You have a role in this – Family Faith Companion

Who me? Deny Christ?

Posted on April 27, 2022August 22, 2022 by Carol Hulbert

a person writes a to-do list Do you start off your day with a list of what you need to do? I do!

But I wonder… in all of my busy, everything must be perfect, planning… have I left room for God?

Is “cultivate my faith” on my to-do list?

Am I denying God entry into my life?

Peter pretended like he didn’t know who Jesus was. Now, that is denial. But do my choices make me just as guilty?

Paraphrased from John 18:16-18, 25-27, Peter said…

Are you talking to me? I don’t know who that man is!

What does denying Christ look like for us today?

Here’s a discussion for your family, at the family dinner table (or wherever your family is gathered together).

What does it mean to deny that something happened? (It means saying that something is not true, when in fact, it is true!)
Tell about a time when someone pretended like they didn’t know you—they denied that you were their friend.
What do you suppose it would feel like to have someone say, “No, I don’t know that person?”
Have you ever denied knowing someone?
Adults: share a story from your growing-up years. And then share Peter’s story.
It is easy to see that saying you don’t know someone is denial. Do you suppose that we ever deny Jesus? How about when we…
- speak harshly?
- are quick to follow the crowd – trying to make them like us?
- forget to pray?
- turn the other way when someone needs our help?
- are mostly concerned about our needs?

All of us, through our lifestyles, actions and attitudes, have denied Jesus. But, be reassured, there is hope!

So turn to God! Give up your sins, and you will be forgiven. Acts 3:19

I am thankful for God’s grace!

Stay tuned for the rest of the story: Forgiveness!

Photo credits…
To-do lists by John Athayde, originally licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY 2.0).
The Denial of Saint Peter by Caravaggio, circa 1610; in the Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons.

I love a parade, don’t you?

Posted on April 8, 2022April 27, 2022 by Carol Hulbert

It’s Lent!
Rather than giving something up, how about adding daily family faith discussion.
Make it your Lenten investment!

Jesus enters Jerusalem on a donkey on what we now call Palm Sunday

If you are doing a Rotation on the events of Holy Week, you are covering a lot of scripture! So this post will be the start of several which will provide mini reading plans for small portions of each story in the “Events of Holy Week.”. Included are discussion questions for use around the family dinner table. (Or wherever your family is gathered together—perhaps in the car on the way to soccer practice?) Use the chart below to read and talk about this portion of our story… in stages… over the course of several days.

First up: What we now call Palm Sunday!

If you’d like to print out this reading plan/discussion guide, click here.

Read	Talk about or do…
Matthew 21:7-9	This is like a parade! Describe a parade you’d like to be in. What town is Jesus entering? (Jerusalem) Why is this first event in Holy Week called “Palm Sunday?” How do you plan to celebrate Palm Sunday?
Matthew 21:8-9	Imagine the excitement! Does the Bible you are using have a footnote that explains the meaning of the word “Hosanna?” In Hebrew Hosanna means “save us now,” although over time it had come to be an exclamation of praise. What words do you shout when you are excited and full of appreciation? Shout some worshipful words!
Mark 11:1-6	Take a look at a Bible map (here’s one). Find Jerusalem, Bethany, and Bethphage. Jesus and his disciples walked everywhere. How far did they walk between those towns? What is the furthest you’ve ever walked?
Luke 19:28-34	What would you think if someone asked you to do what Jesus asked? Would you wonder how you’d ever find this colt? Would you be afraid of being accused of stealing?! Would you be anxious to see Jesus riding a never-been-ridden-before, animal? I wonder why Jesus felt that these details were important?
Matthew 21:1-5	Does the Bible you are using help you to discover which prophet said these words? (Hint: Look at Zechariah 9:9) What sort of king were the people expecting? +++++A) a riding-on-a-giant-horse, ’m-going-to-whip-everybody-into-shape sort of a king OR +++++B) a gentle-loving riding-on-a-donkey king? What sort of king did Jesus turn out to be?
Matthew 21:10,11	Obviously not everyone knew about Jesus! The people had been waiting for hundreds of years for the Messiah! Look up the word “Messiah” in a he dictionary (there is usually one in the back of a Bible).
Matt 21:8,9 Mark 11:8-10 Luke 19:36-38 John 12:12-16	What differences do you notice between these four accounts of this story? Why do you suppose these differences exist? What do you make of John’s reference to looking back on this story after Jesus’ resurrection?

