Family Advent Wreath - December 24, Christmas Eve

For more information on Advent, see my previous post on the Family Advent Wreath.  These meditations are for the weekly lighting of the Advent Wreath candles, so allow for more time for discussion.  December 2, 2012, First week of Advent; December 9, Second Week of Advent; December 16, Third Week of Advent;  December 23, Fourth Week of Advent

 Light the candle you lit the first week week and say, "we light this candle to remind us that our hope is in Jesus."

Light the candle you lit the second week and say, "we light this candle to remind us that God loves us and God wants us to love others."

Light the candle you lit the third week and say, "we light this candle to remind us that God wants us to have joy."

Light the candle you lit the fourth week and say, "we light this candle to remind us that Jesus came that we might have peace."

Tonight we celebrate the coming of Jesus into the world.  We are most familiar with this story in Luke.  Children are familiar with this story and have often played characters in a Christmas pageant.  We tend to mush this story with the Matthew version which has the angel appearing Joseph and the wise men coming to visit the child Jesus (not the newborn Jesus). 

You might use a nativity scene to tell the Christmas story.  If you do not have a nativity scene with all the characters and pieces you might use (or feel it may be too fragile for your children to handle) there is a printable one that you can use online.

Read the Christmas Story as found in Luke 2:1-20.  Let them tell you about their part in Christmas pageants or other Advent services.  Talk about how Jesus came as a little baby and grew up into a boy and then a man.  So Jesus understands how we feel when we are children.  He knows what it is like to have friends, and to have people pick on you.  All those things we go through Jesus knows, because he was born as a baby. 

Discuss some of the things they do that Jesus might have done.

Ask your child what made Jesus special and different from other babies.  Don't get too hung up in "virgin birth" and all of that, especially if they don't even understand what being a virgin means, and shouldn't understand.  What is important is that Jesus was God's chosen Messiah, which means he was sent by God to tell people about God and God's love for all people.

There is a great story told originally by Paul Harvey about The Man and the Birds:  A Christmas Story.  You can read this story to your children as a meditation.

(Light the white Christ candle.)
Lord, you come as a tiny, fragile baby; yet we know that you are God and you are with us.
May the flame of this candle remind us that you are the light of the world and that if we follow you, we will never walk in darkness, but will have the true light of life. 
Please make sure there is adult supervision for any child using matches or a lighter to light the candle.  Also, please supervise your child as long as the candle is lit.

Prayer:  Thank you God for sending us Jesus to tell us of your love and come as a child that we might know you more.  Bless us this Christmas Eve and all children everywhere who need to know you.  May they be warm, and full, and clothed.  And bless us also.  In the name of the Christ Child.  Amen.

Be sure to attend a Christmas Eve service at the church of your choice with your children.

*Thoughts and opinions of other bloggers referenced are not necessarily the opinions of this blogger.

Family Advent Wreath - December 23, Week 4 - Peace

For more information on Advent, see my previous post on the Family Advent Wreath.  These meditations are for the weekly lighting of the Advent Wreath candles, so allow for more time for discussion.  December 2, 2012, First week of Advent; December 9, Second Week of Advent; December 16, Third Week of Advent

 Light the candle you lit the first week week and say, "we light this candle to remind us that our hope is in Jesus."

Light the candle you lit the second week and say, "we light this candle to remind us that God loves us and God wants us to love others."

Light the candle you lit last week and say, "we light this candle to remind us that God wants us to have joy."

This week we will be talking about peace.  Children may not understand peace, but they understand being fearful.  Peace from God is not about not being afraid, but even in situations we might be afraid, we have peace that we cannot explain.  You may want to talk about fears specific for your children.

For Discussion with your children:

What are some things that make you afraid?  (They may be afraid of the dark, or afraid of dogs, and this may be a good time to talk about fears they may have.)  

There are some things that make us afraid for good reason.  Our fear keeps us from doing things that are bad for us.  (If you are trying to teach your children about stranger danger, this may be a good time to bring this up.)  But sometimes we are afraid and there is nothing we can do about it to protect ourselves, or there is nothing to protect ourselves from.  Even when we are afraid, God is there with us, and we can know that God is there with us, because God gives us peace through God's spirit.

