The
family is, so to speak, the domestic Church. In it parents should, by their
word and example, be the first preachers of the faith to their children. ~ Vatican
II: Constitution on the Church
Family Closeness
Game:
Balloon Bounce
This is a simple game that everyone can
play. Simply blow up a balloon and see how long you can keep it up in the air.
To make it more challenging make everyone stay on their knees or on their backsides,
or make it that you have to hit the balloon into every room in the house.
Sharing:
Family Fill-Ins
With your family complete
as many of these statements as you can:
We are a family who
likes…
learns…
cares for…
helps…
would never…
would rather…
loves to…
will someday…
(Adventures for Growing Families. Wes & Sheryl Haystead)
Story
With your family read
Mathew 14.13-21
Questions for Discussion:
- How many loaves and fishes did the disciples have?
- What did Jesus do before he broke the loaves of bread? How might you give thanks for what God gives you?
- What do you think this miraculous story tells us about Jesus? Why do you think Jesus performed this miracle?
Prayer and Celebration
Weaving Prayer into Daily Life
Prayer and worship are not just activities, they are a whole of life
response and orientation to God. There are many ways that we might encourage
our families to weave prayer, thankfulness and worship into our daily patterns.
One of the easiest ways to do this is to connect it to the activities that we
have to do everyday, such as brushing our teeth or hair, going to the fridge
for food, feeding our pets or leaving the house for work or school. Think of
one of your daily routines that you would like to connect prayer to such as
brushing your teeth. Attach a sticky not or label to your toothbrush with a
word that will remind you to prayer for a specific thing. The same thing can be
done with out routines. Make sure it is something that will catch your attention.
When you see it, don’t stop the activity but pray in the midst of it ask God
for help of give thanks for what God has given you, pray for a family member or
someone in the world in need.
Service
Service Project for Families with Elementary Age
Children
- Have families cut out grocery coupons to give to a local foodbank
- Make gift baskets for a nearby nursing home or assisted facility for older adults
- Schedule a time for families to hold and rock babies in a hospital nursury
- Be welcoming attendants as a family at a shelter or drop in centre.
- Have families volunteer to stuff a church bulletin with a large mailing at your church.
Bonus Family
Activity
Crazy shopping night
This
is a strange idea but good for teaching your children about the use of money. Go
to a shopping centre on a relatively quiet night and provide your children with
a small amount of money, maybe four dollars. Their goal is to see how much they
can buy using that amount
of money.
(This material is based on and draws from earlier Faithful Families emails by Stephen Harrison and Richard Browning: An Unless Ideas Production.)
Unless otherwise noted all material on this blog is copyright Stephen Harrison and Richard Browning
