Do you ever wish that God would give you clear, step-by-step instructions of what you are to do or where you are to go? He is always leading us but usually not in the way we expect. Sometimes we have to go through dark valleys while other times we’re enjoying green pastures. Through it all we can trust that God is good, He will never leave us and will always lead us exactly where we need to be.
FAITH: Trusting in God, His Word, and His promises
MEMORY VERSE: “Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.” Hebrews 11:1 (NLT)
This Week’s Finish Line: I can trust God and go where He leads me
The angels just couldn’t keep it in. The Messiah had been born and they had to tell someone. They didn’t go to the king or to the rulers in Jerusalem. They didn’t find the most important people or the smartest or the wealthiest. No. God sent them to some simple shepherds on a hill outside the small town of Bethlehem. Shepherds were looked down on by a lot of people in those days, so they were the least likely you’d expect to hear the good news first, but God chose them anyway. They not only heard the amazing news, but they went to find this special baby that the angels were singing about. They heard and believed and then went where God told them to. Because of their faith, they were the first people to get to celebrate the birth of our Messiah, the Savior of the world, Jesus Christ!
Family Questions:
- Read Luke 2:8-20. What do you think those shepherds thought when the angels first appeared?
- What amazing news did the angels have for the shepherds? How did the shepherds respond?
- What fun ways do you and your family celebrate Jesus’ birth? What are your favorite songs or traditions?
- Where are some places the Lord might be leading you and your family? What things might He want you to do for Him this week?
* Check out our vision for parents and how to use these activities each week.
Teacher: Meal Time
This year Watermark has put together a family advent guide. Inside this guide there is a daily passage of scripture to read, a devotional, and some discussion questions to talk about with your family. The goal of this is to prepare you and your family's hearts for the Christmas season and to focus your minds on the true meaning of Christmas. Take time at dinner each day to walk through the devotional for the day.
Friend: Drive Time
As your family is in the car together, ask someone to read Proverbs 3:5-6 (or recite it from memory!)
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3:5-6
Remind each other that God has a good plan and you can look to Him for guidance. Then, say a quick prayer before you get to your destination thanking God for being absolutely trustworthy. Ask Him for help knowing where He’s leading you that day.
Counselor: Bedtime
As a part of putting your family to bed each night, read one chapter from the book of Ruth all together. Before you begin the story, tell your kids to pay attention to who in the story trusted God and was willing to follow Him and how they did that. On the 5th day when there is no chapter to read (there are only 4 chapters in Ruth), do a little review to see what your kids can recall of the story and how people in that story trusted God and followed Him.
Coach: Anytime
Make time this week to have fun with your family! A great way to bring up the topic of trust is to do the trust fall exercise. The trust fall exercise is where you have one kid at a time stand on an elevated surface facing away from you. Then you and your spouse or older kids stand behind them and link arms so that you can catch them. Then you have the child who is going to be falling, close their eyes and blindly fall backwards! Biggest rule: CATCH THEM! Afterwards, take time to talk about how we can trust God completely to keep and care for us.
Prayer
Pray and thank God for keeping His promise to send a Messiah. Ask Him to help you prepare your heart as you look forward to celebrating Christmas this year.
Looking Ahead
Next week we will learn why we can trust God even when we have to wait!