How does it feel to add faith talk for Lent?

Photo credits:
Palm Sunday, originally posted by Waiting For The Word on Flickr under a Creative Commons license.

How to prepare for Hosanna-ing with a bit of make-believe

Posted on April 5, 2022April 27, 2022 by Carol Hulbert

I like this painting that depicts the inaugurating event of Palm Sunday, because it includes children. Look over on the upper, right-hand side. Notice the man holding a baby(!) up over his shoulders? (One can easily miss seeing!)

Show this picture to your kids and point out the taking-flight toddler.

There are other kids. Can you find them?

Notice this child in particular… (The one designated with the red arrow in the close-up shot.

Have your child pretend that they are that kid. Place yourself in the painting!

You are witnessing Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem!

What do you see?

What do you smell?

What do you hear?

There were of course, lots of people. Some happy and others not. And probably the usual noise a loud crowd makes.

(“Is he coming yet?” “I can’t see!” “Excuse me, you are stepping on my foot!”)

palm waving-2 The Bible tells us there were loud cries of “Hosanna!” (John 12:13). Which was like saying “Save us!”

Go ahead and shout some Hosannas!

Practice for this coming Sunday at FUMC.

Do you suppose there were people at this “parade” who wondered what the Hosanna hoopla was all about?

Why do we celebrate Palm Sunday? (If you’re not sure, go ahead and click on that link to learn more.)

Why did the people greet Jesus with such enthusiasm?

How would you greet Jesus today?

Photo credits:
Christ’s Entry into Jerusalem by Hippolyte Flandrin, 1842, from FreeChristImages.org, used under license.
Palm Sunday photo copyright from my archives.

How “acting as if” makes way for a miracle?

Posted on February 4, 2017February 4, 2017 by Carol Hulbert

The formerly paralyzed man walks!

The crowd inside the house was packed tight. And now four hard-working, faith-filled, determined men had created a hole in the roof so as to lower their paralyzed friend into Jesus’ presence. These friends were certain that Jesus would heal their buddy.

They chose to act as if it were already true.

I have read this story countless times. (It’s what I do when I am writing Rotation lessons.) I even will find myself returning to the story, reading it again, after the lesson is complete. Why?

Because usually I discover a new insight.

And sure enough I did. Something occurred to me that I hadn’t previously considered.

When Jesus says to the lame man:

 Get up, take your mat and go home.

What would have happened if the lame man hadn’t gotten up?

What if he was too afraid?
(He could fall flat on his face, and make a spectacle of himself!)

I had discovered another miracle in this story! The story that already contained several miracles — the industrious nature of the four friends, who overcame hardships to take a friend to Jesus, and the miracle of sins being forgiven and of course, the miracle of a previously paralyzed man able to walk! And now this miracle:

The lame man had to get up. He had to act as if the miracle were true.

Immediately the paralyzed man stood up. He took his mat and walked out. (Mark 2:12)

Acting on a truth is what is needed for it to actually become your truth.

What is stopping you? Can your faith be an instrument that helps someone “get to” Jesus?

What about your kids?

Act as if your child is a spiritual being. (Because we are all spiritual beings!)
Act as if your child is interested in talking about faith.
Act as if you will discover something new.

You need to be brave — to “act as if” — to take part in miracles – however big or small they may be.

Photo credits:
The lame man walks is a screenshot from a video posted by Bible Society Australia, who licensed their work under a Creative Commons (BY-NC 2.0) License.

How to add one small (but critical) thing to your day?

Posted on August 11, 2016August 11, 2016 by Carol Hulbert

When was the last time you gave yourself a pat on the back? Really! After all, you do hard work in the trenches — shepherding kids! (Whether they are yours or someone else’s.)

