object lesson Archives | Being Confident Of This

The Family Thanksgiving Tree

November 18, 2015 by jstults 9 Comments

We started the tradition a year ago, when the leaves first began to blaze and all of the store shelves filled prematurely with Christmas items – our first Thanksgiving Tree.

Thanksgiving is the holiday that seems to get lost in the shuffle anymore, and that’s a real shame, isn’t it?

Listen, no matter what hard things we have going on in our lives right now, we still have things to be thankful for. If we don’t mark Thanksgiving in some sort of significant way, then we’re missing out on an opportunity to look back over the year and remember.

Why is remembering so important?

Because we fickle humans so quickly and easily forget our Father God’s goodness, just like the Israelites forgot the goodness of Yahweh time and again throughout the Old Testament.

In fact, I found myself guilty of the same trap just a few weeks ago. In spite of the magnificent and awe-inspiring ways God has provided for our family during this pastor-to-church-planter transition, I became discontent.

I grumbled. I complained. I resented the hard work we’ve been doing.

I wanted an easier way, and I failed to remember the glorious things the Father had already done on our behalf.

So this year, the Thanksgiving Tree tradition continues, but along with each family member’s “thankful leaves,” we added a whole extra section in green – the living color – to demonstrate God’s show of faithfulness.

You see, I want our children to remember.

I want that image burned into their little brains and hearts, the tangible green of God’s goodness to our family. I want them to see how plentiful the green is on our Thanksgiving Tree.

Once we finished hanging each leaf of thanks this evening, I told them, “Turn and look again at the tree. See all of the green leaves at the top! How many do you think there are? Probably at least 20, maybe even 30. That’s how well God is caring for us. Do you see it? Look at it a little longer because I want you to remember this for years to come.”

And I know they will because to this day, I savor my own childhood memories of missionary life and the often miraculous answers to prayer that I experienced as a child.

The thing about remembering is that it naturally boosts our faith. Remembering His provisions encourages us to endure the hard things in life!

I’m sure that’s why the Father continually reminded his people throughout His Word to remember the great things He had done for them, to remember His very character. Is anything too hard for Him?

We need to believe in possibilities rather than probabilities.

Even more, being thankful for what we have brings a joy to our hearts like none other.

When I saw this particular orange leaf way up at the top where only our oldest and tallest young man could have placed it, my heart nearly burst.

For that moment, I caught just a glimpse of what the Lord is doing in the midst of this tough season – that it isn’t just about us, or even this town we attempt to minister to, but it’s about the generation to come, too. It’s about the budding faith of each child who lives here in this house.

I’m so very thankful that despite our frequent parenting failures and our own often-weak faith, our teenage son sees clearly the importance of living out an authentic faith.

That’s the bright spot in this struggle, friends!

So even if you don’t have anything particularly special to celebrate this Thanksgiving, why not use this opportunity to create a visual display of God’s gifts in your home?

There is something special about writing out your blessings one by one on colorful leaves and then holding them in your hands, touching His gifts to you, knowing you could fill up a thousand leaves with the Father’s goodness.

There is something special, too, about catching glimpses of the things your children are thankful for, and for them to see the things you are thankful for, as well.

Why not take this opportunity, even just for a few minutes, to make the Lord’s goodness clear to your children, to read about it in the Word, and to take turns sharing the things you are thankful for as you place them on the Thanksgiving Tree?

I know that when we walk by that wall in the center of our home, we’ll remember God’s many gifts. And it will last long after the Thanksgiving meal has come and gone.

Every time the little ones make a remark about our Thanksgiving tree, it’s one more opportunity to tell them about the Father God we serve.

Have I convinced you yet? 🙂

It doesn’t need to be a complicated tree, or even a tree at all, but some sort of visual reminder that your blessings are many. It could be as simple as a hand-written list posted somewhere prominent in your home. (Grace in all things, friends!)

Let’s mark Thanksgiving in a special way this year!

