Thoughts for St. Nicholas Children's Sermons

St Nicholas Peg Doll
by Elizabeth Jette
St Nicholas Center Collection

by the Rev. Thomas L. Weitzel

I have often used the Sunday in Advent nearest St. Nicholas Day (Dec. 6) to "rescue" the poor saint from modern secularity. I have collected several little statues of St. Nicholas—they are out in abundance by late October—to use as a visual aid for telling about the story of this ancient 4th century Bishop of Myra (now Demre, Turkey).

It takes very little research to discover many legends (and few facts unfortunately) about St. Nicholas, but even the legends would seem to point to the fact of a man of great faith, joyfully giving out of that faith, often in secret and just as often to children in need.

Points to be drawn for every children's sermon on St. Nicholas:

that he was Christian
that his giving was following the example of Christ
that his focus was on giving, not getting—a good point for children to hear in this "season of giving" that too often translates into this "season of getting"

From Liturgy: Original Services, Worship Ideas and Articles by the Rev. Thomas L. Weitzel, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Used by permission.