Jesse Tree Symbol #25: Jesus
Jesse Tree Symbol #25: Jesus
(And finally—after generations—a child is born. The promised branch. The awaited Messiah.
The new Adam who would set the world aright. Born. This night.)
The new Adam who would set the world aright. Born. This night.)
Hush
Sssh.
Can you hear it?
An expectant silence,
a hushed anticipation,
as if the very galaxy
is holding its breath.
There are some truths
even the stars know,
like darkness,
like loneliness
and how the night
can be a living thing.
And how once, long ago,
the night waited in wonder
along with the darkness
and the loneliness,
for the sound of a baby’s cry,
for the miraculous
to come down
to the earth mundane.
— written by Lucinda Hynett, in Alive Now.
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Kids Corner
This is a talk that focuses on the idea of Jesus being an unexpected gift:
Ask children what their favorite thing about Christmas is. Gifts are bound to come up! Talk about why we give gifts- to show people that we love them and care for them. Ask the children to try and guess what is wrapped up in your gifts. Start with the easy to guess gift, proceed onto the harder to guess gifts and end with the box containing chocolate coins. Each time, after guesses have been made, reveal what the gift is.
Explain that sometimes we know immediately what we've been given but sometimes it's harder to work it out and we even get gifts that aren't what they first seem on the outside. Talk about the fact that Jesus is Emmanuel 'God with us'. God came down as a little baby, the first Christmas gift, but like the container with chocolate in it, he wasn't what we expected! On first sight he would have been just an ordinary human baby, but actually he was a treasure worth more than we can imagine. He was a gift that meant we could be brought closer to God and, through him, God could show how much He loves us. Share out the chocolate and as you eat it, pray that we will all come to see How much God loves us this Christmas
Kids Corner
This is a talk that focuses on the idea of Jesus being an unexpected gift:
You will need: 4 items to wrap as gifts. One should be really easy to guess (e.g. a book), a couple should be quite difficult to guess (I used sunglasses and a duck shaped door stop!) and one should be an ordinary looking, quite boring container with chocolate coins hidden inside.
Ask children what their favorite thing about Christmas is. Gifts are bound to come up! Talk about why we give gifts- to show people that we love them and care for them. Ask the children to try and guess what is wrapped up in your gifts. Start with the easy to guess gift, proceed onto the harder to guess gifts and end with the box containing chocolate coins. Each time, after guesses have been made, reveal what the gift is.
Explain that sometimes we know immediately what we've been given but sometimes it's harder to work it out and we even get gifts that aren't what they first seem on the outside. Talk about the fact that Jesus is Emmanuel 'God with us'. God came down as a little baby, the first Christmas gift, but like the container with chocolate in it, he wasn't what we expected! On first sight he would have been just an ordinary human baby, but actually he was a treasure worth more than we can imagine. He was a gift that meant we could be brought closer to God and, through him, God could show how much He loves us. Share out the chocolate and as you eat it, pray that we will all come to see How much God loves us this Christmas
Ask children what their favorite thing about Christmas is. Gifts are bound to come up! Talk about why we give gifts- to show people that we love them and care for them. Ask the children to try and guess what is wrapped up in your gifts. Start with the easy to guess gift, proceed onto the harder to guess gifts and end with the box containing chocolate coins. Each time, after guesses have been made, reveal what the gift is.
Explain that sometimes we know immediately what we've been given but sometimes it's harder to work it out and we even get gifts that aren't what they first seem on the outside. Talk about the fact that Jesus is Emmanuel 'God with us'. God came down as a little baby, the first Christmas gift, but like the container with chocolate in it, he wasn't what we expected! On first sight he would have been just an ordinary human baby, but actually he was a treasure worth more than we can imagine. He was a gift that meant we could be brought closer to God and, through him, God could show how much He loves us. Share out the chocolate and as you eat it, pray that we will all come to see How much God loves us this Christmas
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