A Sunday School Teacher Meeting Activity

Try the following as a meeting opener. This way, as teachers filter in they can begin work immediately on the exercise and when all are assembled can divide into groups of three - or if your staff is small in number can share as a group - to share answers.

Something to Think About: A Cartoon Bible Study

Cartoons are not only funny; they often make us think too. Sometimes, besides the laughter, we're confronted with a truth about life or a fact about ourselves we'd rather not face, or a different way of looking at things. The famous cartoonist Charles Schultz, world famous for his Peanuts cartoon, focused many of his cartoons on matters of ethics and faith. Many were just slice-of-life glimpses that were thought-provoking. Like the following. Enjoy it and then answer these questions:

1. What are the "tall weeds" in your life that get you down? Family, work, health, church issues? Or?

2. Do you react as Linus did? How is this self-defeating?

3. How is Linus' finding the ball a moment of grace? (That is, did he do anything to actually deserve finding it?) What are some moments of grace you've experienced?

4. Read Exodus 14:5-13. How are the Israelites like Linus? Would they ever have left Egypt with that attitude? Are Moses' words in verse 13 as sound today as they were then?

Exod.14 Verses 5 to 13

[5] When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, the mind of Pharaoh and his servants was changed toward the people, and they said, "What is this we have done, that we have let Israel go from serving us?"

[6] So he made ready his chariot and took his army with him,

[7] and took six hundred picked chariots and all the other chariots of Egypt with officers over all of them.

[8] And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt and he pursued the people of Israel as they went forth defiantly.

[9] The Egyptians pursued them, all Pharaoh's horses and chariots and his horsemen and his army, and overtook them encamped at the sea, by Pi-ha-hi'roth, in front of Ba'al-ze'phon.

[10] When Pharaoh drew near, the people of Israel lifted up their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians were marching after them; and they were in great fear. And the people of Israel cried out to the LORD;

[11] and they said to Moses, "Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us, in bringing us out of Egypt?

[12] Is not this what we said to you in Egypt, `Let us alone and let us serve the Egyptians'? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness."

[13] And Moses said to the people, "Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will work for you today; for the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again.

5. Read Philippians 4:13. How can daily repetition of Paul's words help us in our Sunday School ministry? In other aspects of our lives?

Phil.4

[13] I can do all things in him who strengthens me.