Read together the Christmas story (Luke 2:1-20 and Matthew 2:1-11) from The Living Bible, The Message or Contemporary English Version, if possible.
~~ Family Discussion ~~
1. If you could be something or someone in the Christmas story, what or who would that be? Why?
2. How would you have felt if you were one of the following:
a. A shepherd when the angels appeared to you?
b. A wise man seeing Jesus after two years of journey?
c. Mary, the mother of Jesus?
d. The innkeeper after finding who was born in your stable?
e. Joseph, the father of Jesus?
3. If you were one of the wisemen, what would you have brought Jesus?
~~ Possible Projects ~~
1. Select pictures from old magazines that represent something you would like to give each member of your family, if money was no object.
2. If you were a newspaper reporter when Jesus was born, what headline would you have written in the Bethlehem Daily News?
3. On a large sheet of paper, have each family member draw different parts of the Christmas scene, such as: manger, Mary, Joseph, animals, shepherds, and baby Jesus.
~~ Prayer Time ~~
1. Have each family member select a Christmas card, and pray for the sender.
2. Sit in a circle with hands joined and pray for the person on your right.
3. Sing "Happy Birthday" to Jesus and pray thanking Him for His love.
4. Write a Christmas prayer with everybody in the family contributing one sentence. Read the prayer.