Children
Children’s Ministry for the 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time (B)
Curated children’s ministry resources and sermons (object lessons) for Sunday Readings from SermonWriter, Ministry-to-Children, Religion Teacher and other sources.
CHILDREN'S LITURGYSERMONSHANDOUTSGRADES K-6GRADES 7-9RESOURCES
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17th Sunday of Year B
Use your own judgment in adapting these sermons when including them in your children’s ministry.
GOSPEL
WHAT TO DO WITH THE LEFTOVERS
Objects suggested: Some bowls or other containers used to store leftovers.
Do you see all of these bowls? At my house, we use these to store leftovers in the refrigerator. Do you ever have leftovers at your house? We often cook more food than we can eat at one meal, so we have leftovers again the next night, and the next, and maybe even the next. I must confess, I sometimes get tired of leftovers before they are all gone.
We once had a neighbor who told me, “My family will not eat leftovers. If we have any food left over, I just have to throw it out.” What a waste! I remember one time they cooked some steaks on the grill. When they had finished their dinner, my neighbor came over to our house and said, “We had this steak left over and since my family won’t eat leftovers, I thought you might like to have it for your dog.”
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SOURCE: SERMONS 4 Kids – All Rights Reserved; Video added by SermonPrep.org
GOSPEL
ENOUGH FOR EVERYONE
Objects Suggested: None
Today I thought we might stop for a moment to think about the people we love. Take a minute to think of the most important people in your life. Who do you love? Are you thinking of them?
Raise your hand if you thought of your mom and dad. How about your brothers and sisters? Grandparents? Cousins? Maybe some very special friends?
When I think of the people I love the most – those people I care for most deeply in my heart – those are the people I think of first. We don’t usually describe ourselves as
“loving” everyone we know – because that’s what makes love so special.
But God’s love is different. God has enough love for us all.
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SOURCE: Sermon Writer: Children’s Sermons – All Rights Reserved | © 1997-2020 Richard Niell Donovan; Video added by SermonPrep.org
GOSPEL
MORE THAN WE NEED
Objects Suggested: A sunflower with seeds intact, a jar of sand, a container of grass.
Today let’s talk about abundance. Abundance is a word that means you have more than you need. You can think of abundance as being like a bucket overflowing with water or like when you are so happy you get the giggles and they come spilling out. We see abundance everywhere in what God has created. Can you think of examples? Stars are a good example. There are more stars in the night sky than we can possibly count or even see. In the spring a single wildflower is beautiful, but God gives us entire meadows brimming with colorful blossoms. Have you ever tried to count the seeds in a sunflower? There are many, many, many – an abundance of seeds. Think about how many grains of sand are on the beach or piled in a sand dune.
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SOURCE: Sermon Writer: Children’s Sermons – All Rights Reserved | © 1997-2020 Richard Niell Donovan; Video added by SermonPrep.org
GOSPEL
GOD’S GENEROSITY
Objects Suggested: A dandelion and/or a dandelion seed head if the season and location permits.
In the Bible we are told a miraculous story of how Jesus fed over five thousand people with two fish and five loaves of barley bread from a young boy’s basket. The amazing thing about this story is that after all the people had eaten and were satisfied Jesus asked his disciples to “Gather up the broken pieces which are left over” (6:12).
“So they gathered them up, and filled twelve baskets with broken pieces from the five barley loaves, which were left over by those who had eaten” (6:13).
In this miracle Jesus didn’t just feed the people, he provided bread beyond what was necessary. There were twelve baskets of left-over bread! This is called generosity – giving more than is needed.
We see God’s generosity everywhere in nature. How many fish do you think are in the oceans and how many stars in the sky?
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SOURCE: Sermon Writer: Children’s Sermons – All Rights Reserved | © 1997-2020 Richard Niell Donovan; Video added by SermonPrep.org
GOSPEL
ALL DAY PREACHING AND DINNER
Objects suggested: A Picnic Basket or other item representing food
When I was a child, going to church on Sunday was sometimes and all day affair. You see, in the church where I grew up, we sometimes had what we called, “All Day Preaching and Dinner on the Grounds.” On that Sunday, most people came to church carrying a big picnic basket like this one I have today. After we had Sunday School and preaching, we went outside and had dinner on the church lawn. Oh what a feast! There was fried chicken, mashed potatoes, fresh vegetables from the garden, and home-made cakes and pies of every kind you can imagine. After dinner, the adults gathered around and sang hymns and the children played games. Some of my best memories of childhood are those Sundays when we had “All day preaching and dinner on the grounds.
