Free Candy Corn

You can feel free to use the coloring pages for your own PERSONAL use.  But please be kind and do not claim these pictures as your own or offer them for downloads.  

I struggled with some distressing information recently. My coloring sheet with candy corn on it is very popular. In fact, if you Google candy corn coloring page, my picture will show up multiple times in the top images. We're talking no scrolling is necessary.

That sounds more like good news, right? The bad news is they aren't exactly my picture. Or so they would like you to think. I designed the coloring page, but it is not my website you will go to if you click on the photo. In fact, my name is nowhere to be found. Another name lies at the bottom of the coloring page. My picture has been stolen more than once. I can't even find any of the image that links back to this website.

This made me sick to my stomach. How could someone steal my hard work? My creativity? My words? How could they claim it as their own? I was devastated. I felt violated and used. It looks as if I am the thief of my own picture. I never put names on my pictures. I share them freely.

This experience left me feeling very angry. I wanted to leave nasty comments on their websites. I wanted to demand they remove it. It felt like such an attack to my person. I thought about revenge. My honor needed to be restored. I'm embarrassed to be confessing how I truly felt.

All day long this ate at me. Even into the evening I felt the attack to my soul. This went deep inside of me. I couldn't shake it off. I despise injustice.

God spoke to my heart as I tried to settle my emotions. These people don't even know I exist. They did no bodily harm to me. In fact, they probably never once thought of me. They simply liked my coloring page. 

God asked me, "Why did you make the coloring sheet all those years ago? Did you do it for glory and recognition? Was your intent to make money off it? No. You did it for the kids."

The air fizzled out of my inflated ego. I made that picture for my kids to hand out to trick-or-treaters. I wanted my neighbors to see a glimpse of Jesus' love. What I felt today was not love. It was plain and simple greed. It was about me, Me, ME!!!

I made a rather unhappy comment on one website in the heat of my anger. I am so ashamed. I never put my name on my creative works. But on this hateful comment I signed my name. Why?!? Why would I sign my name to greed, but leave my name out of love? I wish I could take it back, but the site doesn't allow for deleting comments.  It's stuck out there, along with my beautiful message from God. The two don't go together. It sounds hateful, mean, and greedy. Not loving, kind, and forgiving. Fortunately, the Christ that the picture talks about IS loving and ALWAYS kind. That Christ never makes heated comments that hurt and are rude. That Christ doesn't push to get His own way. That Christ gave everything for us. That Christ asked for nothing in return.

If you see my mean comment out there by my coloring sheet, remember I am flawed. I am imperfect. I mess up. I get things wrong. I need Jesus so much. I need Him like I need breath in my lungs. I am nothing without Him.

I'm excited that so many people are seeing God's love while they color. Those websites are reaching more than this simple little blog ever could. For that I am grateful.

The coloring page states simply, "Count your Blessings and name them day by day. You'll be reminded Christ Jesus' love overflows to you, right now in nearly every way."

That is the cry of my heart. My cup overflows with blessings. I remember praying about what words to write upon that page. I remember crying tears as God gave me a message. Christ's love doesn't just come to you in a half full glass, barely enough for you to quench your thirst. Christ's love overflows. You don't have a container large enough to fill with the blessings that He pours out.

I refuse to dwell on myself like that again. The message on that sheet is too beautiful and sacred to me to squabble over it. It's a gift freely given. I post pictures and messages because I want to make a difference. And I don't want to make a hurtful difference. I stand by the fact that what I have is freely shared.

I did decide to go ahead and start putting my name on the coloring pages I make. It's not because I want to stake my claim to them. It's more about the message behind it. I often pour my heart into the things I create. I love to write and share what God speaks to me about here on this blog. If my name is on the bottom of the page, it might point people back here to hear my heart some more on a different subject, or maybe even the same subject. I feel that God has given me a gift to be able to verbally express myself.  I hope and pray that I express myself in a way that truly honors God. 

Crafts for Easter

It's been a fantastic two weeks of teaching! The kids are learning, and fully engaged in the story of Jesus crucifixion and resurrection. Each Wednesday, I dedicated the entire day to planning my lesson. Our pastor loves to say each year at this time, "Easter is the Super Bowl for Christians." It should be one of our biggest weeks for attendance. If someone is considering going to church, they will most likely say yes to an invitation this weekend!

Last week we focused primarily on the death of Jesus. I did make sure to share the good news of His resurrection, however the focus of that would be the following week. My favorite way to teach this lesson is by using Resurrection Eggs. I don't know how long they've been around, but they are genius! Kids love hands on stuff to help them learn. I bought my set when my daughter was 2 years old, and we've been using them each year since. That's 14 years of Easter fun!!