Scripture Reading:  John 14:26-27

"...the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and remind you of all that I have said to you.  Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.  I do not give to you as the world gives.  Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid."  

Philippians 4:6-7

"Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.  And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus."  

Meditation:

Jesus said he came to give peace, but not as the world gives.  Our peace comes from God's Holy Spirit, not from things we think make us feel secure.  Even when we are afraid, we can have peace that comes from God, even if we don't understand how it works.  

Light the last purple candle.  (For information on the order, please see the first week's post.) Please make sure there is adult supervision for any child using matches or a lighter to light the candle.  Also, please supervise your child as long as the candle is lit.

Prayer:  Thank you God for giving us peace, even when we cannot understand it.  Help us to shine God's light of peace in the world around us, so we may worship the child in the stable who is the Prince of Peace.  Amen.  

Family Advent Wreath - December 16, Week 3 - Joy

Because I forget, I am posting the next two early.  For more information on Advent, see my previous post on the Family Advent Wreath.  These meditations are for the weekly lighting of the Advent Wreath candles, so allow for more time for discussion.  December 2, 2012, First week of Advent; December 9, Second Week of Advent.

Light the candle you lit the first week week and say, "we light this candle to remind us that our hope is in Jesus."

Light the candle you lit last week and say, "we light this candle to remind us that God loves us and God wants us to love others."

This week we will be talking about joy.  Joy is great happiness.  Children generally have no problem with happiness, but they may have misunderstandings about what brings us joy or happiness.  True joy doesn't come from material possessions or status or money or power, although many adults confuse this also.  True joy comes from within, when we find peace and contentment, when we focus on what really matters and not on the things that are temporary. 

For Discussion with your children:

What makes you really happy?  (As they answer they may list "things." When they do this try to help them see past their things.  You may ask them if they could be happy without that specific item.  If they say, "no."  Ask them about something else you know makes them happy, such as a game they like to play or people they like to play with.)

What about if we don't have the things that we think make us happy?  What could make us happy then?  (This will get them thinking a bit outside the box.)

Sometimes our things make us happy for a moment, but Jesus brings us happiness even when we don't have those things.  How do you think that works?

Scripture Reading:  Psalm 32:11

“Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, O righteous, and shout for joy, all you upright in heart."

This is pretty straightforward.  You might discuss how we can be glad in the Lord.

One of the ways we experience joy is in excitement and enthusiasm.  This would be a good opportunity to allow the children to shout for joy!  Shout with them!  Woohoo!  Yippee!  Yahoo!  Hallelujah!  However you choose to express that joy!  When you have an opportunity to get them all wound up and excited, then ask them if they can feel their blood pumping.  Is their heart racing?  Are the 'feeling excited on the inside?'  This is one of the ways we feel joy is when we express joy.  Have them sing a favorite worship or praise song with you as part of the meditation.  Maybe even sing "Joy to the World" as loudly and excitedly as you can.

Meditation:

God wants us to feel joy!  True joy!  We only experience true joy with God.  God knew that we would have trouble understanding this, so God sent Jesus to teach us more about having a relationship with God.  Jesus calls this having abundant life, but we can call this happiness from the inside out.

Light the pink candle (or purple if you do not have a separate pink candle).  (For information on the order, please see last week's post.) Please make sure there is adult supervision for any child using matches or a lighter to light the candle.  Also, please supervise your child as long as the candle is lit.

Prayer:  Thank you God for giving us joy and happiness.  We thank you for the gift of Jesus who came so we could experience joy in you.  Alleluia!  Amen.

Family Advent Wreath - December 9 Week 2 - Love

Sorry, apparently I have forgotten to post this.  My apologies for running late.

For more information on Advent, see my previous post on the Family Advent Wreath.  These meditations are for the weekly lighting of the Advent Wreath candles, so allow for more time for discussion.  December 2, 2012, First week of Advent


 Light the candle you lit last week and say, "we light this candle to remind us that our hope is in Jesus."

