Lent Week 4 Family Devotion and Activity

Introduction: Last week we looked at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry and how he called many people to follow him. During Jesus’ life he performed many wondrous miracles that included healing the sick and blind, walking on water, calming storms, and raising the dead. Today we are going to read about two of Jesus’ miracles. We will read about how Jesus fed 5,000 people from the small offering of a young boy and how Jesus healed ten men with leprosy.

Readings: John 6: 1-13 Jesus feeds 5,000
Luke 17: 11-19 Ten Healed with Leprosy


Discussion Questions:
1. “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?” John 6: 9. The problems of this world are many. There are many who go hungry each day, many who are homeless, many who are unloved. It is easy to get overwhelmed and think, “What difference can I make?” In this story we see that Jesus took the small offering of a generous boy and turned it into a feast to feed 5,000 people – with leftovers too! God can do the same with your offering. It may be an offering of time to help someone in need, an offering of money to feed the hungry or an offering of praying regularly for those in need. God can do great things through you! Is your family doing a Lenten giving project? There are still several weeks until Easter. You have plenty of time to make a miracle happen through your family’s project. You could bring food to a local food bank, visit with residents of a local nursing home or invite people at your church who will be alone on Easter, to join in your family celebrations. Discuss something your family may want to do for others this Easter season.

2. The gift of healing was the lepers greatest wish come true, yet only one of them came back to thank Jesus. It is easy to think, “I would have been the one to thank him! How rude of those men!” Yet, Jesus has given us all an even greater gift than healing – the gift of eternal life through him. Ye how often do we stop and thank him for that? In ways great and small, God blesses our lives each day. We have so much to be thankful for. As a family, take some time to write down the things you are grateful for. You can also create a gratitude basket as described below.

Prayer: Close your devotional time with a prayer. For example:
Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for this time together to learn about your son Jesus. Thank you for all the many gifts you have given us. Help us to always remember Lord to thank you for your abundant goodness. Lord we ask for your guidance and assistance as we go forward with our Lenten giving project. We ask for a special blessing on those who will be benefiting from it. May you receive the glory of our efforts. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

Activity: Gratitude Baskets

Introduction: Baskets are everywhere at Easter time. Some families decorate their houses with baskets for the Easter season. Many children receive baskets full of candies and gifts on Easter morning. Today we are going to make a special basket. Instead of filling this basket with candies or new toys, this basket will be filled with things that we have already received from God. This will be our Gratitude Basket. This basket can sit out throughout the Easter season and continue to be filled with our thanksgiving and gratitude toward God.
In the fourth devotion we read about Jesus healing ten men who had leprosy. Only one of them came back to thank Jesus. We don’t want to be like one of the nine who just walked away. We want to follow the example of the one who came back to thank Jesus for what he had done. Throughout the bible, we learn that it is right to thank God for our many blessings. Ephesians 5:20 says that we should be “always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Materials Needed:
· One medium size basket or a small basket for each member of the family
· Decorations such as ribbons, paint, glitter glue, silk flowers – whatever your family likes *
· Paper – either cut 9 x 11 paper into squares or use a small pad of paper.
· Pen/pencils/crayons

Directions:
1. Decorate your basket/baskets
2. Write down things that you are grateful for and put them in the basket. Encourage younger children to draw pictures of things they are grateful for or write down their responses for them.
3. Set your basket out with a pen/pencil and extra paper. Encourage family members to continue to add things to the basket between now and Easter.
4. Pick a time either on or after Easter to take everything out of the basket and read them out loud. This could be a great activity to do over dessert at Easter dinner.

** Attention Parents : When choosing decorations for your gratitude baskets, try to avoid commercial Easter images such as rabbits and eggs. This will draw a distinction between this basket and a traditional “Easter basket.” Many craft stores these days carry a line of religious Easter decorations which may include crosses, lilies, or lambs.