Come to Bethlehem and See Family Centerpiece Devotions to Accompany the Come to Bethlehem and See Family Centerpiece Let s go to Bethlehem! Let s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about. Luke 2:15 Enclosed are four FREE reproducible devotions, written to accompany the Come to Bethlehem and See family centerpiece (Item #TBC5KT). They come with four Faith Talk @ Home conversation starters for children in your ministry to take home to their families to enrich their preparation for Christmas. You may make as many copies as you would like for use in your own organization or congregation. Here are some ways to use them... Present one devotion each week in Sunday school, as part of worship time in your Christian day school, as part of worship time during midweek Bible club, or during the Sunday morning children s sermon. Send the Faith Talk @ Home pieces with the children as they leave each day. Give one set of four Come to Bethlehem and See family centerpiece devotions and a family centerpiece to each family during a family activity or Advent fair four weeks before Christmas. Encourage families to use one devotion and the matching Faith Talk @ Home each week as, together, they prepare to celebrate Christmas. Host a Mom s Day Out or other community event. Use the devotions and Come to Bethlehem and See family centerpieces to tell the story of Christmas to all the children who attend. Then give each family a set of the Come to Bethlehem and See family centerpiece devotions, a family centerpiece, and a set of Faith Talk @ Home conversation starters to take with them as they leave. Regardless of how you use these materials, we pray that the message and activities will draw many individuals and families closer to their Savior, Jesus, as they prepare for Christmas during this joyful season. May our Lord continue to bless all the work you do for his people! 2015 CTA, Inc. Permission to make photocopies or reproduce by any other mechanical or electronic means is granted only to the original purchaser and is intended for use within a church or other Christian organization, but not for resale. Scripture quotations are from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation copyright 1996, 2004, 2007, 2013 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. #TBC5DF
Devotion 1 Getting Ready As you prepare your heart to share, read in Luke of the angel s visit to Mary and then to Joseph. Note the promise that God spoke to them through his special messenger, the angel. Keep your Bible marked at Luke 1:26 38 and Matthew 1:18 25. Have one family centerpiece already assembled, but without any stickers affixed to it. You will show it to the children as you conclude today s devotion. Prepare the centerpieces, Week 1 stickers, and copies of today s Faith Talk @ Home so they are ready for distribution as the children leave today. If your group is large, ask a volunteer to help distribute these pieces. Introduction Today, I would like to introduce two special people and a special visitor. You may have heard about them at Christmastime before. You may have read about them. But now I want us to imagine being them! What if you were Mary? or Joseph? What if an angel brought surprising news to you!? Let s think about that together. Continued 1
Getting to the Heart First, there is Mary. What do you know about her? (Let volunteers respond. They may mention that she is young and is about to be married. She lives in a town called Nazareth.) One day, Mary got some surprising news from one of God s holy angels! Listen and be ready to tell me what that surprising news was all about. (Read Luke 1:26 38 aloud.) What was the angel s surprising news? (Mary had found favor with God. She would have a baby, but not just any ordinary baby. Mary s Baby would be the Son of the Most High, the Son of God, God himself! His name was to be Jesus, which means Savior. ) If you had been Mary, how would you have felt? What would you have thought? (Let volunteers respond.) Then the angel visited Joseph. Listen for the Good News the angel had for him. (Read Matthew 1:18 25.) What was the angel s special message to Joseph? (Invite volunteers to comment.) Yes! The angel told Joseph that Mary would have a Son. They were to name him Jesus. That name means Savior. The angel told Joseph this about Jesus: He will save his people from their sins (Matthew 1:21). What Good News! When Joseph heard it, what do you suppose he thought? How do you suppose he felt? (Let volunteers respond.) Both Mary and Joseph heard some wonderful, surprising news from the angel. It s hard to imagine what we might have thought, how we might have felt if this happened to us. But here s another surprise. The Good News the angel shared with Mary and Joseph is for you, too! Jesus was to be born to take away your sins. Jesus is your Savior! Everyone who trusts in Jesus is God s friend now and forever. That is what makes Christmastime such a happy time for Christian people! Taking It Home Today, I will give each of you a project to take home. When you put it together, there will be four sides just like the one I m holding up. It can be a centerpiece for your kitchen table or your dresser or for the stand beside your bed. I will also give you some stickers. The stickers you receive today have a purple background. Use them to complete the pictures on the side of the centerpiece with the purple title. (Point out this side. If time allows and your setting permits, show the children how to do this.) Each week you will get more stickers that will help finish your centerpiece. Each week, you will use the stickers to finish another side. Then, when your family and friends look at your completed family centerpiece, you can share with them all that you have learned about Christmas. Scripture quotations are from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation copyright 1996, 2004, 2007, 2013 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. 