Thursday, April 7, 2016

Faithful Families Resources April 3 2016


If we do not actively seek God early in the morning,
it will be very unlikely that we meet him later in the day.
~Anne van der Bijl

Family Closeness
Game:
Laugh Like
This is a pretty silly game but lots of fun. Everyone around the table has to laugh like another family member. For example: Everyone laugh like mum, everyone laugh like dad. This should be done in a spirit of fun and togetherness.

Sharing:
Questions for stimulating discussion in your family.
  • What is the most enjoyable thing our family has done together in the last three years?
  • Name two things we should do as a family on the weekend.

Story
With your family read:  John 21.1-19
 Questions for Discussion:
  • What do you like about this reading?
  • What do you think in unusual?
  • What do we learn about Jesus from this story?
  • Why do you think Jesus asked Peter if he loved him?

Prayer and Celebration
One morning wake up your children before sunrise and drive the whole family to a convenient scenic place and wait for the sun to rise. As the sun comes up encourage your family to think about the light that Christ brings into your lives. Name the many blessings that flow from God. Pray prayers of thanks to Jesus for the blessings he brings to your life. Read John 1.1-4
(Idea taken from Focus on the Family)

Lord our God,
on the first day of creation
you made the light that scatters the darkness.
Let Christ, the light of lights,
hidden from all eternity,
shine at last on your people
and free us from the darkness of sin.
Fill our lives with joy
as we go out to welcome your Son at his coming.
We ask this in the name of Jesus the Lord.

Family Activity

Having a family night is a fantastic and fun way to focus on your family growing together. What is a family night? It is simply putting aside one evening a week or a month or whatever regular interval suits you to do something together that everyone will enjoy. 

Make sure the dates you pick are in your diaries and give them the first priority – try to plan well ahead. Give each member a turn to plan the program for the evening. Make it a rule that there is to be no complaining or fidgeting and that everyone is to cooperate and participate. This is especially important for the younger children whose self esteem may be damaged by older children's comments.

Don't forget to talk about the purpose of the family night. Two key purposes could be 1. To have fun together. (Family night should be the most anticipated night of the week) 2. To worship the Lord together. This is an opportunity for parents to model Christian devotion to their children. (The Big Book of Family Fun. Gwen Ellis.)

Here are some ideas for fun family nights. All of these take a little planning and resource gathering…but if your family has fun and grows together it will be well worth it.

Celebration Night

Throw a party for your family or for a particular special day. Decorate the room, eat special food, play some games and generally do what you do when you have a party.

Outing Night

Go on a special adventure with your family to somewhere different than the local shopping centre.

Project Night
Provide materials for the family to make a project – art, drama or anything that comes to mind. Making puppets is one idea.

(This material is based on and draws from earlier Faithful Families emails by Stephen Harrison & Richard Browning: An Unless Ideas Production.) Unless otherwise noted all material on this blog is copyright Stephen Harrison and Richard Browning

No comments:

Post a Comment