This Week in NewLife Kids

Professor Playtime’s Christmas Shop of Wonders - Elementary and Pre-K

Main Point: I Can Have Courage Because God Has A Plan!

Parents ask these questions to review today’s lesson:

Who was the main person in today’s Bible Story? (Mary.)
What happened to her? (An angel told her that she would have a baby and name Him Jesus.)
Mary responded with courage. Why was she able to have courage? (Because she trusted God’s plan.)

Bible Verse: “This is my command-be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
Joshua 1:9 NLT

Read the Bible Story Together: Mary (Luke 1:26-38)

Parents ask your children to share one thing they might be scared to do.

Be Brave!
Mary was brave and accepted God’s plan for her. She didn’t completely understand God’s plan, but she courageously accepted it. Tell your children of a time in your life when you were scared to do something. Explain to them how you overcame that fear. Have your children make a list of fears. Discuss ways they can be brave when they face those things or any circumstance that might make them scared. Encourage your children to be brave and accept whatever God has planned for them.

Christmas With the Veggie Tales – Toddlers

Main Point: Christmas is about God showing us His love

Memory Verse: “For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16

Bible Story: Jesus is born Luke 2:1-20

God loves us!! This week we celebrated the fact that God loves us. God loved us so much that he gave his one and only son for our sins. That is awesome and better than any gift that will be given this Christmas. Remind your children often of God’s love for us.


Parents Devotion - I Can Have Courage Because God Has A Plan!

The Christmas Story has a great, epic feeling about it. A heavenly messenger is sent to a land thought to be God-forsaken. A young girl is chosen from a waiting nation to be the mother of a child who would be the embodiment of joy and hope. A child is born who would change the world more than any king, scholar, army, or empire in history. We see it from our modern perspective as a whole and complete narrative. It is as beautiful as a well planned dance. Not so beautiful, however, to those who had it thrust into their lives. God’s intrusion into Mary and Joseph’s plans for their life was unheard of. Their lives must have seemed like chaos, not beautifully choreographed steps. But Mary and Joseph faithfully followed despite the danger and dread they may have felt. Reading an epic story seems exciting and fun. Living one seems chaotic and dangerous. When reading a story, we don’t often think about the fear that characters must feel. Mary didn’t see the whole of her story before she agreed to obey. She agreed on the first page, no matter what the last page held. What kind of story do you desire for your life? An epic adventure or a calm and safe story where nothing much happens?

When has God intruded in your life? It is easy to believe that God has a plan for us when all is going according to our plan. But when our plans get disrupted we need to remember that God’s plan is still in effect. No matter how frightening unplanned interruptions may be, no matter how chaotic life may seem, we can be confident in God’s love and care for us. We can trust His plan, even when life seems unplanned. Even if you can’t see all of it, trust God’s plan and have courage.

“‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ says the Lord. ‘They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.’” Jeremiah 29:11 (NLT)

“Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.” Ecclesiastes 3:11 (NLT)

“O Lord, I will honor and praise your name, for you are my God. You do such wonderful things! You planned them long ago, and now you have accomplished them.” Isaiah 25:1 (NLT)

“This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength.” 1 Corinthians 1:25 (NLT)

Parents this week read The Christmas story through the eyes of Mary. (Luke 1:26-38)