for us,
what Stephen did, and what we would do if the Lord asked us to die for Him.

One of the greatest gifts we have been given is time. How are we using our time? How would our lives be changed if we lived each day as if it were our last day on this earth? We would live the way Jesus did.

LET’S PRAY…Dear Jesus, thank you that you loved us so much that you died for us.  Please give us the strength and courage to do the same if we needed to.  And if not, at least take our lives to help many others get to know You.  Help us live our lives as You did, and show us the way.
Amen

ACTION: Let us take the next day or so and live it as if it was the last day on earth. How would you live it. What would you change?

Joshua wrote this when he was 10 years old. Since then he has gone with his dad all over the world. Many times he even gets to preach.

                     Here is a picture of him in Rwanda last summer
 
You can see more of what his family is doing at www.wagnerministries.org