Sunday 7 March
The Story
Bible Story
Simeon Waits for the Messiah
Luke 2:25-35
Use this guide to help your family learn how
God can help us to be patient.
First, watch this video
Then, follow up with the fun activities below!
ACTIVITY: One-Minute Challenge
WHAT YOU NEED:
Timer or phone timer
What You Do
Tell your child that you’ll set the timer for one minute. Give them a pose or action to perform, and challenge them to do it for the entire minute.
Use the actions below and/or come up with some of your own. After your child attempts a couple of these, let them challenge YOU to a minute-long action or pose!
One-minute actions:
Stand on one foot
Hold a plank/push-up position
Stick your tongue out without laughing
Hold your funniest pose
Make a grumpy face without laughing
Pretend to eat your favorite baked treat over and over again
Crawl around and bark like a dog without laughing
After doing a few challenges, ask your child, “Which of those actions felt like it took the longest to be over? Was it hard to wait an entire minute for any of them?”
Talk about the Bible Story
Who was already waiting for Jesus when Mary and Joseph left for Jerusalem? (Simeon)
What promise did God give Simeon? (that Simeon would see the Messiah before he died)
How long did Simeon have to wait to meet the Messiah? (We don’t know the exact answer, but it was a long time.)
What did Simeon get to do with baby Jesus? (hold baby Jesus)
How do you think Simeon was able to show such great patience? (Let your child answer with their own ideas. Prompt them if needed by saying,
“because God made a promise to him,” or, “because he knew something great was coming.”)
Parents, share a situation you experience regularly where you have a hard time waiting.
Prayer
Use this prayer as a guide, either after your discussion or right before bed tonight:
“God, we’ve learned a lot about patience today. Now it’s time to put what we’ve learned into practice. Give us the strength to wait the way Simeon did, and to know that You are always with us. We know that to have patience, we also need to have faith. So help us trust You as we wait. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.”