Shepherd with sheep

Nurturing children transpires into a mighty challenge! You spend time with them, read to them, carpool them all over town, offer healthy foods, make sure they brush their teeth, enforce a respectable bedtime… you love them! You are doing a great job, especially because you push through when it gets hard.

Because, sometimes you don’t have all of the answers.

It is the same way with talking to our kids about their spirituality. Do you feel inadequate? (I do.)

I’m giving you permission to add one small, but critical thing, to your parenting portfolio.

Keep on trying to add conversation about faith issues.

Figure out where you are regularly gathered all together. (In the car, at the dinner table, or at getting-ready-for-bed reading time). Make a new daily habit.

Ask just one question: Where did you see God today?

That’s all you have to ask. Just listen. (And don’t worry if it doesn’t happen every day.)

Allow time for digging deeper. Empower your family to wonder at the mystery of what God is up to and how he wants to be in your life!

a blue line

Photo credits:
Shepherding sheep by Biegun Wschodni, who has released this photo to the Public Domain. Offered at unsplash.com.

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How to practice kind words? Chutes and Ladders anyone?

Posted on August 3, 2016April 22, 2019 by Carol Hulbert

a word cloud with kind, caring words

You’ve heard the old rhyme about sticks and stones, and words not wounding?

Not true!

Our words do matter; to others, and to God!

God really cares about the words that we use and how we use them. How do we talk about this issue with our household? Join us for some discussion!

Start the conversation in the car, or around the family dinner table, or wherever your family is gathered together. Spread the questions out over several sessions. Ask these questions even if you missed the video showing!

Have some family time discussion…

Do you find it easy or hard, to use kind words with someone you know well? What about with someone who is a stranger? With someone you dislike? Someone who is giving you a hard time?
Have you ever heard the expression: “Kill them with kindness” — what do you suppose it means?
Do you suppose that there is a difference between acting kindly and true kindness that comes from the heart? How would the two look different?
The Bible tells us that our words are important to God. Why do you suppose God really cares about what we say?
Jesus taught that “A person’s mouth says everything that is in their heart” (Luke 6:45). What we say reflects what is in our innermost selves. God loves us, so of course God would care about us. And, since God loves everyone, he cares about the effect our words could have on other people. What we say to others matters!
The Bible has lots to say about how we should use our words. Take turns looking up a verse and talking about what it means to you: Luke 6:45, Proverbs 15:1, Proverbs 15:4, Proverbs 16:24, Psalm 19:14, and Ephesians 4:29.
Several of these verses were from the book of Proverbs. Proverbs is a book full of short instructions on living wisely. Watch this short video about Proverbs. (If reading this in an email, you can watch this video on YouTube.)

In class on Sunday we played a version of Chutes and Ladders. If your child didn’t bring home a game board, get two here. (This will download a Word doc to your downloads folder. Print it in “Landscape.”)

Play this game at home. Use small items as game pieces and toss a die to play a round, or two.

Have fun while practicing using kind words.

We hope you’ll continue the learning at home! Be sure to notice kind word usage. (Respond by saying: “I notice you are using healthy words!”)

Note: This post refers to a video watched during our Summer Sunday school: # 14 “How Do We Show Respect to God Through Our Words?” from Clive & Ian’s Wonder-Blimp of Knowledge.

Photo credits…
A created word cloud by moi. Shared at flickr, licensed under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-ND 2.0). I also created the game board. Enjoy!

How to help kids learn the language of faith?

Posted on June 28, 2016June 27, 2016 by Carol Hulbert

The words on this photo say it all. Everyone can be involved — parents, aunts, uncles, caregivers, grandparents… all of the significant adults in the life of a child.

The language of faith can be taught by your example.

Start with a simple word:

“Praise.”

As you are outside this summer, express wonder and thanksgiving for the beauty of God’s creation. You are teaching praise! Marvel at the clouds, rain, rocks, sunsets, flowers, you name it! Get into the habit by trying to praise God in this manner, out loud, at least once a day.

