Search Results for: christmas story

While I was growing up, every Christmas Eve, my parents would bring out the walnuts and popcorn jar. At that time, I didn’t quite understand the meaning behind this activity, but now I completely get it. I appreciate my parents for showing us the true meaning of this time of year, but I think it can be for the entire year. You see, it was a simple glass jar full of popcorn and walnuts. They would bring

This year for my Jr. Church class we are making it simple. You see, I have a young group who don’t necessarily know the Bible story of Christmas. So we are taking it slow and easy, making sure that they understand the characters and events that lead to the greatest event EVER…the birth of Jesus. I wanted to walk my students through the story of Jesus’ birth using the Bible. We sit on the floor and we

By this point in the season, the decorations are probably hung and the excitement is building. We find ourselves in the second week of Advent, continuing to celebrate and planning and preparing for upcoming celebration. This week, the wreath candle is the candle of preparation (or peace), or the Bethlehem candle. In honor of this, it is a great time to contemplate how first century believers waited and prepared for Jesus, and also how we prepare for

The department stores have been displaying Christmas goodies since the day after Halloween, but at last the church calendar has officially caught up, and the season of Advent is upon us. Whether you eagerly anticipate opening illustrated doors to find chocolate, attend weekly church services, or are looking for new ways to celebrate, it is a joyous and festive time of year. To help along the appreciation, these lessons will provide ideas to jump start conversation and

I have had to make a very difficult decision this season. I have decided not to have a Christmas Program for our children this year. I can’t tell you how difficult of a choice that it was for me to make. I even had a new play written and ready to go. I was so excited to put it together and have the kids put it on. It took prayer and talking it through with my husband

During Advent, it is easy to grow busy and caught up in the excitement of the Christmas season and celebration of Christ’s birth. In this day and age, though, there seems to emerge a great deal of “tip-toe” behavior. People in public often avoid   explicitly saying “Merry Christmas” and opt for the more generic and “safe” greeting of “Happy Holidays.” This is not usually a problem in Christian churches. However, nothing says we cannot incorporate other traditions

Drag out that extra strand of Christmas lights — it’s an object lesson! While there are tons of teaching opportunities for presenting the Nativity story there are other topics you can teach too . One of those is the subject of church unity. Kids and teens can help encourage unity and solidarity in the church if they know how important it is. Begin this Christmas object lesson by sharing some verses on the topic of unity. Psalm

Using a nativity scene for Christmas lesson is a no-brainer but if you want to present a new twist on your teaching, I’ve got some ideas to share with you. By presenting your teaching in this visual, interactive manner, you will engage kids in a way that will keep them interested in learning more about the Bible. Even if your church is not presenting a Christmas program, acting out the nativity scene in your class is also

From the small church program to the larger spectacles like a Christmas pageant, chances are you will attract a lot of attention during the holidays, as evidenced by the increase in attendance. It’s nice to see the pews full and the seats taken, isn’t it? Did you know that Christmas attendance doesn’t have to be a fluke? You really can catapult your children’s ministry if you’re willing to do things a little differently this year. I will

Want to bring some excitement to your holiday curriculum? You can’t go wrong with this Christmas object lesson. The idea is to teach kids that God’s gift—His son, Jesus. He is truly the gift that keeps giving. By presenting the “gift in a gift” you will demonstrate how people who love Jesus can share him with everyone. He is the gift that keeps going on and on! Before your teaching time, assemble four or five boxes. Each

Purchase an inexpensive Christmas star ornament and test it to make sure it works properly. It should light up and be seen easily by the class. With this decoration, you have a Christmas object lesson that will help tell the story of the Christmas story from Matthew 2:1-2. “After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, ‘Where is the one who has

It’s Christmas time and we are all looking for fun activities to do in our classrooms. This free Christmas I-Spy game is a great one to use during class or even during a Christmas party. You can use this activity in a variety of ways. First of all, you could print out a copy of the picture for each child as well as a list. There are two lists provided: a picture list for the younger children