The New Sola Online Worship Resource Site

Coming Advent 2013: Sola Online Worship Resource!

We are doing something different from other sources out there, in order to provide our congregations with worship-support materials they actually need and use -- grounded in a sound, biblical Lutheran theology, and offered at a reasonable price. As we develop our new Online Worship Resource Site, we have a clear vision for what we are doing and what we are not doing.

We're not using automated generic bulletin-making software, nor are we becoming a general music-licensing company. We ARE providing the kind of pre-formatted and flexible worship resources that many Lutheran congregations print every week, including: bulletin inserts, children's bulletins, devotional inserts, weekly lectionary text studies, liturgical clip-art, cover art, service settings, etc. We are also providing a wealth of worship-planning resources, including: seasonal suggestions, weekly hymn suggestions, lectionary summaries, prayers of the church, sermon starters, bulletin templates, powerpoint backdrops, and much more!

Coming Soon: Sola's Online Worship Resource

NEW: COMING IN ADVENT 2013!

Sola's Online Worship Resource Site

A lectionary-based resource for Scripture lessons, lectionary inserts, children's bulletins, devotionals, prayers, hymn-planning, and much more -- at half the price of Augsburg’s Sundays and Seasons™!

Download a free brochure HERE to read more about it!

Congregations have been asking when Sola Publishing will produce a worship resource similar to Augsburg’s Sundays and Seasons™ that not only follows the recommended Sola lectionary, but also represents a more traditional and orthodox theology. Sola publishing is pleased to announce that, beginning in Advent of 2013, we will go online with the Sola Online Worship Resource. This new resource will incorporate what we have already been providing in our weekly Scripture Insert subscription, and expand it to include much, much more!

Activity C4 - Lesson 7: Book of Life

Sunday Schoolhouse Activity - Green Unit C4
Lesson 7: Judgment Day (Revelation 20:11 - 21:4)

Book of Life - Materials Needed:
- construction paper and copy paper
- markers, crayons or colored pencils
- glue sticks, decorations, etc.

Use a glue stick to glue a white piece of paper on the back of a larger piece of constructions paper. Then fold the paper in half (like a book), with the white on the inside and the construction paper on the outside. Today's lesson talks about the Book of Life, which the Bible says will be opened on Judgment Day. Written in that book are all the names of those who belong to Jesus. Imagine how beautiful such a book might look, and design a front cover for it. What might you include on the book's cover? Pictures of the earth or heaven? Names? Christian symbols? Etc. Have the children decorate the cover of their book. When the cover is finished, write the names of the students from class on the white inside. Kids may add names of other people who believe in Jesus - as many as they would like.
The Book of Life is a book of promise. None of us are good enough to stand on our own on Judgment Day. That is why we need Jesus!

Activity: Alphabet Soup!
Have the children sit in a circle. Start the game by saying a name that begins with A. The person to your right will then say a name that begins with B. The next person will say a name that begins with C, and so on around the circle. See how quickly you can cover the whole alphabet. The Book of Life will contain more names than we can imagine.

Activity C4 - Lesson 6: Bible Lantern Craft

Sunday Schoolhouse Series Activity - Green Unit C4
Lesson 6: Letter from an Eyewitness (2 Peter 1:1 - 21)

Bible Lantern Craft - Materials Needed:
- colored construction paper
- rulers
- pencils and markers
- scissors and stapler

Give each student a piece of construction paper. Fold the paper in half lengthwise. Then, set it down so the fold is facing you. Using a pencil and ruler, draw a line across the top of the paper, lengthwise, about an inch from the edge. Within that margin write, "Your Word is a lamp to my feet" (Psalm 119:105) in marker.
Use scissors to cut from the fold to the line. Repeat several times, making each cut about an inch away from the previous one. Open the paper, and roll so the two short sides connect. Staple them in place to make a lantern. Cut a handle from another piece of paper, and staple across the top if you wish.
The book of Peter tells us to pay attention to God's Word, just as we should to a lamp shining in the darkness. Use these lanterns to decorate the classroom, or send them home. Wherever they are, they'll serve as a beacon, remindging us that God's Word is a "lamp to my feet and a light to my path".

Activity: Missionary Contact
Before class, find the address of a missionary family. Your church may support a specific one. Or, check out the World Mission Prayer League website. Working as a group, write a class letter to a missionary family. (Younger children can draw pictures.) Encourage the missionaries, ask questions, and write a prayer for them. Then mail the letter. Tell the class that the apostles often used letters to encourage faithful people across the world.

