CONFIRMATION
Faith is caught as much as it is taught. We are proud to offer oppurtunities for young people to explore faith for all age levels. Students in middle schools are invited to a time for both learning and growing relationships with one another and with adults in the community. For more information about confirmation and middle school faith forming contact the pastors.
The Ten Commandments: Loving God in Action!
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The First Commandment
You shall have no other gods. What does this mean? We are to fear, love, and trust God above all things. The Second Commandment You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God. What does this mean? We are to fear and love God, so that we do not curse, swear, practice magic, lie, or deceive using God’s name, but instead use that very name in every time of need to call on, pray to, praise, and give thanks to God. The Third Commandment Remember the sabbath day, and keep it holy. What does this mean? We are to fear and love God, so that we do not despise preaching or God’s word, but instead keep that word holy and gladly hear and learn it. The Fourth Commandment Honor your father and your mother. What does this mean? We are to fear and love God, so that we neither despise nor anger our parents and others in authority, but instead honor, serve, obey, love, and respect them. The Fifth Commandment You shall not murder. What does this mean? We are to fear and love God, so that we neither endanger nor harm the lives of our neighbors, but instead help and support them in all of life’s needs. |
The Sixth Commandment
You shall not commit adultery. What does this mean? We are to fear and love God, so that we lead pure and decent lives in word and deed, and each of us loves and honors his or her spouse. The Seventh Commandment You shall not steal. What does this mean? We are to fear and love God, so that we neither take our neighbors’ money or property nor acquire them by using shoddy merchandise or crooked deals, but instead help them to improve and protect their property and income. The Eighth Commandment You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. What does this mean? We are to fear and love God, so that we do not tell lies about our neighbors, betray or slander them, or destroy their reputations. Instead we are to come to their defense, speak well of them, and interpret everything they do in the best possible light. The Ninth Commandment You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. What does this mean? We are to fear and love God, so that we do not try to trick our neighbors out of their inheritance or property or try to get it for ourselves by claiming to have a legal right to it and the like, but instead be of help and service to them in keeping what is theirs. The Tenth Commandment You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or male or female slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor. What does this mean? We are to fear and love God, so that we do not entice, force, or steal away from our neighbors their spouses, household workers, or livestock, but instead urge them to stay and fulfill their responsibilities to our neighbors. |
Lesson 4 - The First Commandment - Fear, Love, and Trust
In this session we remember the giving of the Ten Commandments on Mt. Sinai and we examine the First Commandment. This lays the groundwork for all the commandments! Teams are formed for tackling projects to learn a few commandments in depth and then share that learning with the whole class and congregation.
In this session we remember the giving of the Ten Commandments on Mt. Sinai and we examine the First Commandment. This lays the groundwork for all the commandments! Teams are formed for tackling projects to learn a few commandments in depth and then share that learning with the whole class and congregation.
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Lesson 3 - Wandering People
Print "The Exodus & The Wandering of the People of Israel in the Wilderness". You do not have to fill it out. Have the paper, a pen, and your Bible ready when you meet with the class! |
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Lesson 2 - The Giving of the Commandments
The correct answer to the survey in Lesson 1 is that God gave commandments to the people of Israel by telling them to Moses up on Mount Sinai while they were on a 40-year journey in the wilderness. This took place about 1,250 years before Jesus was born! The people of Israel were the descendants of Abraham and Sarah, a couple that God chose to start a family that would live in a relationship with God and bring blessings to the whole world. From that one couple, a whole nation grew. Their grandson Jacob and his wives had 12 sons and one daughter. That large clan eventually moved to Egypt when there was a famine in Israel. In Egypt the clan grew to be hundreds and hundreds of people. The leader of the country, Pharoah, did not like how strong they were so they were made into slaves who built the cities and pyramids of the Pharoah. But they kept growing! Even when the midwives were told to kill the boy babies, the people grew. (Exodus chapter 1) One Hebrew baby boy was hidden by his family and later discovered by Pharoah's daughter in a basket in the Nile River. She adopted him. He grew up in Egypt. When he was around 40 years old he had to run away becuase he murdered an Egyptian who was beating a Hebrew slave. Moses married and was living with his family in Sinai when God called him to be the leader of the Israelites so they could get out of Egypt. Read the story of Moses meeting God in Exodus chapter 3, watch the YouTube video (The Passover Story for Seder) and answer the questions! |
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Lesson 1 - Intro to the 10 Commandments
The Ten Commandments are a part of how God wants us all to live our lives in community. This introduction video helps us see how they fit into the way Jesus summarized all God's commandments. You can watch the video and do the assignment with your family participating, too! Here's your assignment. 1. Watch the video. Have your Bible available. The pastor will be reading Matthew 22:24-40. Be ready to read along in your Bible. 2. At the end of the video the pastor asks 3 questions. Write your answers to those questions and put them into an email to Pastor Donna. The questions are: What are different ways the world uses the word love? How are these similar to and different from the love Jesus is talking about here? What is so amazing about the love Jesus has for you? Why is that? 3. Make a colorful poster of the two commandments Jesus gives us in verse 37 and verse 39. Take a picture and send to Pastor Donna! She'll share them here. |
Confirmation Process Guide |
Confirmation Covenant |
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Manna and Mercy
A great resource for confirmation families to study the Bible is the incredible graphic novel by Dan Erlander called "Manna and Mercy: A Brief History of God's Unfolding Promise to Mend the Entire Universe." This was used for a few years as a confirmation resource. There are copies of the book available for any family who would like one! Just ask one of the pastors.
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