Journal Idea
Isn't it great that we have a gracious God? A God who loves us because of who we are, not because of what we have done? What a freeing thought. So often we get caught up in making sure that we are good enough, holy enough, righteous enough for God, but when we sit and think about it God loves us regardless of what we do. Nothing we can do will make him love us less, and nothing we can do will make him love us more. In this month's memory verse we are reassured that this is how God loves us "But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners." Romans 5:8. He sent his only son to die for us not once he was assured that we would honour him with our lives but while we were still living in denial of Jesus Christ, while we were still living a life of sin. I do believe that it is important for us to live the life that Jesus has called us to but I love being reminded that when I fail God doesn't love me any less. I think one of the greatest gifts parents can give their children is an understanding of God's grace and love for them. Take this opportunity to read through Romans 5:1-8 with your children. Discuss what the verse means to you and have them tell you what they feel it means. Take this opportunity to talk about grace as well as love. Have your child write a journal entry explaining what God's love means to them and how it feels to know that they are loved by their Creator even when they make wrong choices. For those of you with younger children, have them dictate to you their feelings and you can be the scribe. You can also extend this into a fine arts lesson by having them draw their feelings, asking them to consider colour choice (example black is often used to depict sadness) and symbols to demonstrate particular emotions.