You Will Need:

• 1 cup of flour 
• 1/3 cup of salt 
• 1/3 cup of water 
• A Bible marked at John 1:1-3

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GET STARTED

Set out 1 cup of flour, 1/3 cup of salt and 1/3 cup of water. 

ASK—What do you think we’re going to make? (Modeling Clay.)

SAY—We have all the right ingredients to make exactly what we want. We have a plan. We know what we’re going to make and we’re putting everything we need inside it to make it just right. God has a plan for you too. When God made you, He put inside you everything He wanted for you to be the unique person and special person that He wanted you to be.

Mix these ingredients and let your kids squish the dough in their hands for 5 minutes. While they mix the dough…

Read Jeremiah 29:11 from your Bible. 

SAY—God created you special and has great plans for your life.

ASK—How do you think God has made you special?

SAY—Tell your children ways that you see they are special and unique—Everything from their fingerprints to the things they love and the things they do. Nobody who has ever lived is just like them and nobody can exactly do what God has created them to do. They are special!

After the dough is ready, spend some time making Thing-A-Ma-Jiggers (special creations). If you want, even give your creations names, such as a Rabgiraphantoose which would be a creation with a Rabbit head, a giraffe neck, an elephant body, and moose legs. Let your kids make whatever they want however they want.

Introduce your creations…

Then Read John 1:1-3. Tell your kids that “The Word” refers to Jesus.

KEY POINT: God made everything and God made you special. 

SAY—Of all God’s creatures great and small, God loves you the most of all.

PRAY—And thank God that He made you and your kids special that He has great plans for all of you. Pray also that your children will always follow Jesus.

You Will Need: 

• Flashlight
• A Bible marked at Philippians 4:13

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GET STARTED

Choose an item to hide in your child’s room. Show it to them, then go in their room, close the door and hide it. When you come out, ask them how quickly they think they can find it. Then tell them that you’re going to turn the lights out and they’ll have to search in the dark. Let them search for a minute and then give them a flashlight. If you have more than one child, let them search one at a time. 

After the searching is done and the item is found, sit down as a family with the flashlight in the dark room.

SAY—The Bible says the world is full of darkness (bad things) but that Jesus is the light of the world. Just like I helped you when I brought you the flashlight, you can help others by telling them about Jesus. You found what you were looking because I gave you the light. Jesus, who is the light of the world, is what everyone is looking for in life and they can find Him when you show them the way.

BIG QUESTIONS

What’s one way you can show Jesus to others? (Talk about Him, live for Him, invite others to church, tell people Jesus loves them, pray with people who are hurt or sad, etc.)

Who is someone with whom you can share Jesus’ love? (Grandparents, a teacher, a friend, etc.)

SAY—Jesus sent His disciples to tell others the “Good News,” but He never sent them alone. Today, even if you’re by yourself, you’re never alone when you’re telling someone about Jesus. The Lord is right there with you and He’ll always give you the strength to do anything He wants you to do.

Read Philippians 4:13 from your Bible.

PRAY—List prayer requests and thank God that He will always give you the strength to do everything He’ll ever ask you to do.

You Will Need: 

• A Bible marked at Romans 5:8

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FAMILY COMPETITION #1

See who can say “Unique New York” the most times correctly in 10 seconds. Let each family member try.

FAMILY COMPETITION #2

See who can say “Red Leather, Yellow Leather” the most times back to back without making a mistake. Let each family member try a few times

SAY—It might seem impossible to say “Unique New York” or “Red Leather, Yellow Leather,” but it’s not—it just takes practice. 

ASK—Why do you think it’s impossible for a person to be good enough to go to heaven? (Because none of us are perfect like God is perfect. We’ve all made mistakes.)

SAY—Because we’ve all made mistakes, we all need Jesus as our Savior. Since Jesus died to pay the price for all the wrong things we’d ever do, He provides a way for us to be forgiven and go to heaven by giving our lives to Him.

Read Romans 5:8 from your Bible.

PRAY—List prayer requests and thank Jesus for dying to make a way for us to be forgiven and go to heaven.

You Will Need: 

• Your Bible marked at Matthew 14:22-33

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GET STARTED

One at a time have each of your children hold out their arms, put their heads back so they’re looking at the ceiling and stick out their tongues. Tell them to spin around three times (you’ll need to count for them) and then try to walk to you in a straight line. (Be careful to do this in an area where they can fall and stumble without getting hurt.) Then have them spin around seven times…then ten times. 

SAY—Everything gets confusing when you spin around a lot. Sometimes life seems a little confusing when bad things happen, but we can learn a lesson from the Bible about how we can keep our eyes fixed on Jesus. Listen and try to figure out what mistake Peter made.

Read Matthew 14:22-33 from your Bible.

ASK—What good things did Peter do? (1) He trusted Jesus enough to get out of the boat, which is more than anyone else did. (2) When he needed help, he called out to Jesus.

ASK—What do you think Peter’s mistake was? (He took his eyes off Jesus and started focusing on the wind and waves.)

SAY—Bad things can happen to good people, but when bad things happen God wants you to keep trusting Him. God will always do what is best for you and, if you’re walking with Him, He will cause all things to work together for your good. So, when life gets confusing, keep your eyes on Jesus.

PRAY—List prayer requests and thank God that you can always trust Him and pray that when hard times come to your kids, that they will always keep their eyes on Jesus.

You Will Need: 

• A spoon
• A small food item
• Two small bowls
• A Bible marked at Romans 3:23

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STEP 1

Put a spoon in a small bowl so that the handle sticks out. This naturally creates a catapult.

STEP 2

Take a small food item like a marshmallow or a piece of cereal and put it inside the spoon.

STEP 3

A few feet away from your spoon-catapult, set a second bowl to be your target. 

