JANUARY: JESUS AS A CHILD
"Jesus is the center of our faith,
Christ-centered community is the center of our life,
and reconciliation is the center of our work."
Palmer Becker, August 5, 2005
Christ-centered community is the center of our life,
and reconciliation is the center of our work."
Palmer Becker, August 5, 2005
Concept: Jesus is the center of our faith! We begin our year with a story of Jesus as a child. This story of Jesus going to the temple is just so human. It reminds us that this Jesus, with whom we read the whole Bible, really was God incarnate. Jesus wasn’t just fully divine, he was fully human - and so were his parents!
Read It: Luke 2:41-52
48 When his parents saw him, they were astonished. His mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.”
48 When his parents saw him, they were astonished. His mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.”
Pray It
Jesus, you were a child once, and you had parents who loved you and worried about you. Thank you for becoming human and understanding what it’s like to be us. Amen
Jesus, you were a child once, and you had parents who loved you and worried about you. Thank you for becoming human and understanding what it’s like to be us. Amen
Do It:
- Read the story together, then actively retell it. Here are some ideas of how to do that:
- Use paper to create the settings - the road, Nazareth, Jerusalem, the temple. Gather small figures to be the people - or create them out of paper. Then use your created settings and people to tell the story.
- Act it out
- Draw it like a comic strip
- Note the characters in the story - there are people beyond Mary, Joseph and Jesus!
- As you tell the story, note the days (i.e., Day 1: The festival is over and Mary and Joseph begin to travel home, …)
- As you tell the story, notice the characters you each identify with. Worried parents, independent-spirited child, awed teacher, fellow traveler whose trip home got delayed because your friends lost their kid…
- Tell your own stories inspired by this one. Tell about the time you got lost or lost something (or someone). Tell about the trips you took that didn’t go as planned. Children love to hear stories of their parents being children, and you don’t have to be a fantastic storyteller to share stories with them.
Explore it: A Note from Tami
Wouldn’t it be interesting to listen in on Jesus’ conversations with the rabbis? And to observe the interactions between Jesus and his parents when they found him? And to see how this interruption impacted his relationship with his parents?
I am challenged by this seed for thought from Menno Media’s LEADER magazine: “Jesus listening to and asking questions of the rabbis, and then when back home, being obedient to his parents, were signs of his humility and openness to being teachable. How do we handle our own or others’ faith questions? How have children, preteens, and others taught us about our relationship to God in Christ?”
Losing track of our child is one of the most common parental fears. Most of us can relate with the panic that sets in even when we just lose sight of them momentarily. None of us can function perfectly all of the time, but there are a few things we can do to help us keep tabs on our kiddos. (Photo by Sai De Silva on Unsplash)
How to Avoid Losing Your Child in a Public Place
Wouldn’t it be interesting to listen in on Jesus’ conversations with the rabbis? And to observe the interactions between Jesus and his parents when they found him? And to see how this interruption impacted his relationship with his parents?
I am challenged by this seed for thought from Menno Media’s LEADER magazine: “Jesus listening to and asking questions of the rabbis, and then when back home, being obedient to his parents, were signs of his humility and openness to being teachable. How do we handle our own or others’ faith questions? How have children, preteens, and others taught us about our relationship to God in Christ?”
Losing track of our child is one of the most common parental fears. Most of us can relate with the panic that sets in even when we just lose sight of them momentarily. None of us can function perfectly all of the time, but there are a few things we can do to help us keep tabs on our kiddos. (Photo by Sai De Silva on Unsplash)
How to Avoid Losing Your Child in a Public Place
