John 15 1-8 Children's

CHILDREN'S TIME:   "Tending The Orchard"Object:   Budding Branch, Dead Branch                                      Theme:    Getting Into the LifeSource:   Self and concepts from "Children's Sermons Plus" Vol 24 - no 2. Good morning - I have here today two branches.  If you were one of them, which would you want to be?  This branch is healthy and looks alive - this branch is dead.  The dead branch has been dead for quite a while - there is nothing we can do to save it - but this branch still lives.  What does it need if to stay alive??? (Sun and rain) What killed this branch is the fact that it was broken off the rest of the bush last summer.  While the rest of the bush grew and grew, this branch just kind of withered - even though there was a lot of rain and a lot of sun.  That will happen to this branch too unless it is reattached to the bush - by a process called grafting.  Then it will produce beautiful leaves and give shade to us. Jesus compares us to branches on a vine.  He calls himself the vine – and us the branches.   When we are part of the vine - we are truly alive and we produce good fruit - we do good things - but when we become separated from Jesus - we begin to wither and can't really do anything good at all - and if we go on too long like this - we will die.  But if we turn back to Jesus in time - and become reattached - and allow his love to flow through us as sap flows the vine and its branches - then we will live and produce the beautiful fruit of good works and praise unto God's name.