Lectionary Links: January 6, 2013

Epiphany of the Lord

Year C:  January 6, 2013

First Reading: Isaiah 60:1-6

Three Wise Women  by Mary Hoffman

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: “Nations shall come to your light… they all gather together, they come to you…” In her commentary on the text, Kendra G. Hotz encourages interpreters to look at both the original context as well as the way we interpret the text in light of Christ’s coming. “Epiphany reveals that even in his infancy Jesus Christ is for all people… [he] is the very love of God incarnate, and that love cannot be confined to ethnic or national identity; it cannot be restricted by gender or claimed only by the powerful and privileged.” (Feasting on the Word, Year C, Volume 1, p 198) This revelation of Jesus for everyone is explored in Three Wise Women. Readers experience the way Christ’s light invites women from different nations to travel long roads in order to experience his love. Hoffman’s book is a beautiful illustration of the power of Christ’s welcoming light.

Second Reading: Ephesians 3:1-12

Whoever You Are by Mem Fox

(Written for ages 3-7)

Comment: “[The] Gentiles have become fellow heirs, members of the same body, and sharers in the promise in Christ Jesus…” In her reflections on this text, Carolyn Brown emphasizes worship options that focus on the mystery Paul discovered: that God loves people around the world. (http://bit.ly/RHwP3J)  This experience of being loved is something we share with people who might be quite different from us. It is good to learn about our differences and diversity, but it is also good to remember that we all belong to God. Using Mem Fox’s Whoever You Are, you and your children can explore the things that are different and the same for people around the world.

Gospel Reading: Matthew 2:1-12

The Last Straw by Fredrick H. Thury

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: “[Wise] men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, ‘Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.’“ On Epiphany we celebrate the wise men’s journey to honor Jesus. We are also invited to reflect upon our own spiritual journeys. “Everyone who happens to worship on Epiphany has their own idiosyncratic story to tell concerning their pathway to the manger… all are present due to the prompting of God, who initiates our asking, our seeking, and our finding.” (Feasting on the Word, Year C, Volume 1, p 216) In The Last Straw, we hear the unusual story of the camel Hoshmakaka’s  journey to the manger and experience the ways he is changed by his experience of Christ. This Epiphany, consider the ways you invite the children and adults in your congregation to share the stories of their journeys to and experiences of Christ.

The Lectionary Links this week were written by regular contributor Noell Rathbun-Cook.

Lectionary Links: Sunday, August 26, 2012

21^st Sunday in Ordinary Time

Year B, August 26, 2012

First Reading: 1 Kings 8: (1-6; 10-11) 22-30; 41-43

How Big is God? by Lisa Tawn Bergren

(Written for ages 3 and up)

Comment: Most children (and adults) at some point will ask questions about God’s being in the world. In How Big is God?, a young boy seeks to understand where God lives. As he and his mom explore the world around them, he learns that God is everywhere at all times, and with everyone. In the dedication of the temple King Solomon prays  “But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Even heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you, much less this house that I have built!” (v 27) As King Solomon marks this as a place where God’s presence will be known and acknowledged, he also recognizes that God cannot be limited to only being present in the temple and God’s grace is not reserved only for the Israelites. King Solomon’s dedication prayer continues and asks God to hear the prayers of the foreigners.

Second Reading: Ephesians 6:10-20

Monkey with a Tool Belt by Chris Monroe

(Written for ages 5 and up)

Comment: Paul continues to encourage and give suggestions for how the Christians in Ephesus can live in tension with the world around them. Ephesians 6:10-20 lays out the tools we need to stand firm in our faith against the world. Paul draws on a familiar imagery of the armor soldiers wear in battle.  This imagery places the tools in the context of a battle. Monkey with a Tool Belt moves away from the context of battle, but continues to show that we have the tools to make it through what ever is happening in our life. Chico Bon Bon wears his tool belt everywhere and enjoys fixing and creating things for his community. One day he finds himself in a trap, and is able to use his tools to escape and return home. Like Chico and the Christians in Ephesus we are given the tools we need to stand firm in our faith.