2015 CTA, Inc. Permission to make photocopies or reproduce by any other mechanical or electronic means is granted only to the original purchaser and is intended for use within a church or other Christian organization, but not for resale. #TBC5DF 2
Devotion 2 Getting Ready Find or make a simple family tree to share with the children. Use the one recorded in the front of your family Bible or create one, using any of the simple templates available online. If possible, create a second, simple family tree. Leave it blank and plan to use it to create Jesus family tree as you talk with the children today. Prepare your heart in prayer, rejoicing in God s faithfulness in keeping his promises. Bookmark John 1:12; you will read it to the children directly from the Bible. Have additional family centerpieces to give to children who are with you today for the first time. Also plan to give them the stickers from Week 1. Have a set of stickers for Week 2 ready for all the children who will attend and make copies of Faith Talk @ Home to distribute as the children leave today. Introduction Hold your family tree so all the children can see it as you ask, Does anyone know what I am holding? (Let volunteers respond.) Yes, this is my family tree. Here I am. (Point.) Here are my mom and my dad. (Point.) And my grandparents. (Continue pointing out significant ancestors and other family members, explaining as you go. Keep in mind that some children may never have seen this kind of organizer before. Be sensitive to children who may feel as though they have no family tree, those who are foster children or who have been estranged from their family.) Family trees help us learn more about our ancestors and about our family history. Today, we are going to learn about one very remarkable family tree! Continued 3
Getting to the Heart As we think about that family tree, we will remember some of the people the Bible talks about. Who remembers a person named Adam? What do you know about him? (Let volunteers respond. Coach students as they recall that Adam was the first human being God created. He had a wife named Eve. He got to name all of the animals. He sinned by eating the forbidden fruit.) Adam is the first person on this remarkable family tree. (Print Adam s name on the blank family tree, if you brought one along.) Who remembers a person named Noah? What do you know about him? (Let volunteers respond. Coach students as they recall facts about Noah s life and faith, especially the fact that Noah and his family were kept safe in the Great Flood.) You are spot on with all of that! Noah was a descendant of Adam a great, great, great,... grandson. (Print Noah s name on the blank family tree.) Generations later in Great-great-great-great-great... grandfather Noah s family line, a baby boy named Abraham was born. (Print Abraham s name on the blank family tree.) Who remembers something about Abraham? (Let volunteers respond. Coach students as they recall facts about Abraham and his wife, Sarah, including God s call that Abraham leave his homeland and God s promise to give him a land and as many descendants as the stars in the sky. God also promised that through one of Abraham s descendants, the Savior, all the nations on earth would be blessed.) Now those are some amazing promises! (Print Abraham s name on the blank family tree.) Many generations later, a boy named David was born. Who can tell us more about David? (Lead volunteers as they recall David s victory over the giant Goliath, his service as king over God s people, and God s promise to make one of David s descendants an eternal King. Add David s name to the family tree you are creating.) Who is that eternal King? Yes, our Savior, King Jesus. Through the line (the family tree) of David, the Savior was born. Mary and Joseph named him Jesus, just as the angel Gabriel had told them. The name Jesus means Savior or God Saves. God knew that Jesus would grow up to be the Savior of the world, the great King of all kings. (Add the name Jesus to the family tree you are making.) Do you know that you belong to Jesus family tree? Listen! (Read John 1:12.) What happens to those who receive Jesus and his love, to those who believe in Jesus name, who believe Jesus is the Savior? Yes, they have the right to become children of God! God makes them part of his remarkable family tree. (If time and your setting allow, print each child s name on the family tree you have been creating.) Taking It Home Today, I am going to give you stickers you can add to your centerpiece. The names on these stickers belong on the side of the centerpiece with the yellow title. As you attach the stickers, think about God s remarkable family tree and about all God s promises that led up Jesus birth on the first Christmas. Remember that God keeps every one of his promises especially the promise that you belong to his family by faith in Jesus. 2015 CTA, Inc. Permission to make photocopies or reproduce by any other mechanical or electronic means is granted only to the original purchaser and is intended for use within a church or other Christian organization, but not for resale. #TBC5DF 4