This week we will be talking about love.  The children may have many different understanding of love.  You may ask them what they love.  We love chocolate and puppies, but it isn't the same as the love we have for our friends.  And we love family differently than we love our friends.  You might discuss with your children the different forms of love: romantic love, family love, brotherly/sisterly love, friendly love, and love of things. 


For Discussion with your children:

What is "love?"

Who or what do you love?

Do you love _______________ (name a toy, food, activity, or any other non-person)?

Do you love _______________ (same as above) the same way you love mommy and daddy?

What is the difference?

Do you know that God loves you?  (Most likely they will answer "yes," after all, they will assume, unless they have guilt issues,* that they are loved by pretty much everyone.)

Do you know how much God loves you?


Scripture Reading:  John 3:16-17
“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. “Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him."

Information:  Last week we learned that the people were hoping for God to send a Messiah, someone to save them.  Here in John the scripture tells us that God did send someone, God's own Son, because God loves us so much.  And it wasn't like God was sending someone to scold them or tell them how bad they were and they needed to do better, but to simply tell them how much God loves and how they can have a better relationship with God.

Many times we feel that we God is trying to trick us.  Kids can get this idea when they hear language like, "God is testing me."  Tests are tricky and even if you study, sometimes you don't always do very well.  Especially if they feel they don't know the right answers, they can become fearful of God or dread "the test."  But in John, we are told that we did not receive the gift of the Son to be 'condemned.'   Obviously, people weren't passing the test, they needed a tutor!

We can share with children how much God loves them by setting it in such a way that they will understand.  "You know how much mommy and daddy love you?" (Yes)  "Well, when you do something wrong to do we still love you?" (Yes - or you can assure them that is the case.)  "Well, God loves you even more than we do and that's a lot.  So much that only God could ever love you more than we do."

"Now, you love mommy and daddy, right?" (Yes.)  And because you love mommy and daddy, you want to do what they ask right?"  (Yes)  "This is called being obedient.  We love God so much, that we want to do what God wants from us.  It makes us happy to please God."

This is the relationship Jesus came to bring.  A loving relationship in which we love and do what God wants, and know that God loves us and blesses us.

Meditation:
God loves us more than anyone.  More than our sisters or brothers.  More than our grandma or grandpa.  More than mommy and daddy.  And that's a lot.  God loves us so much that God sent someone who helped us to have a good relationship with God.  This person was Jesus, who was born as a little baby, and couldn't even feed himself, but relied on his mommy Mary and daddy Joseph.


Light the second purple or blue candle.  (For information on the order, please see last week's post.) Please make sure there is adult supervision for any child using matches or a lighter to light the candle.  Also, please supervise your child as long as the candle is lit.

Prayer:  Thank you God for loving us so much.  Thank you for the people you sent to teach us to love, like our moms an dads.  We love you very much.  Amen.



 *If your child struggles with guilt, or whether or not they are worthy to be loved, I would recommend a book, You Wouldn't Love Me if You Knew by Jeannie St. John Taylor.  In this book a little boy does something "bad" and feels guilty.  In the end, his mother tells him that he is forgiven and that God forgives him also.  You never know what the "bad" thing is, so all children can relate to his feelings.  You may want to ask your children, what do you suppose the little boy did?

Family Advent Wreath Activities - December 2, Week 1

I'm re-running an earlier series of posts for Advent.  For more information on Advent, see my previous post on the Family Advent Wreath.  These meditations are for the weekly lighting of the Advent Wreath candles, so allow for more time for discussion.

December 2, 2012, First week of Advent

We begin the season with hope.  Hope is what the promised coming of the Messiah gave to the children of Israel.  They hoped for many things: peace, saving grace, relationship with God.  How can we explain these things to children, especially when the children are very literal and many times what we hope for is conceptual?

We begin with the idea of hope.  What are some things the children hope for?  While it may be easy to start with their Santa Wish List, it confuses the message and they think of hope as wishing for things that are material.  Hoping is not the same as wishing.  Hope is belief that what you desire will actually happen.  You might ask your child(ren) what they would pray for.  

