Splink 1:
Can You?
Let kids try each one to see if it is easy or hard.
Is it easy or hard to:
- rub your belly and pat your head
- touch your nose with your tongue
- kiss your elbow
- make a human tripod (balance your body with only your head and two hands on the floor—the first step in doing a handstand)
Is it easy or hard to forgive? Why or Why not?
Do you think it would have been hard for Joseph to forgive His brothers?
Even when things are hard (because of the sin in the world), we can know that God will work things for good. Even though Joseph had to do something very hard and forgive his brothers, God provided for Joseph’s entire family and kept them (and a nation) from starving. Remembering that God is in control can help us do what is right even though it is hard.
Strong Inside
Do the following experiment to start a conversation about God’s presence in us, which can help us get through hard times.
Ask:
What do you want to do when bad things happen? (Get angry; feel sad; cry; etc.)
Do you ever feel like you will just explode?
Blow up a balloon and tie it. Hold it over the lit candle. POP! The balloon explodes! Now take another balloon, and fill it halfway with water. Blow it up and hold it over the candle. What do you think will happen? Will it explode, splashing water everywhere? Continue holding the balloon over the candle (it won’t break). (WHY? The water in the balloon is absorbing the heat from the candle. The balloon conducts heat very well, so the candle flame transfers to the water without harming the balloon.)
When we become Christians, God sends His Spirit to live in us. He will help us handle the hard things that happen. He will keep us from getting bitter when things aren’t fair. He will keep us from exploding! Just as God was with and helped Joseph, He will be with and help us!
Ask:
What were some of the hard things Joseph went through? (His mother died; his brothers hated and wanted to kill him; he was sold as a slave; he was wrongfully put in prison)
God has promised to take those bad things and make something good out of them. The bad things that happened are not good, but God is so powerful that He can turn things around and work good out of them.
Before prayer at bedtime, ask your child:
Are you going through a difficult situation?
Are you having a hard time doing the right thing?
Do you need God’s help?
Share with your kids about a hard time you had (a temptation that God helped you overcome; a trial where you felt distant from God; a time of need when you wondered if God was going to help you). Share with them what helped you get through it.
Pray for your child and then give him or her a big hug!
Source: Splink from D6 Family
