The Game of Life Devo

Family Spiritual Practices

Week of August 4th, 2019

Our sermon series in the month of August is focusing on how to children’s board games that families play together to talk about the mission and message of Jesus Christ. To that end, our devotions throughout this month are going to be a little different. Instead of being a scripture, questions, and a prayer each day that are focused on adults, we are going to present one devotional practice for families to adapt and use throughout the whole week. 

Don’t have any kids in your home currently? Don’t worry! This is for you, too! This can be something that grandparents discuss with their grandchildren or that individuals can do as a spiritual practice on their own. 

A note: sometimes we forget that God gave us the gift of creativity. This week’s devotional also has a creative aspect to it in order to engage our whole brain and being. If you don’t think you’re very creative or crafty - that’s completely okay. But you may want to give it a try, just to see what new insights God may give you. 

Scripture for the week: Luke 9:24 and Luke 12:15

Have each family cut of a piece of paper in the shape of a cross. You can color your cross however you would like. As you color your cross, talk about the following:

- What do you think about when you see a cross?

- Why did Jesus give everything up for us?

- How can we share the love that Jesus showed us on the cross with others?

Place your crosses in a location where you will see them. Maybe hand them on the refrigerator or somewhere else in your house. 

Now, find some post-it notes. Every time you share the love of Jesus, in any way, throughout the week, write about it on the post it note and stick it to your cross.

At the end of the week, take time as a family to talk about the ways that you shared the love of Jesus. 

- Where they all the same way? Why or why not?

- Was there any way that you wished you could have shared the love of Jesus, but didn’t get the opportunity to? How could we do that thing as a family?

Often we ask our children what they want to be when they grow up, and that is a great question. Children’s answers change with their age and experiences. But what we don’t often ask them is how they want to live. What type of person do you want to be? And how can we support one another along that life-long journey?