Children's Addresses - Outback/Wilderness Sunday: The Secret of the Centre

(Children gather round the large rock and touch it. The storyteller holds a small round rock. The children may also pick up rocks from around the big rock and hold them tight. A puppet, such as a lizard, may tell the story.)

Have you ever seen a rock so big you couldn't climb it? What was it like? (Responses). At the centre of Australia, in the Outback, there is a very very big rock. Do you know what it is called? (Responses) Uluru! Say the name together. U-LU-RU! And for Aborigines living in the Outback, Uluru is a very special rock. They can feel life inside the rock.

If you climbed on top of a rock like Uluru, what would you be able to see? (Responses). Red sand! Mountains! Tall trees called ghost gums! Goannas! Rocks!

Now, Uluru is a very big rock. It is like a great big bone sticking out of the Earth. And, like a bone, it reaches right down into the middle of Earth. So, what is down below us inside Earth? (Responses) More rock! That's right! Earth is a great big round rock. And around that rock are green gardens and blue waters. But really we are living on a rock, a very beautiful round rock like Uluru.

If you stood on Uluru and looked up into the sky at night, what would you see? (Responses) Stars! Planets! Meteors! What are they? They are big rocks. Some are hot rocks. Some are cold rocks.

What makes Earth a very special rock among all the rocks in the sky? (Responses)

Let me tell you a secret from the Bible that many people don't know. Of all the rocks in the sky, God picked out Earth for two reasons. Do you know what they are? (Responses) First, God picked Earth to be our home, your home and mine. God planted all kinds of things to make our home green and beautiful.

Second, God chose Earth to be God's special home. God could have picked any star in the sky. But God picked out Earth. Earth is a rock filled with God! God is like light that reaches deep into every rock, deep under every hill and deep into every ocean. God, like light, is in everything.

So if you stand on a rock or a hill and look into the Outback, you mightn't see any houses or people, but the whole scene is alive. Why? (Responses) Because God is there, everywhere. Because God has chosen Earth to be a special home to show love and give life.

Let's sing a song to thank God for our rock called Earth (Tune: 'The butterfly song', All together Now no. 66):

If I were a dizzy desert snake,
I'd thank you, God, I have no hair.
And if I were a grumpy goanna,
I'd thank you, God, for eyes that stare.
And if I were in Uluru,
I'd know it was a home for you.
Yes, I just thank you, Father, for being right here. (Slap rock)
You gave me a heart and you gave me a smile,
you gave me Jesus, and you made me your child.
Now I just thank you, Father, for being right here. (Slap rock)

Prayer
God, we thank you for making Earth our home,
and we thank you for living here with us on Earth. Amen