Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Worth a Look [2014, 04, 15]

Here's a collection of links I've found helpful reading / watching over the past week:

The Problem of Palm Sunday [Series on Holy Week at Desiring God]
  • “Jesus doesn’t stop them, though. He says, instead, that if the people weren’t saying it then the rocks themselves would cry out. Of course, Jesus is the Messiah. He has come to Jerusalem to save his people.”
  • No Turning Back (Monday of Holy Week) 
  • The Escalating Conflict (Tuesday of Holy Week) 
  • Spy Wednesday
Animated Video of Jesus Crucifixion
  • “The Jesus Film Project has released a short animated film titled “My Last Day.” It’s the story of Christ’s crucifixion through the eyes of one of the criminals who died beside him on that day. I wouldn’t show this to younger children. It reminds me of a miniature cartoon “Passion of the Christ.” You might use this to get the attention of mature preteens or older students.” 
Holy Week Bible Plans, Bible App for Kids Stories, and Shareable Art
  • “With Easter only a week away, now is a great time for a short Plan that can help you align your heart and mind toward Christ with the Bible. The Bible App has several great Easter Plans, each designed to help you make the most of your time in God’s Word this week."
Making Resurrection Eggs to Tell the Easter Story
  • “Resurrection eggs have been around for years as a way to teach children the meaning of Easter. While there are many Christian stores that sell resurrection egg kits, I’ve found that making them on your own is fairly easy if you have the time and resources. Resurrection eggs are like an advent calendar for Easter, counting down the days to Easter and retelling the story of Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection.”
Animated Easter Video (Kid-Friendly)
  • “They tell the story of Jesus death and resurrection. Despite the subject, the cartoon style animations here present the story in a child appropriate way.”
Teaching Preschoolers about Easter
  • “Easter is the most significant Holy Day Christians celebrate each year. Easter offers the opportunity to reflect on God's fulfillment of His covenant through the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. But for preschoolers, this day can be confusing as they are confronted with well-meaning traditional celebrations and the biblical accounts of the Easter story.”
9 Things You Should Know About The Chronicles of Narnia
  • “The end of March marked the sixty-fifth anniversary of C.S. Lewis completing The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, the first book in the Chronicles of Narnia series. Here are nine things you should know about the Lewis' beloved novels.” http://bit.ly/1np8GKF
My Kids Are Looking at Porn!
  • “I have dedicated a lot of attention over the past several years to the battle against pornography and would like to offer a two-part answer. Today I will address the immediate response and tomorrow I want to help you put together a plan that will protect your family in the future, both preventing those who want to look at porn and protecting those who don’t yet know that it exists.”
The Porn-Free Family Plan
  • “I want to protect my children in a world like this, but I want to do more than that. I want to disciple my children to live virtuously, to use these new technologies for good purposes instead of bad ones. I believe this is a crucial part of my calling as a parent. To address this great need, I have put together what I call The Porn-Free Family Plan. It is a plan designed to protect my children from online dangers so that I can train them to use their devices and technologies well.”