It’s the most wonderful time of the year! I love to light the tree and enjoy reading books as a family next to its glow. We make many memories during the Christmas season — from baking cookies, to eating yummy sweets, to watching movies together on the couch, to driving to see the lights, or listening to a special concert. During this season, you need quick wins to incorporate the Christmas story and the meaning of it into your days. Follow along to read Five Nights of Easy Christmas Devotions for your Family. This simple guide gives you the words to say to make meaningful connections with your kids around the Christmas story.
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As you start each of these devotions, read the topic of each devotion and then complete the introduction together.
1. Night ONE of Easy Christmas Devotions for Your Family
TITLE:
JESUS is the Greatest Gift to the Whole World
INTRODUCTION:
Ask your children to find a baby Jesus decoration from your home. It may be from your nativity scene or from a book. Bring it to where you are having devotions. If you have more than one child, they can each find one around your home. Talk about how Christmas is all about Jesus!
LESSON:
One of my most treasured experiences as a mom was holding my babies and watching them sleep. There is something so sweet about their chubby cheeks, the shape of their lips, and the curly hairs at the top of their heads. I probably stared at our babies for hours! I’m sure your mommy and daddy will agree with me! But there is one thing I just don’t understand… how those babies are born sinners! That little baby just knows how to do it because we are ALL BORN SINNERS (Romans 3:23)! No one taught her how to sin, how to be selfish, how to lie, or how to be angry!
Well, all of us except for Jesus. When Jesus came into this world as a baby, things were different right from the start. He had a mother (Mary), but His father was not technically Joseph — it was God Himself. This meant that Jesus was born without sin. He was perfect and kept that perfect life for the 33 years He was on the earth. When Mary looked at His face, she truly saw perfection. He looked like a normal Jewish baby boy — probably with lots of dark hair. But there was nothing normal about Him.
When we think about Jesus this Christmas season, I want us to consider His perfection and holiness. He is the perfect gift because He is the holy gift. His holiness (being without sin) is what allows His death on the cross for us to be the exact sacrifice that we need for the forgiveness of our sin.
I am sure that there will be a few presents this year that you are going to give that you believe are just perfect. You found an amazing Lego set for your brother, the most hilarious dad joke tee-shirt for your father, and a nail polish set that your sister will adore. You are excited for them to open those on Christmas morning, but as you think about those gifts, consider Jesus as our perfect gift. Thank Him for coming to this earth to be your perfect gift this Christmas.
You see, without Jesus coming to this earth as holy and remaining holy (without any sin), you and I would not have the opportunity to have our sins forgiven once for all. Jesus was the perfect payment for our sin and the sin of everyone in the past, present, and the future. His death makes it possible for us to be right with God. Thank Him for that this Christmas!
Read I John 4:7-12.
2. Night TWO of Easy Christmas Devotions for Your Family
TITLE:
Illuminating the Darkness in our World
INTRODUCTION:
Today we are going to do something different. Let’s turn off all of the lights and have our devotions on the floor in front of the Christmas Tree!
LESSON:
Lights cover our town during the Christmas season. We love going out on a cool winter evening to drive from neighborhood to neighborhood looking at the houses — some with dozens of inflatables, others with millions of lights set to music, and others still with a few strands of lights and a simple lit nativity scene. Do you like to do that to? Share with your family one memory you have of seeing Christmas lights together.
Lights truly are a symbol of Christmas, and rightly so, since Jesus Himself declares that HE is the Light of the World (John 8:12). Our world is very dark. No, I am not talking about power outages or nighttime without stars. I mean it is dark spiritually. People are selfish, mean, hard-hearted, angry, and full of evil and wickedness. We can’t even watch the news as a family due to all of the violence and evil that they show every night. But Jesus came to change that. He came to be the Light of the World — to illuminate all of that wickedness and turn people to God the Father. He goes on to tell us that WE are lights in the world as well. Our job is to shine Jesus in our dark world.
Matthew 5:14 says, “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead, they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds, and praise your Father in heaven.”
This Christmas season as you see all the beautiful lights whether in your home, in your neighborhood, or around your city, let them be a reminder to you to be a witness for Jesus. He has instructed us to go into the world and be His witnesses. We are like those Christmas lights — a display to all of the love and light of Jesus. Share with others the Good News of Jesus because HE is the reason for this season.
As a family talk about how you can be a light in your community — especially to those you know who haven’t accepted Jesus yet. Ask God to give you boldness to share Him with others and invite someone to your church this season for a Sunday service or special holiday service.
3. Night THREE of Easy Christmas Devotions for Your Family
TITLE:
Mary — Even Jesus’ Mother Needed a Savior
INTRODUCTION:
Find the Mary decoration from your home’s nativity scene, search for a picture on your phone or in a book, or give one of your daughters an old towel to drape on her head to be Mary.
LESSON:
Some people have the wrong idea about Mary, the mother of Jesus. Sometimes artists paint her with a halo over her head or bright lights streaming from her. People view Mary as a perfect woman who never sinned. But that simply isn’t true. There is nowhere in Scripture that it tells us that. Actually, it tells us the opposite, right from the mouth of Mary herself. When she sings her prayer to the Lord in Luke 1, she “rejoices in God my Savior.” Why would Mary need a Savior if she was perfect? In fact, she knew that she wasn’t sinless and needed the gift of salvation just as everyone else on the earth (other than Jesus) needed.
