Merry Christmas! I love this season and all that comes with it. Even the busyness. My challenge has been to take time each day to read our advent devotional and try to see how God wants me to apply it to my life. I hope your family is finding time to be thankful for all God is doing for you as you celebrate His birth this Christmas.
Last week ten of our Promiseland Kids gathered at the church kitchen to bake cookies for the Jubilee Christmas families. We talked about how blessed we are, and how God wants us to serve others. The kids were very enthusiastic as they mixed cookie dough, chopped chocolate, and rolled balls in cinnamon and sugar. We all enjoyed some pizza and a sample of our work. Hopefully we will find other ways to serve in the future.
We have kept the kids busy each week singing songs for the Christmas Musical they will perform this Sunday at 4:30. They have done a great job and we hope everyone will join us to hear the Christmas Story Live from Bethlehem. We also had the kids make Christmas cards with information about our Christmas Services in them, to pass out to the neighbors when we carol after the musical.
Our first service on Christmas Eve will be a family Christmas service and will have a children’s message plus we will sing two songs with the kids playing bells. I think from all the enthusiasm over playing bells, we are starting a tradition of playing them each year on Christmas Eve.
Each Sunday this month, the 3-5yr old kids will experience the characters of the Christmas story coming to life, from the angels and the shepherds to Mary, Joseph, and Baby Jesus.
Helping the K-5th grade kids to understand the Christmas story, they will learn that God loves them so much that He sent His Son to earth as a baby. His love could not be stopped by any person or circumstance—-it was “unstoppable.” They will see a narrative showing how many times the Christmas story might have been different based on people’s choices. Next they will learn that God wouldn’t allow anything to stop His wonderful plan to redeem the world. From the video entitled, “The Littlest Shepherd”, kids will learn they are never too big or too little for Christmas. Finally, through the story of Anna and Simeon, kids will learn to thank God and remember all He has done for them.
May you and your family be blessed by the gift of Jesus and His redemptive plan for your lives.
Serving Him Together,
Dar Muehlhausen