Every egg has a piece of the story hidden inside. When you buy the set, they also come with a booklet that gives scriptures to read, and helpful information to tell. I typically don't follow the book. It's pretty wordy, and I prefer to share from my heart about each piece of the story. They might have updated the book since I originally bought my set. I do like to follow along with reading the different passages from the Bible. 

Whenever I bring the eggs to my class at church, the kids are enthralled. They LOVE to take turns opening each egg. I have found these eggs even interest my kids who usually need special attention. Everyone listens. Everyone learns. 

To go along with the story, I like to plan a craft. Kids really enjoy using their hands. After we had gone through all the eggs, the kids got to make their own resurrection pie wheel to bring home with them. This pie wheel has all the same things they learned through the eggs. The kids were very excited to make this. Now they would be able to share the same story with their family and friends. 

To make the resurrection pie, you print both pages, and simply use a brass fastener in the center to keep them together. You cut out the pie piece on the top paper to provide a hole for viewing through. The bottom pie wheel should easily turn through the viewing screen. I left an area blank above each description so the kids can draw a picture in of what the object is we talked about. 

There are twelve pieces of the wheel, one for each resurrection egg. On the front wheel piece, you can see a list of all twelve things, along with their scriptures that we referenced. This was very easy to make, and the kids had a lot of fun with it!

Feel free to use any coloring sheets I put together, and post. That's why I share them online. I'm always happy to let anyone use what I have created. My goal is to teach all kids about Jesus, including ones I've never met! As always, if you click on the picture it will allow you to save a much larger file size.  

*UPDATE 2018* I have a new game you can play called Resurrection Bingo! It is very similar to doing the Resurrection eggs.

This week my lesson focused much more on the resurrection of Jesus instead of His death. I was so excited to teach about this. I prepared my thoughts and heart all day long. I showed a 13-minute video to the class of some clips I edited together from A.D. The Bible Continues. The video content is very well done, but a bit harsh and violent to show young children.  I put together several different, kid friendly clips to make a short video. A picture is worth a thousand words, and the kids were so into the movie. I think they were disappointed when the lights came back on. Some had never seen this acted out before. They had lots of questions, and we could have some really good discussion afterwards. Why did Peter lie that he didn't know Jesus? Was that Pharaoh in the movie? So cute and sweet!

After our lively discussion, the kids had a quiet time of journaling. I keep a journal for each kid in my class. I never look in these journals. It's between them and Jesus. The journals stay in my supply cabinet, and only get removed during class time when the child who it belongs to is there. When the kids graduate from my class, they get to take the journal home with them. Parents love these! It's neat to see their kid's heart and growth through the two-year time span they are in my classroom. We do all kinds of writing in this journal. Sometimes it's as simple as copying a Bible verse, other times it's drawing a picture of something I prompt them to think about. Often we glue workbook pages into the book, and lots of prayers are wrote inside. The list is endless...

In their journals this time they wrote a prayer to Jesus. They confessed a sin they struggle with, and asked for forgiveness. The prayer was ended with thanksgiving. We were recognizing Jesus for His sacrifice, and giving thanks to Him. 

Once their prayer time was complete, the kids came back one by one to a table in the back of the room where I had supplies to pot a plant. We all potted some flower seeds. I made it an object lesson for the kids. I explained why we had these plants. It was about more than a pretty flower. It was about a lesson I was trying to teach them.

Each kid got to decorate their plastic pot with permanent markers. They could write the Bible verse. They could draw a picture that reminds them of Jesus. It could be a word that Jesus gave them. It could be something He wants them to remember. I try to get the kids to always think for themselves. I want them to get in the habit of talking to Jesus about EVERYTHING! It's about getting truth down deep in their heart. It's not good enough to have head knowledge. We all need some heart wisdom. And we all need to learn how to hear God's voice. 

 

My lesson about our potted plants was that we all sin and miss the mark. Our sin is something we usually hide. We are often ashamed of it. The soil is dark like our sin, and dark like the way we feel about it.

The seed we plant is Jesus. He comes in to the dark places of our hearts. He takes our sin upon Himself. He is innocent, yet He still takes our punishment.

When Jesus was with His disciples He broke bread, gave it to them and said, "This is my body, which is given for you." Luke 22:19. Just like the bread broke, symbolizing Jesus' body, the seed coat must break open for the seed to begin to grow and sprout. Jesus gave up His life for us because He loved us so much.

The seed in a way goes through a transformation from death into new life. It must change for it to become a new flower. Just like the flower rises out of the soil, Jesus rose from the dead. He is alive. Because of this new life, we too can rise out of the darkness. Our sin no longer has a claim on us. We are forgiven. We are free. We are beautiful. We are a new creation. We are a flower that soaks up the "Son."

The night was amazing. We were all connecting with Jesus. That is something to get excited about! I am so honored to be a voice for Jesus with these kids. I love them with all my heart!