Red Light, Green Light
- Red: Stop and Think!
- Yellow: Consider the Choices and Consequences!
- Green: Go God’s Way!
As you are driving, share different situations and go through the above steps with your children.
For example: You want to go to a friend’s house, but you’re supposed to walk the dog.
Red: Stop and Think!
Instead of running out the door and doing what you want, stop and think about what you are doing.
Yellow: Consider the Choices and Consequences!
- You could forget about the dog and then your dog might have an accident and then your parents would be upset because you didn’t do what you were told.
- You could walk the dog and then go to a friend’s house, and everyone will be happier—you, the dog, and your parents.
Green: Go God’s Way!
What do you think God would want? He would want you to obey your parents and choose to do what’s right.
We must learn to think about our choices and choose God’s way. Sin is dangerous and leads us away from God. It is always better to choose God’s way over sin.
Sin Ruins What’s Meant to Be!
Items needed: Ingredients to make a dessert; a handful of small rocks and dirt
Call your children to the kitchen and inform them you are going to bake together. Assign each child an ingredient to add. As they add the ingredients one at a time, talk about how good the dessert will taste. When all the ingredients have been added, pick up the rocks and dirt and pretend you are going to add them to the cake. Give in to the children’s pleas to leave them out. While the dessert is baking, talk about it:
Why didn’t you want me to add the rocks and dirt? (It would ruin the dessert; we couldn’t eat what we baked; etc.)
Just as a few rocks and small amount of dirt would have ruined our dessert, a little sin hurts more than the person who commits the sin. Sin causes us to miss the mark—being holy like God is holy. One sin often leads to other sins, and sin controls our thoughts and actions.
We must learn to think about our choices and choose God’s way over sin. Sinful choices are always bad! Let’s practice making good choices and enjoy our yummy dessert.
Watch and Learn!
Items Needed: Socks
Do a simple demonstration of what to do and what not to do. Don’t be afraid to be silly—silly is usually more fun. For example, demonstrate how to put on your socks. Put them on your ears first. Then put them on the correct way.
We learn to do new things by watching other people. What are some things you learned by watching others?
The Bible tells us we can learn from others’ wrong choices (1 Corinthians 10:6). We don’t have to burn ourselves to learn we shouldn’t touch a hot stove. We can learn from our mother’s instructions, “Don’t touch the stove!”
Sin is anything we think, say, or do that goes against God’s way, and sin is dangerous because it leads us away from God. But God’s Word helps us choose God’s way over sin, and that is always the right choice!