Devotion 3 Getting Ready Gather props and arrange them in your setting to help the children imagine they are gathering around the manger where Baby Jesus was born on the first Christmas. Include a wooden manger, some hay, stuffed animals, and a baby doll wrapped in strips of cloth. Play a recording of animal sounds sheep, horses, cows. If possible dim the lights and share this devotion by the light of a camping lantern. Prepare your heart by reading and meditating on Luke 2:3 7. Bookmark this text in your Bible so you can find it quickly during the devotion. Also, be prepared to share a personal favorite family memory. Have family centerpieces to give to children who are with you today for the first time. Also be ready to give them the stickers sets from Weeks 1 and 2. Have Week 3 stickers available for all the children. Copy Faith Talk @ Home and be prepared to distribute it to the children as they leave today. Introduction Sometimes, families have a once-in-a-lifetime moment, a special moment we will never forget. Once in my family... (Briefly share your personal memory.) Do any of you have a moment like that, a family moment you will never forget? (Let one or two volunteers share, as time will allow.) Today we are going to talk about a special family moment Mary and Joseph had. It was the night Baby Jesus was born. Continued 5
Getting to the Heart Mary and Joseph had walked a long, long way from their village of Nazareth to the little town of Bethlehem. The ruler in that land had decreed that everyone had to go back to his or her home town to be counted. That way, he could get them to pay their taxes. Lots of lots of people were in Bethlehem. It was the hometown for lots and lots of families. In those days, there were no McDonald s. There were no Taco Bells. There were no Holiday Inns. In fact, there were very few places for travelers to eat or to stay. When Mary and Joseph arrived in Bethlehem, they knocked on door after door. But all the extra rooms had been taken. What could they do? Finally, they knocked on one last door. The innkeeper saw that Mary would have her Baby very, very soon. So he said, I have a stable you could stay in. Do you know what a stable is? Yes, it s a place where animals like cattle, donkeys, and sheep stay. Yes, said Joseph. We ll take it! Do you suppose Joseph prepared a place for Mary to rest? Do you suppose he arranged some sweetsmelling hay and covered it with blankets to make a clean bed for Mary? I think he did. Do you suppose he filled a water bottle from a nearby well, so she had clean water to drink? I think he did. Do you suppose Joseph put some of the sweet hay in the manger and put a blanket on top of the hay to make a soft, little bed for Mary s Baby? Yes, I think he did that, too! Do you suppose he thought about what the angel had told him in that dream nine months before about calling Mary s Baby, Jesus? Because Jesus would be the Savior? I am sure he did! Soon, the time had come for Mary to give birth. Mary s baby boy was no ordinary baby; he was the Savior whom God had sent into the world, Jesus. He was your Savior and my Savior! The Bible tells us that Mary wrapped Baby Jesus in strips of cloth and laid him in the manger. What a special night that was! It was a family moment Mary and Joseph would treasure always. That night as Mary held her newborn Son in her arms, she was holding the Savior, the Savior God sent for us! Taking It Home Today, I am giving you stickers for the side of your family centerpiece with a blue title. As you attach them, think about Mary and Joseph s special family moment on the night Baby Jesus was born. Then think about your own special family moment, a moment that you will treasure always. Thank God for both of these! As we close today, I want to read part of the story of the first Christmas to you from the Bible. (Read Luke 2:3 7.) 2015 CTA, Inc. Permission to make photocopies or reproduce by any other mechanical or electronic means is granted only to the original purchaser and is intended for use within a church or other Christian organization, but not for resale. #TBC5DF 6
Devotion 4 Getting Ready Think about a time you had some exciting news, news you couldn t wait to share, for example, an adventure you had while on vacation or the birth of a new baby. Prepare your heart by reading Luke 2:8 20, and bookmark your Bible there. Have additional family centerpieces and the stickers for Weeks 1 3 available to give to children who are with you for the first time this week. Also have the stickers for Week 4 ready to give to all the children. Copy this week s Faith Talk @ Home and be ready to distribute it as the children leave today. Introduction I want to tell you about a time I had big news! Share your story and then ask the children if they have ever had exciting news, news they just could not wait to tell their friends. (Invite a few volunteers to share, as time will allow.) The Bible tells us some exciting news that some shepherds received one night from angels! They couldn t wait to share that news. Listen! Continued 7