Gospel Reading: John 6: 56-69

Ginger Finds a Home by Charlotte Voake

(Written for ages 3-7)

Comment: Ginger is a stray cat who doesn’t know what he has been missing. Beside enough to eat each day, he is missing love and companionship. When he finds both of these things as well as a new home, he is scared of what this means. Despite being scared,  Ginger is willing to take a chance and build a relationship with the little girl who offers him a new home with her. In John’s Gospel we hear the end of Jesus’ speech on the bread of heaven. Many of the disciples that have been listening to Jesus throughout his ministry have been seeking something Jesus has been able to provide. Yet, now with this new idea that Jesus is the bread of heaven and we must eat his flesh and drink his blood to have eternal life, many of the disciples return home to the comfort and safety of what they knew before following Jesus. The twelve that remain most likely had some fear about what this means, but like Ginger they chose to trust the one offering them a new life.

This week’s Lectionary Links were written by Union Presbyterian Seminary graduate Elizabeth Boulware Landes.

Lectionary Links: Sunday, August 19, 2012

20^th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Year B, August 19, 2012

First Reading: 1 Kings 2:10-12; 3:3-14

Here’s to You, America! by Charles M. Schulz

(Written for ages 4-8)

Comment: Endings and beginnings are critical moments in life. Our passage from 1 Kings is both an ending and a beginning. David has died and his rule over Israel has ended. Solomon has succeeded David as king and his rule over Israel is just beginning. Solomon must make the difficult decision about what kind of king he will be for Israel. In a dream encounter with God, Solomon makes the decision to be a king that cares for his people. Here’s to You, America!  places the Peanuts gang at the constitutional convention in 1787.  This convention comes at the end of British rule, and the beginning of self-rule. They watch and observe as the delegates make all the important decision that will define the United States. These moments in the beginning of Solomon’s rule, and of the United States are important defining moments and must be approached with care and intentionality, and both Solomon and the delegates make the decision to set up the government in a way that will care for the people of the state.

Second Reading: Ephesians 5:15-20

Thank You, God, for Everything by August Gold

(Written for ages 3-5)

Comment: Daisy is surrounded by thankfulness from her parents. Each morning Daisy’s dad days “Thank you, God, for this beautiful Day.” Through Thank you, God, For Everything, Daisy thinks about all the things and experiences that she could give thanks to God for, and in the end decides to thank God for everything. Daisy is living in an attitude of thanksgiving. G. Porter Taylor describes this attitude of thanksgiving Daisy is living and Paul is encouraging us to have as an attitude that “requires a radical openness to existence.” (Feasting on the Word, Year B, Volume 3, p 354) We are to keep our eyes open, so that we can see God at work in everything throughout our day and life. For Paul, the Christians in Ephesus are to live their life in a way that points to God in all they do. One of the central ways to do this is to live in an attitude of thanksgiving.

Gospel Reading: John 6: 51-58

Bread Bread Bread by Ann Morris, photographs by Ken Heyman

(Written for ages 4-8)

Comment: For the third week in a row, the lectionary passage draws our attention to bread. Bread is a staple in the diet of all those who would have been around Jesus, and continues to be a staple in the diet of many around the world today. The passage begins with Jesus stating that he is “the living bread that came down from heaven”(v 51) and when we eat the living bread we will live forever. Using vivid photos and simple words, Ann Morris and Ken Heyman in Bread Bread Bread draw our attention to the ways in which bread is a staple for people all over the world. They highlight similarities and differences in the ways we make bread and the ways we eat bread. Joy and satisfaction are emitting from the people in the photographs. Life is experienced through bread and when we break bread together we can experience the living bread.

This week’s Lectionary Links were written by Union Presbyterian Seminary graduate Elizabeth Boulware Landes.

