Resources for Advent 2, Sunday 10 December 2017

 

Wait for the LORD. Be strong, and let your heart take courage. Yes, wait for the LORD.

~Psalm 27:14

We are now in the season of Advent, a time that is focused on waiting with anticipation. We wait with anticipation for the return of Christ; we relive in our own lives the expectation of the birth of Christ and his birth in our own heart every day. We wait with anticipation for the kingdom of God to be fulfilled on Earth. Over these four weeks the material will be shaped around four themes that are relevant to this time: promise, waiting, journey and gift.

Family Closeness

Game:

Everyone closes their eyes and must guess how long a minute is, by opening their eyes when they think a minute is up. Try playing this game using a piece of music. Did players guess a longer or shorter time for a minute? Another way to play is to get everyone to walk between two walls trying to move slowly or quickly enough that they will reach the wall just as a minute is up. If you reach the wall before time, you are out.

(Inspired by Christine Gapes. New Games for Community)

Sharing:

Questions for stimulating discussion in your family.

• What do you hate waiting for?
• When do you find waiting most difficult?
• What do you do to make waiting easier?
• What can’t you wait for?

Story

With your family read Mark 1.1-8

(for a way of explaining/talking about this reading with children look at

http://www.sermons4kids.com/voice_in_the_wilderness.htm

Questions for Discussion:

• What was the message John the Baptist had?
• Why do you think John dressed and lived as he did?
• What do you think it means to be baptised with the Holy Spirit and fire?

Prayer and Celebration

Advent Prayer Pattern

This pattern may be used this week to begin meal times or to begin a family sharing time.

It may begin by asking everyone to quieten down and to think about what it means to wait and to think of one word to describe that feeling. During the prayer, the leader is going to say: “Waiting feels like…” and each person will be free to speak her word aloud. Parents might need to help little ones with a word that describes the feeling of waiting. 

1.  Music. Choose a piece of gentle music to listen to. Try some different pieces each time to try to find one that expresses a feeling of waiting.
2. Prayer: All of us wait. Each day brings its own dose of waiting. We wait in the dentist’s office, at sports practice, at school, for parents and children, for brothers and sisters. We wait for dinner to be ready, for the refund, for the text message from a friend. We wait to be big enough to ride the roller coaster, old enough to stay up late, secure enough to be on our own. Our waiting feels like…(give people a chance to voice their feeling) Advent calls us to celebrate waiting. Each time we wait, help us to remember how the world waited for a saviour. Help us to remember we are always waiting for your return. Help us find and recognise you in each other. As we wait. We are Advent people.
3.  Lord, the N…family is waiting for you. All: Come, Lord Jesus. (From Rituals and Icebreakers. Kathleen O’Connel Chesto.Ligouri)

Service

Now is a great time of year as we move towards Christmas to begin to think about how you may serve those in need. Christmas can be a sad and lonely time of year for many people. How might your family serve Christ the King this Advent and Christmas, and make a different in people’s lives at the same time?

Instead of (or as well as) buying gifts for each other, buy an animal for a family overseas.

http://www.oxfamunwrapped.com.au/?gclid=CK-Q7b-d1awCFYI0pAodtxWtpg

Serve in a homeless shelter or soup kitchen..

Family Time

Nativity Exploration

In this period as we move towards Christmas, why not use artwork to explore the story of Jesus' birth? Apart from the many Christmas cards that you may receive, the internet also provides a wealth of resources. If you go to http://www.textweek.com/art/nativity.htm you will find links to many depictions of the birth of Christ through the ages. Invite your family to choose their favourite picture and to describe what they like about it. Discuss the different pictures and what you find interesting in them. Get each member to draw their own nativity picture and explain it.