Activity C4 - Lesson 5: Storms at Sea

Sunday Schoolhouse Series Activity - Green Unit C4
Lesson 5: Paul is Shipwrecked (Acts 27:13 - 28:10)

Storms at Sea Craft - Materials Needed:
- index cards for each student
- scissors
- pencils
- long plastic tub or dishpan of water

Have the children round the edges of the card with scissors. Draw a perpendicular line about 3/4 of an inch long in the middle of the short ends of the card. Cut along the two lines to create two slits. Overlap the sides of each slit slightly to curve the sides of the card up, creating a canoe shape. Tape each into place. Divide the children into pairs. Each pair will race their boats by blowing them across the water. The object is to see which boat can reach the other side of the tub before sinking! Classmates can stand around the tub and make storm sounds, if they desire. Paul stayed calm in the face of the storm knowing the ship would sink. How could Paul have such peace of mind? He trusted God.

Activity: Floating Eggs Science Experiment
Fill a glass with cold water and a second with hot water. Drop one egg into the cold water. If it is fresh it should sink. This is because fresh eggs are denser than water. Now, add a spoonful of salt to the hot water. Stir until the salt has dissolved. Remove the egg from the cold water and place it in the salt water. See if the egg floats. If it doesn't, add more salt until it does. Why does it float in salt water? Because salt increased the density of water, making the water "heavier" than the egg. How did Paul and the others float to safety? They held onto planks from the ship and were washed ashore. Remember God is in control, and he knows what you are going through. God can make a way, even when no way seems clear.

Activity C4 - Lesson 4: "I'm Traveling to Athens" Game

Sunday Schoolhouse Series Activity - Green Unit C4
Lesson 4: Paul in Athens (Acts 17:16 - 34)

Play "I'm Traveling to Athens Game" - Materials needed:
- None.

Have the children sit in a large circle; either on the floor or at a table. Lead everyone in this rhythm pattern: clap twice; then slap the floor (or table) twice. Repeat. Once everyone has the rhythm down, speak these words with the beat: "I'm tra-vel-ing to Athens". Have the kids echo. On the next beat, add this sentence: "And so I'll bring some (fill in the blank)". Kids echo this, as well. On the next beat the person to your right will repeat everything, changing only the word in the blank. The game continues until someone cannot think of a new item and then they are out. Go faster on each successive round, until the game gets ridiculous or there is only one person left. Paul traveled all the way to Athens, Greece; far from his home. He did it because he believed it was very important to bring the good news of Jesus to people everywhere!

Activity: Classroom Olympics
Challenge the children to a classroom "Olympic" competition: The Stork Stand. See who can balance on one foot the longest with the sole over the other foot held to the side of the knee. Afterward, explain that the ancient Greeks began the Olympic Games to honor their group of gods. The apostle Paul knew about these gods and traveled to Greece to teach the people about the one true God.

Activity C4 - Lesson 3: Prayer Mobile

Sunday Schoolhouse Series Activity - Green Unit C4
Lesson 3: Faith Instead of Magic (Acts 8:9 - 25)

Create a Prayer Mobile - Materials Needed:
- colored construction paper (two pieces per student)
- markers or colored pencils
- scissors
- yarn
- yarn
- hole punch

Give each student two pieces of paper. Have them fold each paper in half the long way. Starting at the fold draw two half hearts - one above the other, on each paper. Cut each of the hearts out,  leaving you with four hearts. Make appropriate holes at the top and bottom of each heart so they can be hung in a vertical line. Have the children write (or write for the smaller children) the following - one on each of the hearts: "Create in me"; "a clean heart, O God,"; "and put a new and right spirit", "within me. Psalm 51:10". Decorate the hearts with markers. Cut four pieces of thread. Tie one end through the bottom of the first heart, and the other through the top of the second. Repeat for each heart. Loop a piece of yarn through the top of the top heart so that it can be hung.

Activity: Toothpick Illusion
Practice before performing the trick in class. Using a small piece of tape, attach a toothpick to your thumbnail. The toothpick should not extend above the nail. Bend your thumb down and put your fingers over the tape, so it looks like you are holding the toothpick. Wave your other hand in front of the toothpick hand and straighten your toothpick thumb to show the kids your palm and make the toothpick "disappear". Reverse the steps to make the toothpick reappear. Then explain to the children how the illusion worked. Explain that this trick is for fun and entertainment. We must not put our faith in magic, sorcery, or things of that nature. God is the only true source of power and goodness.