Lectionary Links: Sunday, August 12, 2012

19^th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Year B, August 2, 2012

First Reading: 2 Samuel 18:5-9, 15, 31-33

Wherever You Are My Love Will Find You by Nancy Tillman

(Written for ages 4-8)

Comment: This week’s Old Testament passage deals with violence and death. This is not a passage geared for children. Yet, in the midst of the battle and death of Absalom, we hear and see King David’s love for his son. The passage begins with David’s request to “deal gently” with Absalom and ends with David weeping for his son’s death. Nancy Tillman writes about the unconditional love that is shared between parents and children. Wherever You Are My Love Will Find You reminds children that anywhere they go and in anything they do their parents’ love is going with them. This love will surround them even if they cannot feel it or see it. David’s love for his son went with Absalom even when they were at war with each other. David’s love for his son kept him from focusing on the fact that he won the war. Instead of celebrating he mourned the death of Absalom.

Second Reading: Ephesians 4:25-5:2

Confessions of a Former Bully by Trudy Ludwig

(Written for ages 8-12)

Comment: Children are gearing up and getting ready to head back to school. For some this might be a scary time and for others it might be a time to reinvent themselves. In the passage from Ephesians, Paul is encouraging the church to live out the new life in Christ they have all received. With competing information vying for our attention, it is a nice reminder that we have the knowledge and the spirit to help us change who we are and become disciples of Christ. In Confessions of a Former Bully, Katie has been caught bullying again, and is called to the principal’s office. One of her consequences is to meet with the school counselor once a week to learn about bullying behaviors. As she learns all this new information Katie is able to learn how to build up her school community. This book provides is about empowering children to choose who they want to be. The person we choose to be, with God’s help, is who we become.

Gospel Reading: John 6:35, 41-52

The Little Green Goose by Adele Sansone

(Written for ages 3-8)

Comment: After overhearing the other barnyard animals discussing how he doesn’t look like a goose, the little green goose is on a search for his identity. He searches far and wide, only to discover he knew who he was all along and runs home to his daddy. The Little Green Goose is a book that helps us claim our identity, even when our identity does not fit what others expect it to be. Jesus faces the same challenge in this passage from John. Jesus has made the statement “I am the bread of life” (v 35), and the Jews who know that he is the son of Mary and Joseph challenge him. These two descriptors of Jesus are at odds with each other in the eyes of the Jews. Both Jesus and the little green goose must choose to claim their identity or allow the outside world to do it for them. The little green goose, who looks more like a dinosaur than a goose, and Jesus, who makes a claim at odds with what others already know about him, both make the difficult decision to claim their identity.

The Lectionary Links this week are written by Union Presbyterian Seminary graduate Elizabeth Boulware Landes.

Lectionary Links: Sunday, August 6, 2012

18^th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Year B, August 6, 2012

First Reading: 2 Samuel 11:26-12:13a

Franklin Says Sorry by Paulette Bourgeois

(Written for ages 4-8)

Comment: This passage begins with a reminder of the unimaginable things David has done as king. Nathan visits David, upon God’s direction, and tells a parable in which one man is obliviously evil, and the other is obliviously good.  As David learns that he is the evil man in the story, he responds with a confession to the Lord. Like David, Franklin, in Franklin Says Sorry, has made a mistake that hurt people around him and is only able to respond with a confession after being encouraged by a friend. Franklin and David both learn the important skill of being able to acknowledge what you have done and to say sorry, but both need the help of a friend to show them the way. We are reminded with both of these texts, that sometimes we need our friends to help us say we are sorry when we make mistakes.

Second Reading: Ephesians 4:1-16

The Crayon Box that Talked by Shane DeRolf

(Written for ages 5 – adult)

Comment: Paul is reminding the church in Ephesus of the importance of being unified while at the same time highlighting the diversity and unique gifts each person brings to the church. Working towards unity in a group does not mean that everyone is exactly the same. What is does mean is that as we work towards the unity of the community, we each share the gifts we have for the benefit of the whole community. The individual crayons in The Crayon Box That Talked must learn this lesson. Before they are able to see what each crayon brings to the picture they talk negatively to one another, yet after they have been given the opportunity to see a whole picture come together, they begin to speak positively to one another. This book reminds us to keep an open mind to what each person can offer to the group to make our picture complete.

