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WELCOME TO Week Five |
Prayer
A Prayer for Letting Go
Thank you, God, for the gifts of sunshine, air, and water. Thank you for the gifts of smiles and words and each other. Help us to recognize these free and simple gifts you freely give us, all around us, and every day. Amen.
Easter Egg Prayer
Fill an Easter basket with open (unassembled) plastic eggs. Encourage family members to write or draw their prayers on slips of paper and close them up in an egg. When all the prayers are hidden inside the eggs and the basket is full, take time to sit together, open the eggs, and read the prayers. Filling the eggs with prayers can take days or weeks; you might rotate through this practice several times during Lent, or save up all the prayers until Easter morning and read them together.
Simplicity
Watch the Sunrise
Instead of: Sleeping in
Try: Waking up early to watch the sunrise
God made everything on this planet so unique and beautiful. God puts so much detail into every single piece of earth. As we look around earth. Some early mornings, we are rushing to get out the door in time for school or different activities that get us up early in the morning. Sometimes, if we are not paying attention, we miss seeing the sun rise and forget to praise God for the beautiful creation that was made for that morning. As you watch the sun rise Praise the Lord with all that has been created by God.
Read Psalm 113 1-4:
Praise the Lord!
Praise, O servants of the Lord;
praise the name of the Lord.
2 Blessed be the name of the Lord
from this time on and forevermore.
3 From the rising of the sun to its setting
the name of the Lord is to be praised.
4 The Lord is high above all nations,
and his glory above the heavens.
Try: Waking up early to watch the sunrise
God made everything on this planet so unique and beautiful. God puts so much detail into every single piece of earth. As we look around earth. Some early mornings, we are rushing to get out the door in time for school or different activities that get us up early in the morning. Sometimes, if we are not paying attention, we miss seeing the sun rise and forget to praise God for the beautiful creation that was made for that morning. As you watch the sun rise Praise the Lord with all that has been created by God.
Read Psalm 113 1-4:
Praise the Lord!
Praise, O servants of the Lord;
praise the name of the Lord.
2 Blessed be the name of the Lord
from this time on and forevermore.
3 From the rising of the sun to its setting
the name of the Lord is to be praised.
4 The Lord is high above all nations,
and his glory above the heavens.
Watch a Worship Service Online
Instead of: Going through the worship service motions
Try: Noticing pieces that bring life to you
When we go to worship week after week. We find ourselves going through the motions. Sometimes we do not notice which pieces of the worship service bring life to us. Worshiping God should always bring life to us through the Holy Spirit.
Lenten challenge for watching a worship service online: What pieces of the worship service help you to make your life more simple?
Try: Noticing pieces that bring life to you
When we go to worship week after week. We find ourselves going through the motions. Sometimes we do not notice which pieces of the worship service bring life to us. Worshiping God should always bring life to us through the Holy Spirit.
Lenten challenge for watching a worship service online: What pieces of the worship service help you to make your life more simple?
Act
Sunrise Easter Breakfast
The gospel accounts tell us that the women who went to the tomb on the first day of the week (Sunday) went there very early in the morning. John's Gospel tells us that they went while it was still dark. The truth of the resurrection was revealed slowly as the darkness became light. Have you ever been outside to experience the wonder of a sunrise? Darkness turning to light is a wonderful spiritual experience. The light doesn't come all at once - it comes slowly. Sometimes there are majestic sunrises, where the colors paint up the sky and make you gasp or want to paint a picture. Other times the light comes in on a grey day and you barely notice it unless you are looking for it.
Have breakfast outside on Easter morning, before the sun rises. Notice how the light comes in slowly. Read John 20:1-18, or just eat your breakfast and notice the sun coming into view.
Have breakfast outside on Easter morning, before the sun rises. Notice how the light comes in slowly. Read John 20:1-18, or just eat your breakfast and notice the sun coming into view.
Make a Resurrection Collage
I see resurrection in all kinds of small places all around, especially in the springtime: a baby bird pecking out of her shell, a flower poking out of the earth, rain giving nutrients to the soil. What signs of resurrection do you see all around? Gather up magazines and newspapers (particularly those with lots of photos) and use them to make a resurrection collage. You can add your own illustrations, paintings, or drawings. When you're done with your collage, share it with the other members of your family. Another way to do this is to make one collage as a whole family and work on it together.
Source
Materials taken from excerpts of:
- Faithful Families for Lent, Easter, and Resurrection by Traci Smith (Chalice Press; 2021, All Reserved Rights)