STEP 4

By flipping the tip of the spoon, try to shoot the food from one bowl to the other.

ASK—How did you do? Did you hit or miss your target?

In life we have a target too—to be perfect, just like Jesus, and all of us have fallen short. 

Read Romans 3:23 from your Bible.

SAY—We’ve all done wrong things and we’ve all fallen short of God’s perfection. That’s why we all need a Savior and that’s the reason Jesus died and rose again—To make a way to take our sins away. But just because He did this, doesn’t mean that everyone will be saved. We have to make a choice to receive Christ by surrendering our lives to Him. Giving your life to Jesus is the best decision anyone can ever make.

ASK—How do you think a person gives their life to Jesus?

SAY—This is how the Bible says that a person can be “saved’ from their sin:

SAY—“A” (Ask your child to say “A” real loud.)

• Admit that we have done wrong things and be willing to stop doing those wrong things.

SAY—“B” (Ask your child to say “B” real loud.)

• Believe that Jesus is God’s Son who died and was raised from the dead.

SAY—“C” (Ask your child to say “C” real loud.)

• Call on the Lord, confess our sins, and commit our life to Him.

ASK if anyone has any questions about what it means to be saved or how a person can give his or her life to Christ.

PRAY—List prayer requests and thank God that He can forgive our sin.

You Will Need: 

• 1 tube of toothpaste
• 1 plate
• A Bible marked at Isaiah 9:6
• A Bible marked Romans 10:13

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GET STARTED

Gather your family around. Then squeeze out a good amount of toothpaste on a plate.

ASK—Do you think you can get it all back inside the tube?

Give each family member a chance to try. Some may try scooping it back in; Some may ask for scissors to cut it open and put it back. Just tell them no if you don’t want to ruin the toothpaste tube; still others may want to lick all the toothpaste off the plate and use their mouth to put it back. This is actually quite funny although if they push too hard, toothpaste may begin to come out of their nose—This really happened once!

ASK—Is it possible to get all the toothpaste back inside?  (No.)

SAY—The toothpaste is kind of like your words. Once something comes out of your mouth, you can’t take it back. So if you don’t mean it, or you don’t plan to follow through with it, don’t say it. Every word you say should be as trustworthy as a promise. 

ASK—Did God ever make promises?  (Yes, the Bible is full of promises for you.)

ASK—Can you name a promise that God made?  (Nothing can separate you from His love; He will never leave you; That you’re going to heaven once you’ve given your life to Jesus; etc.)

SAY—God also promised that a Savior would be born.

Read Isaiah 9:6 from your Bible.

SAY—This is talking about Jesus. God sent Jesus to be the Savior of the world and the Bible also tells us how to accept Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior.

Read Romans 10:13 from your Bible.

SAY—The best thing anyone can ever do with their mouth is to pray and give their lives to Jesus.

PRAY—List prayer requests and thank God for Jesus and how wonderful He is. Thank God for always keeping His promises. 

You Will Need: 

• Your Bible marked at John 14:6

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GET STARTED

Choose a large area in your house where you can be on one side and your children on the other side. For example, you could stand on one end of the living room and they could stand on the other. Or you could stand at the top of the stairs and they could stand at the bottom. Tell your kids that you have a very special challenge for them. They have to cross from where they are to where you are without…(Depending on what the room is like, you’ll have to fill in the blank here. You want to make it impossible for them to come to you. For example, in a room you could say, “Without touching the carpet or crawling on the furniture.” For stairs, you could say, “Without climbing the stairs or touching the banister.”) When your kids begin to complain that it is impossible, tell them that there really is a way for them to do it. Challenge them to figure it out. The key is that you want them to ask you to come to where they are, pick them up and carry them to where you are. Eventually you might need to give them hints and once they solve it, carry them to where you are.

SAY—There was only one way you could get from there to here, and there’s only one way for us to go to heaven. Just like the game, we can’t get there on our own. That’s the reason Jesus died and rose again—to make a way for us to go to heaven and to know Him and to have a meaningful life here on earth too, but not everybody is going to heaven.

ASK—What did you have to do to get to this side? (You had to ask me to come to you.)

SAY—The only people who are going to heaven are those who have asked Jesus to come into their lives. (Take about a minute here to tell your kids when and how you gave your life to Christ.)

Read John 14:6 from your Bible. 

(If you have older children, ask them if they would like to read it.)

PRAY—List prayer requests and thank God that He made a way for us to know Him and to go to heaven. Pray that your children will give their lives to Him when the time is right or if they’ve already been saved, pray that God will use them to tell others about Him.

(If your child has questions about how to give his life to Jesus, you can find an easy way to share the plan of salvation on a child’s level HERE.)

You Will Need: 

• Water
• Salt
• A microwave or stove
• A pan or bowl with a lid
• A Bible marked at Romans 5:8

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STEP 1

Add some salt to water and take a taste. 

ASK—How did it taste? (Pretty nasty, huh?)

SAY—Salt water tastes bad and if you drank a lot of it, it would make you sick. Salt doesn’t belong in drinking water and sin doesn’t belong in our lives.

STEP 2

Heat the water on the stove or in the microwave until it boils. 

STEP 3

Remove the water from the heat source (This is something an adult should do) and put a lid on it. Let it sit for 30 seconds to a minute and then remove the lid. Wait until the water on the lid cools and then take a taste. The saltiness is gone. 

SAY—Just like the salt disappeared, when we ask Jesus to forgive the wrong things we’ve done (our sins), He takes them away too.

Read Romans 5:8 from your Bible.

SAY—We can say yes to Jesus and give our lives to Him and follow Him every day because He loved us enough to die for us and then He rose from the dead.

PRAY—List prayer requests and thank Jesus for dying to pay the price for our sins so that we could be forgiven.