The Tender Mercy of Forgiveness

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Some families do all their Christmas celebrating on Christmas Eve (Dec. 24) instead of Christmas Day (Dec. 25). If that's what you do, skip this devotional and move on to the Good News About a Child family Christmas devotion above.

Light ALL FOUR candles!

Pray this prayer. Have your child repeat phrase by phrase.
Dear Jesus,
thank you for caring about me
and forgiving me
all the time.

Read this Bible thought from Luke 1:77.
Have your child repeat phrase by phrase.
God forgives
and loves me
all the time.

This devotional assumes that you use "time outs" as a way of gently disciplining your son or daughter. If you use another method, such as the "removal of privileges" for the rest of the day or week, as suggested by the Smart Discipline program, revise the words in the brackets as you desire.
I love you all the time. Do you know that? Even when you do things that I have to [give you a time out for], I love you always! One of the ways I show you I love you is that after a few minutes, the [time out] is over!

When I [give you a time out], and then when I say it's [been long enough], I am showing you something about God. God loves us and God wants us to do good things. But sometimes we don't and sometimes when we do bad we feel bad or sad or mad!
Maybe there is a simple example you can use about this from your own life or your own childhood.

But feeling bad doesn't last forever! God wants to show us his love again! And so, after awhile, God helps us to know it's okay. That's called forgiveness.
Tell them more about forgiveness and how it might have fit into the simple example you used above.

God cares for us even when we aren't always good. When Jesus came to earth, he came to show us that he loves us all the time! That's what we learn at CHRISTMAS! Talk about how you give presents even when your child hasn't been good all the time!

Pray this prayer. Have your child repeat phrase by phrase.
Dear Jesus,
thank you for caring about me
and forgiving me
all the time.
Add your own thoughts and prayers.

Read this Bible thought from Luke 1:77.
Have your child repeat phrase by phrase.
God forgives
and loves me
all the time.

Put out the candles.