Have you felt it yet? The anticipation building towards Christmas? More and more radio stations are playing Christmas songs. More and more homes have lights strung across their roofs. More and more cars are laden with Christmas trees. And as December 25th approaches, our children are getting more and more excited for the big day.
However excited our children get for Christmas morning, it’s nothing compared to the anticipation that God’s faithful people felt for the coming of the promised Messiah. While most of our children think that the Christmas story begins the Luke 2 passage quoted by Linus in A Charlie Brown Christmas, the truth is that the Christmas story started long before that. All throughout the Old Testament, God is pointing us to the coming of His Son, the Savior coming to take away the sin of the world.
As parents, it’s our job to help our kids understand exactly what makes Christmas worth so much celebration. Walking them through the Old Testament and showing how it all points to Jesus helps children understand why the birth of a baby boy in Bethlehem is such a big deal.
The Austin Stone has just put out a gospel-centered Advent Devotional which does just that. Every day from Dec 1-25, there is a passage of Scripture to read from the Old Testament, a devotional showing how that passage points to Jesus, and an ornament for your kids to color and put on your tree.
You can read more about this devotional and purchase an eBook version for $5 by clicking here. Don’t miss out on all the opportunity this season provides to help your kids grow in knowledge and worship of Jesus!
Photo:Â Nativity by Jeff Weese is licensed under CC BY 2.0