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Hope. Joy. Love. Peace. Just reading the words actually can fill me with those very emotions! Advent seems a little extra special this year. And I think people are longing for and truly waiting for the fulfillment of what these words mean.
If you missed the first few weeks, you can still join in, or it time is tight just use this week! You can find the entire “Advent With My Grandkids” series right here.
Peace
This week we are talking about peace. I’m sure this is something we can all agree the world could use a little bit more of. There are days we scroll through news articles or social media and feel like ‘peace’ is an absolutely unattainable thing right now. But like the song says, “let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me…”
Christmas is an excellent time to focus on peace and to realize that it can be both received and given. It’s an excellent thing to model for our grandkids. But the best news is that the hope of peace actually isn’t just on our shoulders. It began long ago, and you can read about it in the Christmas story.
As you light the hope, joy, love and peace candles, you may want to read the Christmas story from the Bible. We’re including it here, and it doesn’t even require much of an adaptation for younger kids.
Luke chapter 2, verses 6-16
6 While Joseph and Mary were there, the time came for the child to be born. 7 She gave birth to her first baby. It was a boy. She wrapped him in large strips of cloth. Then she placed him in a manger. That’s because there was no guest room where they could stay.
8 There were shepherds living out in the fields nearby. It was night, and they were taking care of their sheep. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them. And the glory of the Lord shone around them. They were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news. It will bring great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you. He is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 Here is how you will know I am telling you the truth. You will find a baby wrapped in strips of cloth and lying in a manger.”
13 Suddenly a large group of angels from heaven also appeared. They were praising God. They said,
14
“May glory be given to God in the highest heaven!
And may peace be given to those he is pleased with on earth!”
15 The angels left and went into heaven. Then the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem. Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph and the baby. The baby was lying in the manger.
Explaining Peace to Younger Grandchildren
Peace might be a tough concept for our younger grandkids to understand. Here’s one way to demonstrate.
-As you are videochatting, tell them that everyone is going to make the loudest most annoying sounds possible for 5-10 seconds.
-Then, when you put your finger to your lips, everyone will get absolutely quiet.
-Have fun with this varying the amount of time there is ‘chaos’. 3 seconds? 7 seconds? 20 seconds?! I’m not sure I could do that last onoe!
-The moments of silence will be welcome for sure!
-You could even choose to sing Silent Night together when you’re finished with this ‘No Peace’ activity.
Of course, peace isn’t just about the absence of noise, it’s also about people working together, and about the choices we make. And it’s the reason for this whole Christmas story – that the baby in a manger would bring about peace on earth – for everyone.
Discussion Questions
Discussion Questions to use while you color this week’s Peace ornament (download the Advent Bundle below).
- What do you think of when you hear the word ‘peaceful’?
2. How can you help your family have peace this Christmas?
The Christ Candle
While we aren’t doing a separate post for the Christ Candle, which symbolizes the birth of Christ, we hope you’ll have an opportunity to videochat with your grandkids, light all five candles, retell the Christmas story or have the grandkids tell it to you, and perhaps joyfully sing ‘Happy Birthday’ to the baby in the manger. If you are fortunate enough to live close to your grandkids, you could even invite them over for ‘birthday’ cake!
Our wish for you this Christmas is that you have moments that turn into memories as you talk about and celebrate hope, joy, love, peace and the miracle of Christmas with your grandkids!