Children's Liturgy Guide

11th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Year A · Ordinary Time

Jesus Sends His Helpers

Reading: Matthew 9:36-10:8

Leader Prep

Don't worry about doing this perfectly. If the children hear one good idea about God, Jesus, prayer, kindness, forgiveness, or the Gospel, this time has been worthwhile.

Summary

Jesus saw that many people needed help, like sheep without a shepherd. He chose twelve special helpers called apostles and sent them out to share God's love and help people who were hurting.

Key Points

  • Jesus felt deep compassion when he saw people who were lost and hurting
  • Jesus chose twelve ordinary people to be his special helpers called apostles
  • Jesus gave his apostles power to heal and told them to share freely what they received
  • We are all called to be helpers who share God's love with others

Background

This passage shows Jesus' pastoral heart and his commissioning of the Twelve Apostles. The Greek word for compassion here suggests a visceral, gut-level response to human suffering. Jesus sees the crowds as 'sheep without a shepherd,' drawing on Old Testament imagery of Israel needing leadership (Numbers 27:17, Ezekiel 34). The harvest metaphor emphasizes urgency and the need for more workers in God's mission. The Twelve are given authority (exousia) over unclean spirits and disease, a sharing in Christ's own messianic power. The instruction to give freely reflects the gratuitous nature of grace. For children, emphasize that Jesus chose regular people to be his helpers and that we can be helpers too by sharing God's love with others. Set aside the deeper theological discussions about apostolic authority and the nature of miracles.

Session Flow

Opening Prayer

Invite the children to pray with you, then read the opening prayer below. If many don't know the sign of the cross, teach the whole group.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Dear Jesus, thank you for loving us and caring about us like a good shepherd. Help us to be your helpers and share your love with everyone we meet. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Warm-up

Ask the warm-up question before the reading. There are no wrong answers; this is just to help the children connect today's reading to their own lives.

Have you ever been asked to help someone with an important job? What did you do?

Example: One time my mom asked me to help carry groceries inside, and I felt really big and important because she trusted me with the heavy bag.

Bridge to the reading: It feels special when someone trusts us with an important job. In today's reading, Jesus looks at all the people who need help and chooses twelve special helpers to go out and share his love with them.

Read the Scripture

Read the day's selected passage aloud. The full Scripture text is not included here. Use a Children's Lectionary if your parish has one available. A children's Bible may also be helpful for younger children. Otherwise, read from a standard lectionary, Bible, or USCCB.org. Read slowly, with short pauses.

Reading Questions

Ask the questions conversationally. You do not need to use every question if time is short. The example answers are for leader preparation, not scripts or required answers.

  1. What did Jesus feel when he saw all the people in the crowd?

    Example: Jesus felt sorry for them and cared about them because they were like sheep that did not have anyone to take care of them.

  2. How many helpers did Jesus choose to send out?

    Example: Jesus chose twelve helpers. The reading tells us all their names, like Peter and Andrew and James and John.

  3. What did Jesus tell his helpers they could do?

    Example: Jesus told them they could heal sick people and help people who were hurting, and he gave them special power to do it.

  4. Why do you think Jesus needed helpers instead of doing everything by himself?

    Example: I think there were so many people who needed help that Jesus wanted his friends to go to different places and help more people at the same time.

Application Questions

Use these questions to help the children connect the reading to their own lives this week. Simple, concrete answers are best.

  1. How does it feel when you see someone who looks sad or left out?

    Example: It makes me feel kind of sad too in my tummy, and I want to do something to make them feel better and not be alone.

  2. What is one way you could be a helper like the apostles at school or with your friends?

    Example: If I see someone sitting alone at lunch, I could go sit with them and talk to them so they know someone cares about them.

  3. This week, who is one person in your family you could help without being asked?

    Example: I could help my little brother clean up his toys or help my grandma carry something because that would make her really happy.

Recap

Today we heard how Jesus looked at all the people and felt love for them because they needed help like sheep without a shepherd. He chose twelve regular people to be his helpers and sent them out to share God's love. Jesus wants us to be his helpers too, sharing his love with people around us.

Prayer of the Faithful

Before returning to the assembly, invite the children to share their own prayer intentions. Their prayers may be serious, simple, funny, or very specific. After each child's prayer, the group may respond: "Lord, hear our prayer." Lastly, include the suggested prayer below.

For children at our school who feel lonely or left out, that they may find friends who show them God's love, we pray to the Lord.

Mass Connection

If time allows, point out this connection just before returning to Mass. This helps children see that Children's Liturgy is still part of the Mass.

When the priest or deacon reads the Gospel and then preaches, he is doing what Jesus asked the apostles to do: sharing the Good News with people who need to hear it.

Closing Prayer

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Thank you, Jesus, for choosing us to be your helpers. Help us to share your love freely with everyone we meet this week. Give us brave hearts to help people who are hurting or lonely. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

ChildrensLiturgy.org

Jesus Sends His Helpers

Matthew 9:36-10:8

Word Search

Optional activity: use the word search after the discussion if you have time, or send it home with the children. The words relate to today's Children's Liturgy Scripture passage.

A T I L I K F J O Q Q Q Q Q D
L A Z E P I V I O T D M S Q K
Q S H E E P P M R H D H M E P
W K N Q S E L T S O P A S K R
K Q P E T E R K V H V H I Z Y
J Z G F A G B U G T A Z Y R F
A V H A G L D Q K R Q X T G G
L R E L S X E Y E E L W G O Z
X W A S R E P L E H B O B M W
A X L I T Q V Y Q A S P V Q E
S E V L E W T V A R V O Z E R
U P I V Q X W I N V P G W O D
S R X M V O A Q I E N T T Q N
E D R E H P E H S S D M S Z A
J G E U X T Y H E T U R J M Q

Words to find

  • Jesus
  • apostles
  • helpers
  • sheep
  • shepherd
  • harvest
  • heal
  • Peter
  • Andrew
  • twelve
  • love
  • share

ChildrensLiturgy.org