Splink | Seeking the Lost

Prodigal Son

Act out the story of the prodigal son.

Choose parts (father, son, friends, pigs, servant—find a part for each family member) for the characters in the story. Read the story aloud from Luke 15:11-24 and the actors will do what is happening in the story.

When the prodigal son realized he had sinned and repented, the father welcomed him back home. The son had lost his way, but the Father waited for him to return. The father in this story represents our loving Heavenly Father who welcomes us home after we are lost when we turn away from our sin.

Lost Sheep Treats

Make sheep treat for a snack.

Ingredients:

• 1 Tbsp. butter
• 1⅓ cups mini marshmallows (plus a few additional for assembly)
• 2 cups of either multi-grain or chocolate Cheerios (depending on desired sheep’s color)
• 6 peanut M&M’s (for heads)
• ¼ cup semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips
• 12 pretzel sticks, broken in half (makes 24 legs)

Melt marshmallows and butter in the microwave for about a minute.

Add 2 cups of Cheerios and mix until the cereal is evenly coated in marshmallow.

Spoon out 1 heaping tablespoon of cereal mixture mold into an egg- like shape using lightly greased hands. While the mixture can be shaped, make an indentation where the head and legs will be placed on the body. (Use an extra peanut M&M and pretzel to make the exact size indentation that will be needed.)

Melt chocolate chips in the microwave to use as glue. (This should only take a few seconds.)

Apply small amount of melted chocolate to the ends of the M&M’s and pretzels and press them into the indentations that were made in the body. Allow the chocolate to set.

For the ears, cut mini marshmallows into small pieces and use melted chocolate to glue them on top of head.

For the eyes, dip a toothpick into melted chocolate and add two dots to face.

Makes enough for six sheep.

Adapted from the website: http://everydaydishes.com/simple-food-recipes/how-to-make-cheerios-sheep-snacks-for-your-next-party/

After making the treats together, send the family (or maybe just one member) out of the room while you hide his or her sheep treat.  Have fun with the search for the missing treat and then enjoy eating them together while you discuss the parable of the lost sheep (Luke 15:1-7) and the blessing of our loving Good Shepherd who always seeks the lost.

Lost and Found

Hide a few dollar bills (or quarters) in your kids’ rooms without telling them. Assign a certain amount of time (30 minutes?) and tell them to clean their rooms as quickly as possible. You may even want to tell them that there is something hidden for them. At the end of the time, see if the kids found any of the money. (Let them keep whatever they found.)

What did you find?

God uses a story of lost coins to help us understand a very important truth.

Read Luke 15:8-10 and discuss the parable together.

Do you remember how eager you were to find the money hidden in your room once you realized it was there? We should also be eager to help lost people learn how to be found in Jesus. Let’s make a list of people we can pray for now.

Make a family prayer list of people who need to know Jesus (who are lost) and pray regularly for those on the list. Be sure to remember to thank God for always seeking the lost.