Instructions for a Thanksgiving Tree:

The tree trunk

For the trunk and limbs of the Thanksgiving tree, cut apart a couple of paper grocery sacks into long strips (discard the bottoms – they are too thick).
Then, twist the strips by hand to make a long paper rope of sorts.
Once the paper is twisted, you can untwist it little by little to get the desired trunk or limb thickness.
For the very bottom of the trunk, you will not need to even twist the paper, just sort of crinkle it up and then shape it with your hands.
To make the smaller limbs and twigs, use a thinner, shorter strip of paper.

The leaves

Use your favorite leaf template or trace some real leaves from outside. You might even try making some leaf rubbings and cutting them out.
Even though it’s not scientifically correct, our kids like a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors of leaves from various trees.
I recommend tracing onto card stock so that the leaves will last a little longer.
Give each family member a handful of leaves to write on.
For younger kids, have them make a practice list before they write on the leaves themselves. 🙂
Use a sharpie or other dark colored marker or crayon to write each thing you are thankful for on each of your leaves of thanks.
Then, hang the leaves on the tree or fix them to the wall. (I just use tape!) We like some of ours to be falling through the air and some around the base of the tree. (As much as possible, I try to let the kids do this on their own and resist the urge to re-position any clumpy areas, haha.)
After the Thanksgiving tree is decorated, take turns sharing what you wrote on your leaves.

The Lesson

Read Psalms 100 and 1 Thess. 5:18 and discuss why it’s important to give thanks.
Or Read Matt. 6:25-34 and discuss why we don’t need to worry.
Pray together as a family – thank the Lord for His goodness.

Last year, I had plans to turn our Thanksgiving tree into a Valentine’s Day tree and an Easter tree, and so forth, but I never did. This year I am determined. So, you might want to keep at least the bare bones of your tree for a while (hint, hint). 🙂

Don’t just celebrate Thanksgiving at the family gathering this year, friends. Give it the same thoughtful treatment you do Christmas and Easter. Start talking about it with your children now.

Make a plan for how to take advantage of those teachable moments whether it be through a Thanksgiving Tree or some other way to remember and give thanks.

After all, our God deserves the glory!

Jen 🙂

Sharing with: Tell It To Me Tuesdays, Wholehearted Wednesdays, A Little R and R, Tell His Story, Think Tank Thursdays, Wedded Wednesdays

The Pumpkin Gospel

October 20, 2013 by stultsmamaof4 70 Comments

A few years ago, I was searching for a fall-themed object lesson for our group of AWANA kids. I found a lot of great Thanksgiving craft ideas and even Halloween ideas, but nothing that really struck me, until I ran across the Pumpkin Gospel, also known as the Pumpkin Parable.

Although traditional pumpkin carving is associated with Halloween, this object lesson is all about the Light – how Jesus changes us from the inside out. When children learn this lesson, they will remember it year after year during the Fall season.

You see, I’m learning that perhaps even pagan holidays like Halloween can be redeemed!

Kids love holidays. They love pumpkins. They also love stories. Additionally, they need to be exposed to ideas over and over again for information to take root. The Pumpkin Gospel is a perfect Fall fit!

Preparations:

You will need a table to stand at and a medium to large sized, prepared pumpkin. To prepare the pumpkin:

cut out a hole in the top and clean out the majority of the goo, but save it.
Next, cut out a face with eyes, nose and a smiling mouth, but save the pieces you remove.
Then, put the removed pieces back into place so that the pumpkin looks uncut.
Set aside a few of the cleaner seeds to use at the beginning.
Then, put the rest of the gooey seeds and pulp back in the middle of the pumpkin and replace the top.

The idea is to have the majority of the work done ahead of time so that you don’t have long pauses in your story/object lesson while you’re teaching the Pumpkin Gospel. You will also need a cookie sheet or tablecloth to contain the pumpkin mess during your story, and a candle and matches.

