Imagine…
Imagine you wake up tomorrow to discover you are one of Jesus’ disciples. You are with Him when He prays in the Garden of Gethsemane, and you are there when He is arrested.
How do you think you would feel? Would you have fallen asleep when you were supposed to be praying? What would you say to Judas when you realized he betrayed Jesus?
Jesus suffered greatly for us. Why did He willingly choose to sacrifice His life for ours? (Because He loves us, He obeyed His Father’s plan, etc.)
Pray together thanking God for the gift of His Son and asking Him to help you live in a way that shows thankfulness and praise to Jesus for His suffering and sacrifice.
The Rest of the Story
Items Needed:
- Magazine
- Scissors
Tear out several pages from a magazine and then cut each one in half vertically. Display the left sides of each page. Show the right sides individually allowing time for your child to match the correct sides together.
It’s hard to know what the full picture looks like if we can only see half of it, isn’t it? It’s also hard to understand the full story if we don’t know how a situation might end.
What do you think Jesus’ disciples (and others) might have thought when they saw Jesus get arrested? (It was over; He wasn’t really God’s Son; They might be arrested too; etc.)
The people who loved Jesus and saw Him taken away and mistreated must have been very sad, angry, and even confused. But the story didn’t end there. Share something you know about the rest of this story.
What’s in a Name?
Items Needed:
- Paper
- Writing utensils
Write the names of several people (family, friends, or famous people) on slips of paper. Take turns letting each family member choose one. Then allow time for each person to take turns describing the person on his or her paper. Everyone else should try to guess who is being described.
How were you able to figure out a person’s name? (By listening to the description of what they do, how they act, what they look like, etc.)
When everyone has described and guessed, announce that there is one name left. Describe Jesus to your children and see how long it takes them to guess correctly.
Close your time together in prayer, thanking Jesus for His example, sacrifice and suffering.