If they need some guidance you might be ready with some suggestions such as "God bless mommy and daddy."  Help them understand that when they say "God bless mommy and daddy," what they are really asking for is for mommy and daddy to feel well (not be sick), for mommy and daddy to be happy, and for the family to have the things they need, and maybe a little extra.  When we ask God to bless us in a general way, this is usually what we desire.  The children may have been taught to pray, "God bless so-and-so" but not what asking for God's blessings really mean.

What we pray for is what we hope and desire.  We may already have it, such as health and happiness, but we may hope it continues.  On the other hand, if a child has been around a loved one who is sick or suffering from depression, then they will understand what it means to hope for something we don't have.  If they have ever felt sick, they know what it is like to hope to feel better.

With experience we learn that bad times do not last forever, things will eventually get better, just like night will eventually become the day.  Children do not have enough life experience to understand this very well.  Sometimes when things aren't going so well, they feel like it is forever.  To them that is a real feeling, even if we find their theatrics amusing.  This can be magnified in teens who are already self-conscious.  If your child has had any of these types of circumstances recently, that would be a good place to start with hopes.  We have hope that our circumstances will improve, and believe that it will, we just may not know when or how. Hope is an act of faith.  It is the belief, in spite of circumstances, that things can and will get better.  This is faith, and is important to teach our children. 

As far as the meditations for Advent will go, we will have a time for you to discuss as a family the topic of the week, such as hope, and this will set the stage for the meditation.  It will be good to ask questions to get your children to participate in the discussion.

Then there will be a Scripture reading.  The Scriptures printed for this post are from the NRSV translation.  Maybe one of the children could read the scripture verse, the meditation, or the prayer.



Ask your child(ren) what does "hope" mean?

What does it mean to "hope for" something?

What are some things you hope for?

Scripture reading:  Isaiah 60:2-3
Arise, shine; for your light has come,
   and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. 
For darkness shall cover the earth,
   and thick darkness the peoples;
but the Lord will arise upon you,
   and his glory will appear over you. 

The scripture tells us of people hoping for something.  What do you think they were hoping for?

(Darkness is used here metaphorically.  You might explain that to your children in a way they can understand. Talk about what it is like before the sun comes up.  It is the coldest time of the night.  We look for the sun to come up, and it is beautiful and brings warmth and light.  This scripture is talking about God's light being the light that comes when our world is dark, like the sunrise coming up in the morning. The verse is talking about the prophecy of a Messiah or chosen one of God who would shed light and save the world from darkness.)

They were hoping for God to send someone to help them.  God did send someone to help them.  Who did God send?  (The answer is, of course, Jesus.  You may have to give the children a few hints if they don't get the answer right away.)

When do we hope that God will help us?

Sometimes if we are afraid of the dark, we like to have a light left on, just a small one, to make us more comfortable.  To these people God's promise was like that night light, to bring comfort and get them through.
God gives us that same comfort.

Meditation:
Like when we wake up in the morning and can count on the sun rising to bring light and warmth to our world, we can also count on God to bring God's light and peace to our spirits in our time of need.  God sent his light to the world in the form of a person so everyone could understand.  Jesus brings that light to our lives and helps us to live in right relationship with God.

(Light the first purple or blue candle.  Any of the purple or blue candles will do, but we light them in an order of purple, purple, pink, purple, white; so it is best to start with the candle opposite of the pink in the circle.  If you are using a straight line, then you would set them up: purple, purple, white, pink, purple, and light from the ends; i.e., right outside purple, left outside purple, pink candle, purple inside, white.  Please make sure there is adult supervision for any child using matches or a lighter to light the candle.  Also, please supervise your child as long as the candle is lit.)

Prayer:
God, just as we see this light from a candle shining in our home, help us to see your light in our lives and in our world.  Jesus thanks for bringing that light to shine in our darkness, and for showing us that God loves us and wants to be in relationship with us.  Amen.

(You may wish to leave the candle burning for a bit.  If so, please ensure that children are not able to burn themselves or accidentally begin a fire.  It is permissible to talk for a bit longer, maybe about what they hope for, and then blow it out when you are finished with the time of devotion.)