Gospel Reading: John 6:24-35

The Lost and Found Tooth by Louise Borden

(Written for ages 7-10)

Comment: Lucy wants desperately to add her name to the lost tooth calendar. It seems like almost everyone else in her class, maybe even in the second grade, has had the honor of writing their story about losing a tooth except her. In reading the passage from John, I get the sense that this feeling of being left out is something the crowd is experiencing. They had just been taught and fed by Jesus and the disciples, and then he disappears with the disciples. When they finally find Jesus, in the midst of the conversations the crowd asks for a sign so that they may believe. Lucy and the crowd have in common a deep desire to be a part of something. Lucy is finally able to add her name to the list, but the crowd does not receive the sign they are expecting. Instead Jesus responds to request with words culminating in “I am the bread of life” (v35).

With today’s Lectionary Links, we welcome recent Union Presbyterian Seminary graduate Elizabeth Boulware Landes as our guest writer for the next thirteen weeks.  Elizabeth has had a great deal of experience in working with children and youth and is currently serving as Pastoral Intern at First Presbyterian Church, Ft. Worth, TX.

Lectionary Links: Sunday, July 29, 2012

17th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Year B:  July 29, 2012

First Reading: 2 Samuel 11:1-15

Ruthie and the (Not So) Teeny Tiny Lie by Laura Rankin

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: This disturbing text is a quintessential story of our human desire to want what isn’t ours. As adults we are likely horrified by David’s actions towards both Bathsheba and Uriah. We might not be ready to tell the full story to our children, yet even small children will have experienced the desire to take something that doesn’t belong to them. Ruthie also takes something that isn’t hers, lies about it, and then feels pretty rotten. People make mistakes, and it’s important to talk about the options we have after we’ve made a mistake. David chose to dig himself into a deeper, destructive hole. Ruthie sought to change the situation and make amends. How would we act?

Second Reading: Ephesians 3:14-21

Did I Tell You I Love You Today? by Deloris and Roslyn M. Jordan

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: “I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.” In this epistle we hear that to know and be rooted in Christ’s love, is to more fully be the people God has created and is calling us to be. We are empowered to be the best versions of ourselves. Children’s first experience of God’s love is often through the love of a parent, like that described in the Jordans’ story. The mother in the story begins and ends her day with a prayer for her children, thinking of ways to bring out the best in them and encourage them through her words and actions.

Gospel Reading: John 6:1-21

Extra Yarn by Mac Barnett

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: I love the gospel story of the boy who shared his lunch. It is a powerful image of the ways God can use us and whatever we have, to accomplish God’s plans for the world. It is especially empowering for young children to see a child at the center of the action. The miracle of this text is in the sharing with others. Extra Yarn is also a story of a child who shares and the abundance and beauty that comes from her giving to others. This text and story are great inspirations to celebrate the ways the children (and grown-ups!) in your congregation share from their resources.

This week’s Lectionary Links were written by regular contributor Noell Rathbun-Cook.  Noell will be  beginning a well deserved vacation and our Links for the next 13 weeks will be written by recent Union Presbyterian Seminary graduate Elizabeth Boulware Landes.  We look forward to her contributions!

Lectionary Links: Sunday, July 22, 2012

16th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Year B:  July 22, 2012

First Reading: 2 Samuel 6:1-5

The House on Dirty-Third Street by Jo S. Kittinger

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: “Thus says the Lord of hosts… I have been with you wherever you went… and I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, so that they may live in their own place, and be disturbed no more… Moreover the Lord declares to you that the Lord will make you a house.” These words to Nathan describe God’s constant presence and participation in the settling and creating of home for David, Israel, and the generations to come. What does it take to be settled, safe, in a place one can call home? Kittinger explores the creation of home through the experience of a young girl. Turning the house on dirty-third street into a home requires many hands, eyes of faith, and the love of a community that is moved by the Spirit of the living God.

Second Reading: Ephesians 2:11-22

I Am I by Marie-Louise Fitzpatrick

(Written for ages 3-7)

Comment: “For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us.” Often we allow those things that distinguish us from one another to divide us, building a hostile environment. As we read from today’s epistle, our reconciliation, our peace, is in Christ. In Christ we see one another with new eyes. I Am I  is a story inspired by a Native American river symbol describing the divisions and connection points between two cultures. It explores the separation and hostility between two boys, as well as their journey to peace.