Getting to the Heart (Read Luke 2:8 20 to the group.) What exciting announcement did the angels give the shepherds? Yes, they announced the birth of the Savior. What did the shepherds do then? That s right! They left their sheep to go look for the Savior the angels had told them about! The shepherds found Baby Jesus, just as they angels had said. That Baby was wrapped in swaddling clothes and was lying in a manger. The shepherds felt so blessed and so happy! They had seen the Savior, whom God had promised to send. The Savior! Do you suppose they could keep this Good News to themselves? They could not! They had to tell everybody what they had heard and seen! They could not contain themselves! The shepherds went back to their sheep, but as they went, they told everyone all about it. The Bible tells us that they returned to the fields, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen! Now that Savior, boys and girls, did not come just for the shepherds. That Savior came for you and me, too! What exciting news! Now that we have heard it, we want to share this Good News, just as the shepherds did! Taking It Home Today s stickers will go on the side of your centerpiece with a green title. As you take them home, think about everything you have heard and seen. Just as Mary treasured it all in her heart, we want to do that, too. Just as the shepherds shared the Good News that Christ the Savior is born, we want to do that, too! 2015 CTA, Inc. Permission to make photocopies or reproduce by any other mechanical or electronic means is granted only to the original purchaser and is intended for use within a church or other Christian organization, but not for resale. #TBC5DF 8
Week 1 Read Luke 1:26 38 and Matthew 1:18 25 together, perhaps from a children s Bible. Then talk about them. Use questions like these: Who was the special messenger who brought Mary and Joseph surprising, Good News? What was the news the angel brought? How would it feel to hear such wonderful news and from one of God s holy angels!? Is this Good News for us today? How do you know? A Special Project: Let your hands do the talking! Grab some white paint, construction paper, and markers. Carefully dip your hands in the paint and press them onto the paper to make angel wings. When the paint dries, use a crayon or marker to make the angel s body. Give your angels to someone as you tell them the surprising Good News the angel shared with Mary and Joseph just before the first Christmas. Week 2 Watch or help as your child(ren) place this week s stickers on the family centerpiece. As they work, talk about each person and about that person s part in Jesus family tree. Then read John 1:12 from your Bible. This verse promises that everyone who trusts in Jesus and in the forgiveness he earned for us on the cross, belongs on God s family tree. By faith, we become members of God s forever family. A Special Project: Again this week, let your hands do the talking! Trace your hand and your arm just beyond your wrist. This is your family tree. On the palm, write your name. Then write the name of each family member on a finger (branch) of the tree! Share stories especially faith stories about each person included on your tree. As you do that, you are sharing your spiritual heritage.
Week 3 Watch or help your child(ren) place this week s stickers on the family centerpiece. Then read Luke 2:3 7 together. Talk about the following questions: Where did Mary and Joseph stay on the night Jesus was born in Bethlehem? If you had been there that night, what would you have wanted to see? How was this a special family moment? What is a favorite family moment for you in our family? A Special Project: Again this week let your hands do the talking. When Baby Jesus was born, do you suppose some sheep shared the special family moment with Mary and Joseph? They likely did. For this week s project, let s make some sheep. To do that, you will need construction paper, glue, markers, and cotton balls. And, of course, your hands. First, trace a hand onto the construction paper. Then flip the paper upside down. Draw a sheep s face on your thumb. Your four fingers will be the sheep s legs. Glue cotton balls to the sheep s body. If these sheep could talk to one another, what would they say? Week 4 Watch or help your child(ren) place this week s stickers on the family centerpiece. Then read Luke 2:8 20 together. Talk about the following questions: What did the shepherds do right after the angel shared the Good News about the newborn Savior with them? What would you have done? When they saw Baby Jesus, what do you suppose they did? What would you have done? When the shepherds left the stable that night, what did they do? What would you have done? A Special Project: Again this week let your hands do the talking. Have each person hold up three fingers and count off the three things the shepherds did: 1) They worshiped Jesus; 2) They praised and glorified God; and 3) They shared the Good News about the Savior with others. How could your family do these same three things this Christmas? Next, have each member of your family trace one of their hands on a piece of paper. On each finger, write the name of someone with whom you could share the Good News of Jesus. Choose a verse from Luke 2 and write it on the palm of your paper hands. Display these hands as a reminder to share the Good News of Jesus with others, just as the shepherds did!