Blue Mound United Methodist Church

10/18/2026

10/04/2026

Fruit of the Spirit, Week 9: Self-Control 🕊️

This week we finished our series on the fruit of the Spirit with the last one on the list: Self-Control. Our students looked at the story of Daniel in Daniel 1. Daniel was a young man far from home in Babylon, offered rich food from the king's table that went against his faith. He resolved not to eat it, and he made that decision before the food was ever put in front of him.

The big idea: self-control starts with deciding ahead of time what we will say yes and no to, and relying on the Holy Spirit to help us stick with it when temptation shows up. It's not just about trying harder in the moment.

This week's memory verse: "Like a city whose walls are broken through is a person who lacks self-control." Proverbs 25:28 (NIV)
Ask your kid tonight: "What's one thing you could decide ahead of time this week, like how much screen time you'll have or how you'll respond when you're angry or teased?"

Over the past nine weeks we've walked through love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). Thank you for partnering with us at home. These are not nine things our kids have to produce on their own, but fruit the Holy Spirit grows in us as we stay close to Jesus.

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09/27/2026

Fruit of the Spirit, Week 8: Gentleness 🕊️ (Champion Children's Post!)

This week our students learned about the eighth fruit of the Spirit, Gentleness, through the story of David sparing King Saul's life in 1 Samuel 24. Saul had been hunting David to kill him out of jealousy, and when Saul unknowingly wandered into the very cave where David was hiding, David's own men told him this was his God-given chance to strike Saul down for good.

Instead, David only cut off a small corner of Saul's robe, close enough to prove he could have done far worse, and then felt guilty even for that. We talked about how gentleness isn't weakness. It's strength under control: choosing a soft, restrained response even when you have the power, the opportunity, and maybe even the encouragement of others to hit back harder.
This week's memory verse: "A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger." Proverbs 15:1 (NIV)

Ask your kid tonight: "Has anyone ever had the perfect comeback or the chance to get back at someone, but chose a gentler response instead? What happened?"

Our kids are also going through the ACTS prayer method every week! Many kids these days don't know how to pray. So we take a moment each Sunday to walk kids through adoration, confession, thanksgiving, and supplication. You can reinforce this at home too!

See you next week as we keep working through Galatians 5:22-23!

09/20/2026

Fruit of the Spirit, Week 7: Faithfulness 🕯️

This week our students learned about the seventh fruit of the Spirit, Faithfulness, through Jesus's parable of the faithful servant in Matthew 24. Jesus described a servant left in charge of a household who kept doing his job well whether or not the master was around to check, compared to another servant who used the master's absence as an excuse to slack off and mistreat the people around him.

The big idea: faithfulness means consistently doing what we've been entrusted to do, even when no one is watching and even when the wait feels long. Being trusted with bigger things later starts with being faithful in the small, unnoticed things now.

This week's memory verse: "Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much." Luke 16:10 (NIV)

Ask your kid tonight: "Is there a small responsibility, like chores, homework, or a promise to a friend, where you could be more faithful this week?"

See you next week as we keep working through Galatians 5:22-23!

09/13/2026

Fruit of the Spirit, Week 6: Goodness 🐑

This week our students learned about the sixth fruit of the Spirit, Goodness, through Jesus's teaching about the Good Shepherd in John 10. Jesus described Himself as a shepherd who actually owns His sheep and cares for them, unlike a hired hand who runs away the moment a wolf shows up because the sheep were never really his responsibility.

The heart of the passage is this: Jesus didn't just protect His sheep from a distance, He laid down His own life for them, and He did it willingly, not because anyone forced Him to. We talked about how real goodness isn't just being nice or staying out of trouble. It's actively doing what's right for someone else, even when it costs you something.

To close out our time together, instead of a game we took a few quiet minutes as a group to pray, asking God to grow each fruit of the Spirit in us, including goodness, right where we need it most. Kids learned the ACTS method of prayer: adoration, confession, thanksgiving, supplication. We'll be working on this skill every week as we close out.

Ask your kid tonight: "What's one way you could actively do something good for someone this week, not just avoid doing something bad?"

See you next week as we keep working through Galatians 5:22-23!