Gospel Reading: Mark 6:30-34, 53-56

Five Minutes Peace by Jill Murphy

(Written for ages 3-7)

Comment: “He said to them, ‘Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while.’ For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat.” Even in the midst of hustle, bustle, and doing good work, rest is necessary. The reading from Mark describes a scene where Jesus and the disciples are physically separating themselves from the crowds in order to have a time of rest. Even as they draw away the crowds gather. Five Minutes Peace is the story of a mother Elephant looking for a moment’s rest in her wild home. Her children pursue her much as the crowds must have pursued Jesus.

The Lectionary Links this week were written by regular contributor Noell Rathbun-Cook.

Lectionary Links: Sunday, July 15, 2012

15th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Year B:  July 15, 2012

First Reading: 2 Samuel 6:1-5, 12b-19

The Jazz of Our Street by Fatima Shaik

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: “David and all the house of Israel were dancing before the Lord with all their might, with songs and lyres and harps and tambourines and castanets and cymbals.” This reading from 2 Samuel sparks our imagination as we picture parades and processionals of music and dancing. As David and the thousands who paraded with the Ark danced and made music, we can reflect on the way the presence of the Lord draws us in and evokes celebration. The sounds, emotions, and movements of such a parade can be further explored through Shaik’s poetic story of second lining in New Orleans’ Tremé. We, too, have been drawn into the parade “because the band called us today, and we pranced, played, and swayed…”

Second Reading: Ephesians 1:3-14

I Belong to the Christian Faith by Katie Dicker & Sam Dilkes

(Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: “In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance, having been destined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will, so that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the praise of his glory.” What is our inheritance and how do we live it out? I Belong to the Christian Faith tells of a boy’s experience of being Christian. Use this book to explore Sam’s spiritual life and connect, compare, and contrast it with the spiritual lives of the children in your church. Consider the ways this lectionary text and Sam’s story can open a conversation about what it is to be Christian, to belong to God, and to be part of the Church.

Gospel Reading: Mark 6:14-29

A Terrible Thing Happened: A Story for Children Who Have Witnessed Violence or Trauma by Margaret M. Holmes

(Written for ages 4-8)

Comment: Today’s lectionary readings do an interesting job of avoiding the experience of trauma through the omissions in the first text, and then facing trauma head on with the story of John the Baptist’s death. This is not so unlike the way we deal with trauma in our own lives: we can ignore or acknowledge it. It’s helpful to think about the ways children internalize the trauma they experience, as well as the ways we are called to help them process and talk about it. Holmes tells the story of a young boy who witnesses a traumatic event and the ways he is affected by, and eventually able to process, his experience.

This week’s Lectionary Links were written by Union Presbyterian Seminary graduate and regular contributor Noell Rathbun-Cook.

Lectionary Links: Sunday, March 18, 2012

Fourth Sunday in Lent

Year B: March 18, 2012

First Reading: Numbers 21:4-9

Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst (Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: Perhaps the most likely place to help children connect to this text would be in exploring the feelings being expressed. “The story is the last of five ‘murmuring stories in the book of Numbers. Over and over, the people complain (or rail, or rebel, or speak against) their leaders in the wilderness.” (Feasting on the Word, Year B, Volume 2, p 99)  It’s not to hard to imagine we ourselves would be grumbling if we were stuck out in the wilderness feeling lost. Perhaps the most loved grumble story to date is that of Alexander. His day downright stinks. Alexander, like the people in the wilderness, is fed up because it seems like nothing goes right for him. Those days have existed for all people in all times, at some point in time. As Alexander’s mom says, “Some days are like that.”

Second Reading: Ephesians 2:1-10

The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds (Written for ages 5-9)

Comment: “For we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life.” New life in Christ is a gift from God, planned and prepared for us, a work of God’s, not our own. In response to God’s grace we may choose to live in ways that reflect our understanding of the good works God has created us for. Vashti experiences grace when she comes to see herself through her teacher’s eyes. Her new life as an artist is inspired by the grace-filled actions of her teacher. When her teacher sees her as an artist, Vashti discovers a desire to live as one.