Nature - sunsets, clouds, flowers, rocks

What are other ways to praise God?

Clive and Ian in the Wonder-Blimp of Knowledge This past Sunday, in our summer video series, with Clive & Ian (in the Wonder-Blimp of Knowledge) our big question was: How do we show respect to God through praise?

As you sit down for supper, praise God for good foods. (Try some of these table graces.)
When you engage in prayer time, start off my praising God. Tell God how awesome you think that he is. ( “We adore you God!” or “God, you are truly amazing!”)
This coming Sunday (July 3) a hymn we will sing in church is America, the Beautiful. Singing is a great way to praise God. Lift your voices in practice! (Sing along?)
Look for the ways writers in the Bible praised God. (Psalm 19:1, Psalm 150, or Hebrews 13:15) …Or…
On Sunday we watched a second video of a mime troupe showing us physical ways to praise God that are also biblical. Watch the video below. What do you think of their suggestions as ways to praise God? Which ones can you try out? (The table below the video lists the seven ways to praise God.)

(If reading this in an email, you may need to watch the video at this link.)

Hebrew word	Pronounced	Meaning	Bible reference
TOWDAH	to-DA	to sacrifice	Psalm 50:23
YADAH	yah-DA	to lift your hands	Psalm 134:2
BAROUCH	BAR-ou	to bow	Psalm 95:6
SHABACH	Sha-BACH	to shout	Ezra 3:11
ZAMAR	ZAH-mar	to play an instrument	1 Chron. 15:16
HALAL	Ha-LELL	to rave and boast	Psalm 44:8
TEHILLAH	Te-HEAL-a	all of the above!	Psalm 34:1 (the word praise here is in Hebrew, Tehillah)

How will you help your child(re) learn the language of faith?

Photo credits:
I created the collage with a Bible verse from the photo “Sunset meadow hike” by woodleywonderworks, who licensed this photo on Flickr under a Creative Commons License. (Photo has been cropped and words added.)
Other photos are from my archives with the exception of the Clive and Ian photo, which is from the producer of our video Clive & Ian’s Wonder-Blimp of Knowledge, under a fair use category.

How to tell God he matters to you?

Posted on June 21, 2016June 21, 2016 by Carol Hulbert

Here it is — the first official Dinner Table Talk Guide! This is designed to be used in conjunction with our summer movie series, but if your kids missed class this past weekend (or, if you don’t have any kids in your household) don’t let that stop you! Use this guide to help your family cultivate a growing faith — bring love and joy to yourselves and to the world around you.

Our questions from this week’s lesson centered on showing respect to God, specifically through prayer.

God is our awesome creator, he is loving and powerful! We want to show him respect, but how?

By not ignoring God.

God puts an offer out there to always be available for conversation with us. Prayer is what we call talking and listening to God. When we pray we open ourself to God, sharing the parts of our life that matter most to us. We are saying, God you rank high in my book!

It is important to note that God lets us choose whether we decide to join in dialogue with him, or not. Getting to know God takes initiative on our part! What are some ways to help us in our prayers?

a child with a purple balloon In our lesson we used balloons to pray! What a fun way to “lift” prayers to God.

We also reviewed a “recipe” to follow when praying. We’ve heard this one before — applying the acronym ACTS.

(I want to stress that a formula for prayer is not a requirement, but it can help one to stay focused. I find using ACTS beneficial, as it is too easy for me to be distracted whenever I pray; utilizing ACTS keeps me on track.)

What are some other ways to help us talk to God?

Invite God to your activities. The next time you are about to start an enjoyable venture, invite God to savor the experience with you. For example, before jumping into the pool, pray: Be with us, Jesus. Come and share this refreshing swim along side of us. We’re so grateful that You created water for us to enjoy!
Practice praying in silence. (It’s how most people pray!) Make the amount of time spent in silence appropriate to your kids’ ages. You may want to start out with just 15 seconds of silence.
Get out the crayons. Prayers don’t always have to be words. Provide coloring tools and have your child draw a picture of things for which they are thankful.