“CLICK on sermon title TO READ ENTIRE SERMON
SOURCE: SERMONS 4 Kids – All Rights Reserved; Video added by SermonPrep.org
17th Sunday of Year B
Use your own judgment in adapting these sermons when including them in your children’s ministry.
The Kids Bulletin
Society of Christian Doctrine
Speak, Lord — Sunday Worksheet
SDC is a society of lay catechists that started in Malta in 1907. Worksheets can be downloaded and printed for use during Sunday Mass or handed out to children at school prior to the weekend. They are also used by parents who download them to use with their children at home.
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21st Sunday in OT (August 22, 2021)
DIOCESE OF SALFORD
Wordsearch
Feel free to copy and paste it into your parish publications.
Clipart © McCrimmons used with permission. All rights reserved; Text © 2018 Diocese of Salford Office for Liturgy
SERMONS 4 KIDS
Crossword Puzzle
RECOMMENDED: Resources for Catholic Educators
17th Sunday of Year B
Use your own judgment in adapting these lessons when presenting them to your children.
MISSION BIBLE CLASS
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Story Overview:
So many people wanted to hear Jesus preach that a crowd followed him to a remote location. As mealtime approached, the only food that was found was a boy’s lunch containing five small loaves of bread and two small fish. Jesus instructed the apostles to divide the food among the crowd of 5000 men (in addition to women and children). Everyone ate as much as they want and there was food left over at the end of the meal.
SOURCE: Mission Bible Class. ©2011-2021
LOYOLA PRESS
JESUS FEEDS THE FIVE THOUSAND
Sunday Connection (Grades 4-6)
Many children dream of making a significant contribution to the world. Through the story of Jesus’ multiplication of the loaves and the fishes, we can teach them that our most significant contribution will be made by asking Jesus to transform our actions so that they might serve his mission and kingdom.
Materials Needed
• Paper and pencils
EXCERPT:
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Distribute paper and pencils. Ask the children to write a short paragraph about what they want to do when they grow up. Invite volunteers to share what they wrote. Observe that there are many wonderful contributions that we can hope to make to the world.
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Say: In today’s Gospel, Jesus invites his disciples to help him do a wonderful thing. But the disciples don’t think they can help Jesus do this. Let’s listen carefully to see how Jesus responds to his disciples.
RELATED PAGE: Catholic Resources
SOURCE: © 2021 Loyola Press. All rights reserved. Website offers background to readings, and Sunday Connections for Grades 1-3, Grades 4-6, Grades 7-8, and Family.
17th Sunday of Year B
Use your own judgment in adapting these sermons when including them in your children’s ministry.
Word Sunday – Larry Broding
WHEN IT’S MORE THAN ENOUGH
Sometimes the little we have is the starting point for God’s blessings. This was the lesson the people missed in the multiplication of the loaves and fish in John 6.
CHILDREN’S READINGS
The story for the readings was about a poor boy who had a wood train. That little toy became more important when the poor boy became rich. God’s gifts can only be truly appreciated by those who know want.
SOURCE: Word-Sunday.com All materials found in word-sunday.com are the property of Larry Broding (©1999-2021). Viewers may copy any material found in these pages for their personal use or for use in any non-profit ministry. Materials may not be sold or used for personal financial gain.
LOYOLA PRESS
JESUS FEEDS THE FIVE THOUSAND
Sunday Connection (Grades 7-8)
Summer months provide a greater freedom to enjoy time for recreation. As young people plan their days, we can encourage them to set apart time for prayer as well.
Materials Needed
• NONE
EXCERPT:
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Ask the young people to recall a time when they made a contribution necessary for the success of an event or activity (for example, bringing needed supplies or equipment, making suggestions at the planning stage, offering help). Allow volunteers to describe their contribution and explain why it was important. Then ask: How did you feel about the contribution you were able to make? (Accept all reasonable answers.)
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Say: In this Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus invites his disciples to make a contribution to the work he wants to do. However, the disciples are reluctant to help, thinking that they do not have what is needed. Let’s listen carefully to see how Jesus responds to his disciples.
RELATED PAGE: Catholic Resources