Gospel Reading: John 3:14-21

Mama, Do You Love Me? or Papa, Do You Love Me? by Barbara M. Joosse (Written for ages 3-6)

Comment:  Sometime we find ourselves questioning God’s love for us. We are the ones who grumble, who don’t feel worthy of love, we break rules, we are lured by the darkness, we struggle to live in the light. It’s normal to wonder, “Would God love me if…?” A lovely illustration of unconditional love can be found in the stories from Barbara Joosse of the Inuit mama and Maasai papa. In both stories, the parents listens as their child comes up with a list of things that might challenge their parent’s love. Each parent assures their child of their steadfast love, regardless of the the situation. Our own questions may be answered when we reflect on the fact that God sent the light of love into a dark world to save us. Through Christ’s presence we hear God’s answer to our question. “For God so loved the world…”

This week’s Lectionary Links were written by Union Presbyterian Seminary student Rachel Mastin and alumna Noell Rathbun-Cook.

Lectionary Links: Sunday, November 20, 2011

Christ the King/Reign of Christ Sunday

Year A:  November 20, 2011

First Reading:  Ezekiel 34:11-16, 20-24

Have you Seen My Duckling?  By Nancy Tarufi

(Written for ages 4-8)

Comment:  In Ezekiel’s prophecy, God is a shepherd searching for all of the lost sheep.  God says, “As shepherds seek out their flocks when they are among their scattered sheep, so I will seek out my sheep.  I will rescue them from all the places to which they have been scattered.”  God looks after the sheep, the people, and cares and searches for them.  In Have you Seen My Duckling?, the mother duck does the same.  She swims hither and yon through beautiful landscapes with one goal:  to find her lost duckling.  The reader can see the lost duckling hidden in the picture and so we know hope is there when ultimately the mother duck finds her duckling and gathers her brood, just as God does with God’s people.

Second Reading:  Ephesians 1:15-23

The Most Thankful Thing by Lisa McCourt

(Written for ages 4-8)

Comment:  In Paul’s prayer for the people of Ephesus he says, “I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers.”  This unceasing thanks is a true gift, a real sign that he loves and values them enough not only to think of them, not only to pray for them, not only to give thanks for them, but to give thanks unceasingly for them!  In The Most Thankful Thing a little girl looks through her mother’s scrapbook and asks what she is most thankful for.  As we go through the mother’s memories and achievements the girl thinks that it must be this or that trophy, or this or that memory that her mother is most thankful for.  But when she gets to a picture of her mother holding a newborn, her mother says from then on “you were my most thankful thing”.  Thankfulness is Paul’s gift of love to the Ephesians, of this mother to her little girl, and for us to one another.

Gospel Reading:  Matthew 25:  31-46

Emma’s Poem:  The Voice of the Statue of Liberty by Linda Glaser

(Written for ages 7-10)

Comment:  Jesus’ message in this passage is a famous one:  whatever you do to the least of these, you do to me.  Jesus makes clear that the good or bad that we do to the poor, helpless, thirsty, naked and downtrodden we are doing exactly to our Lord.  Therefore, we must choose to give help, water, clothing and love and kindness to those who are “the least of these”.  Emma Lazarus, the biographical subject of Emma’s Poem, while a wealthy woman, saw the plight of the immigrants in New York City, the least of these.  She began to help them learn to read, get jobs and food, and other necessities.  She is most famous for penning the poem on the Statue of Liberty, with the words, “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses/Yearning to breathe free”.  Emma Lazarus truly did her best for “the least of these”.

This is the last Lectionary Links post written by Sara Anne Berger, Union Presbyterian Seminary alumna and pastor of the Whitmire Presbyterian Church in South Carolina.  As Year A comes to a close, we are grateful for Sara Anne’s contributions over the last thirteen weeks.  Noell Rathbun will return next week to connect the Advent passages of Year B with children’s stories.