Romans 3:23 tells us, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” We are all sinners in need of a way to get us to God the Father. We are right with God though repentance of our sin and faith in Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross . Have you asked God to forgive your sin? Have you trusted in Jesus for salvation and not in your good works? This is a personal decision. We can’t think that because our parents are Christians that we automatically are Christians as well. The Bible doesn’t say that. There is nothing… NOTHING that we can DO to earn our right standing with God. It is in Christ alone.
I can think of nothing better than for this Christmas to be the time that you make that decision for yourself. Take some time to think about this personally. If Mary, the woman chosen to be the mother of Jesus, needed to have a Savior, then we must as well.
If you have already accepted Jesus as your payment for sin, share about that experience with each other as a family right now to remind each other of that special moment.
Read Mary’s prayer in Luke 1:46-55.
4. Night Four of Easy Christmas Devotions for Your Family
TITLE:
The Lowly and Humble State of Jesus’ Birth
INTRODUCTION:
Ask your children to find a manger decoration. If you don’t have one, get a small plastic container and fill it with grass to look like a manger.
LESSON:
One of the names for Jesus that I really like is the King of Kings. This doesn’t just mean that Jesus is a king. It means that Jesus is the King above all kings. He is the greatest, the best, the most important king of all time. He rules and reigns over everything from eternity past through eternity in the future.
But this King of Kings did not come to this earth in a grand and glorious way. He wasn’t born to wealthy or noble parents. His house wasn’t a majestic palace with servants to cater to His every need. No, Jesus The King of Kings, was born to poor parents — not from a rich class but from a working class. He was not placed into a golden cradle but a manger, a feeding trough for animals. Scratchy hay touched His cheek instead of soft, luxurious fabrics.
Jesus HUMBLED Himself to come to this earth. He knew that He wouldn’t receive the praise, honor, and glory that He deserved. He came anyway because He loved us that much. Jesus knew that not only would His life be filled with humility but His death would be as well. He could have stopped the people’s plan at any time, but He chose to be beaten, ridiculed, and hung on the cruel cross as the perfect payment for our sin. Now THAT is humility! (See Philippians 2:5-11)
What about you? Are you humble like Jesus was? We often think that we deserve this or deserve that. We get upset when someone doesn’t treat us as we think they should — whether at a hotel, restaurant, store, ballfield, or school. Often, we are filled with too much pride. If Jesus could humble Himself as the King of kings to be a man, live on this earth with human parents, and then die a cruel death, then I can lower myself and be humble too.
That may look different for you then for others. It may mean that you lift up other’s performances even though you are the best player on your team, or you humbly accept the academic achievement award at the end of the quarter in school, or you willingly and cheerfully serve others who you wouldn’t normally even talk to, or you joyfully help the 5th grade boy in the wheelchair quickly get to his next class. It may mean that you clean the toilets in your home even without being asked.
Jesus is our example of humility. If He can choose to lower Himself, so can I. How will you follow His example this Christmas season? Discuss with your family how you can choose humility this season.
Read Philippians 2:1-11.
5. Night Five of Easy Christmas Devotions for Your Family
TITLE:
Christmas Trees — a Symbol Pointing us to God
INTRODUCTION:
What shape are Christmas trees? Go to your Christmas tree or a picture of one to notice that it is usually thought of being a triangle with the point at the top. Do you prefer to have colored lights on your tree or white lights? Discuss your preferences as a family.
LESSON:
Standing in the corner of our family room is our Christmas tree. We take the day after Thanksgiving to pull out all the decorations and set up the tree while blaring Christmas music. It’s a tradition. After fluffing out the branches, we put on the white lights, and then carefully add ornaments, each of us adding ones that we have collected or received as gifts. While the little kids can only reach the bottom half of the tree, the big kids add their ornaments to the top half to even everything out.
When we finish, we step back and admire the beauty of the tree. Did you know one of the significances of a Christmas tree? The tree stands in our home with a wide base that tapers to a point at the top. That point directs us to God like an arrow pointing toward the target. A Christmas tree points us to God. You may never have thought about that before, but the shape and the beauty of a Christmas Tree are designed to direct us to God the Father, Jesus, and The Holy Spirit.
Whether your tree is real or artificial, covered with snow or plain, large or small, decorated by a theme or dressed in homemade ornaments, thin or thick, most trees will have the shape of a triangle with the point up. This design encourages us to be like a tree and point to Jesus in all that we do as well. As you see the tree in your home, school, church, or town, be reminded that your life needs to point others to God.
Matthew 28:19-20 “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.”
Acts 1:8 “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you. And you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
Read The Parable of the Pine Tree by Lizz Curtis Higgs.
My hope and prayer is that these devotionals will be a springboard for your family to have meaningful spiritual conversations. As you read these five nights of easy Christmas devotionals for your family, may the Lord use them in your lives to make this an extra special Christ-filled Christmas.
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