Having time for a Christmas Bible study – that the whole family can do together is one way to keep Christmas about Jesus and to make it heart-focused. And yet ironically, or unfortunately, it is something that we often push to the side, and regret later that we didn’t do something more specific about Jesus this year!  Today I’m sharing some tips on finding a bible study that will help you focus on Jesus, but also some ideas, that if you have left it to the last minute there are some things that you can do – pretty much by the seat of your pants, on the run, and yet, still focus on Jesus.  Listen in!

Christmas Bible Study Ideas for the Whole Family

One of the reasons we celebrate Christmas in our family is that it gives us a specific time in our yearly calendar to focus on what God has done for us.  When our children were young, we used this season to focus our family Bible study and Devotion times on the themes of Christmas.  We studied things like:

• The Names of Jesus
• The Jesse Tree
• Symbols of Christmas
• The prophecies foretelling Jesus
• God’s purpose and Story

With these studies the kids grew in their understanding of the foundations of our faith.  We also had specific opportunities to live out our faith in our community.  Though society is becoming less aware that Christmas is about Jesus Christ, there is still opportunities to make the world know that this is the reason why we celebrate so it is important that we live out our faith at this time.

Finding a Christ-Centered Study at Christmas time

There are so many resources for Christian families these days – to be honest, it can be overwhelming.  Which book will be right for our family this year!?  Here are four guiding principles to help you find the right study to guide your choices:

1-Be intentional: To be intentional means you know what you want to achieve, and how you are going to do it.  So make time to make a decision as to what heart (belief or value) issue your family needs to focus on, what material you will use to direct your instruction and when in your day you intend to do a family devotion or Bible study.

2-Stay heart-focused: We need to remember that anything we do is about preparing our hearts – not our heads full of knowledge.  Find a study that gives your children the opportunity to love God more.

3-Be family-focused: Make sure your choice of study fits your family – don’t make it a complex study if you have little ones.  As our family grew older we were able to dig deeper, talk more, write more.  When we had little ones it was more about reading a story, talking and maybe drawing a picture or doing a craft.

4-Be realistic: Don’t try to do it all!  Lighting a candle, once a week may be more achievable to your family this year, than creating a Jesse Tree in all its crafting glory!  It isn’t about what you create, or what your kids create, or what lessons or readings you can tick off as done – what is important is the connection you help your children make with the truths of God’s word.

If you are looking for resources online start looking using key word searches for – Advent, Nativity, Jesse Tree, Names of Jesus, Christian Christmas. (I’d love to see what you find – leave a comment at the end)

Every Day Resources to Talk about Jesus at Christmas Time

For some reason the end of the year zooms by and often catches us by surprise – if that is you – then consider these activities – you will probably already have these things in your home.

Read Picture Books

I have a delightful collection of picture books that retell the story of Christmas from different perspectives.  Some are very imaginative and some give background stories, and some are simply told so young children can understand.  I love picture books!  The thing I find about picture books is that the youngest child in the family can understand the story – and yet, the oldest in the family can be prompted to think deeper about something that they may have otherwise taken for granted.   

Read some more about my Christmas book list.

Christmas Movies

And, no, I’m not talking about Hallmark Christmas movies – but rather movies that inspire us to think about the true meaning of Christmas.  The thing about a good story is that it provokes conversation afterward – some of my fondest memories are talking about the principles or life concepts that were hidden (or overt) in a movie.  As our kids grew older we were able to watch things that were more study orientated.  If you have teens then some of the adult studies are perfect for them. Resources targeting teens aren’t always the best for the teens who are believing and pressing into God.

Read more about some of our favourite Christmas movies.

Christmas Music

Christmas music gives us one of the easiest opportunities to talk to our kids about Jesus at Christmas time.  Driving in the car, singing in church, Christmas Carols event or just listening at home – the words to our Christmas music can be a great point of discussion.  

Read more about how you can use Christmas music to reach your child’s heart this year.

Family Lifestyle

Sometimes the best opportunities we have are the conversations we have as we are doing ordinary things – or at Christmas time, while we do the traditional things that we do in our family.  These conversations can create significant heart lessons for our kids.  The ideas of giving and sharing – whether that is done through volunteering, hospitality or other initiatives – when we teach our children that Christmas is not about the presents under the tree – we have to create concrete examples of what it is about to counter-balance the influence of media and commercialism all around us.

It’s an All-Year Thing

The hard truth is that if you only do family Bible study or devotions at Christmas, if you only talk about God-stuff as you start to think about Christmas – and not all year round – you have already lost so much ground in reaching your child’s heart.  The number one reason young adults give us for walking away from the faith that their parents raised them to have – is the inconsistencies in their parents’ faith between what they said and what they did.  Don’t take on the idea of a family Bible study at Christmas time if it is not a part of your family habits throughout the year.  Don’t start talking about truth themes in movies or music if you don’t do that already.  Or at least, be committed to starting a new way of doing things – be prepared for this Christmas to be the beginning of a new way of talking about Jesus, together, every day.

 Truly the message of Christmas is a year-long thing.  We cannot afford to miss the opportunity that celebrating Christmas gives us to reach our child’s heart – but neither can we ignore the rest of the year to do the same.

Heart-focused Action Step

Whenever you are listening to this podcast there is time for you to think about how you are going to include Jesus in your celebrations, and how you are going to encourage your children’s faith and love for God to grow and find expression.  Even if it is Christmas eve.  Take the opportunity to have at least one conversation – and like I said, keep these conversations going into the coming year.

So the action step to take is to think about the Christmas story and all our beliefs and all the theology that is intertwined with this one point in history.  Don’t freak out about me using the word theology – it is just talking about the belief and study of God.  And however much you know, is more than likely, very probable, at the very least, one step ahead of what your kids know – so share it with them.  Keep growing in understanding and love yourself and you will be able to keep encouraging your kids to grow as well!

So think about what aspect you think your kids need to think about (or maybe better words would be – what they would benefit from thinking about).  Then look at your family calendar and days to work out when you could intentionally do something that helps your kids think about Jesus.  Then go look for a resource that will help you.  Reflect on the things that I’ve listed here – the really quick ideas of picture books, movies, songs, and conversations.  Where can these things fit into your busy days?

Family Faith & Fun Advent Guide

And if you are still at a loss or overwhelmed I’m excited to say that I have a short ebook that will give you ideas.  It is based on the 4 Promise words of Christmas: Love, joy, hope, peace – and I give you prompts to take one of those words and look at ways you can talk about Jesus, bless others and have fun as a family.  The Family Faith and Fun Advent Guide is available in my store.  It is suitable for kids of all ages, and it is flexible to fit any family situation – you read the prompts that I’ve listed, and choose the activities or conversations that will benefit your family this year. Read more

Hi there! I'm Belinda and I'm glad you are here!

I am a family life coach and help parents to raise their kids with faith, values and life skills in a way that is intentional, relational and heart-focused. Read more in my Introduction page

You can learn about heart-focused parenting through my podcast, blog and weekly email (Heart Boosters).

If you need help you can book a coach call or email me here.

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