Pumpkin Gospel Story:

Once there was a Gardener who planted seeds in His garden (show clean pumpkin seeds). Each day the Gardener cared for the seeds. He watered them, pulled weeds from around them, and sheltered them from the heat of the sun. The seeds grew into seedlings, which developed into plants, until one day, they produced fruit – pumpkins! The pleased Gardener looked out at His garden and said, “It is good!”

The Pumpkin Gospel

One day, the Gardener went out into his field and picked a special pumpkin (place pumpkin on the table – on top of a cookie sheet or tablecloth, etc. with the uncarved side facing the audience). It was a bit dirty from laying in the garden, so he brought it inside and gently wiped it off (wipe off exterior of pumpkin). Now the pumpkin looked clean on the outside, but what about the inside?

The Gardener took a knife and cut open the top of the pumpkin (pretend to cut open the top again and take it off). And what did He find? A bunch of slimy, yucky goo! (show kids the goop – maybe even let them touch it if you have a small enough group). The Gardener wanted His special pumpkin to be beautiful, so He carefully scraped out all of the goo inside until the pumpkin was as clean inside as it was on the outside! (Remove goo and throw away. Show children the clean interior)

But the Gardener still wasn’t satisfied with the pumpkin. He decided it needed a face! So, He carefully cut out two eyes, a nose, and a big smiling mouth (Turn the carved side of the pumpkin to face the audience. Poke out the eyes, nose and mouth you carved out previously). Now the Gardener’s special pumpkin looked clean AND happy.

But the Gardener still wasn’t satisfied with the pumpkin. So, He put a light inside of it (insert candle and light it). The pumpkin glowed so beautifully! The Gardener’s special project was complete.

When friends and neighbors saw the Gardeners special pumpkin, they marveled at how He took something ordinary from His garden, cleaned it inside and out, put His light inside, and made it something extraordinary!

Explanation of the Pumpkin Gospel:

We are like pumpkins and God is the Gardener. God creates us and cares for us. He “chooses” us from all of the other pumpkins, but inside we all have the yucky goo – sin. (Read Rom. 3:23 and Rom. 6:23)

Just like the Gardener cleaned out his pumpkin’s goo, God wants to clean out all our sin, too. So, He sent his Son Jesus to die for our sins, to take the punishment we deserved. (Read Rom. 5:8, John 3:16, and 1 John 1:9)

Just like the Gardener gave the pumpkin a new face, God makes us a new creation! (Read 2 Cor. 5:17)

Just like the Gardener put His light into the pumpkin to make it shine, so God gives us His light to shine through us! (Read 2 Cor. 4:6 and Mt. 5:16)

So, when we let God clean out our sin, by believing that Jesus died to pay the punishment that we deserve, He turns us into new creations that can shine for Him! And when others see our light, then they might want to learn how to have a light of their own, too!

Religion vs. Relationship Pumpkin Gospel Alternate

In an alternate version of the Pumpkin Gospel, you can also demonstrate the difference between being saved by grace and trying to “earn” salvation through works. All you will need is a second pumpkin with a face that is painted on (rather than cut out). The story about this pumpkin is along the lines of wanting to be “chosen” but not allowing the Gardener to clean out the inside.

So, the pumpkin wears a painted face (tries to make itself acceptable on the outside), but inside, it’s still full of yucky goo. Without removing the goo, there’s no room for the Gardener’s light, so the pumpkin cannot shine.

Many people try to make themselves acceptable to God in their own way ( just like Adam and Eve in the Garden). They might go to church and act like Christians, and they might even believe in God. But unless they trust that Jesus paid the price for their sins, then the sin remains on the inside. They cannot become new creatures without allowing Christ to remove their sin. So, the light of Christ cannot be in them. (Read Eph. 2:8-10) This alternate pumpkin gospel object lesson would work especially well with older children, perhaps even youth age.

Make the most of Fall and the fun opportunities it brings!

Use the Pumpkin Gospel to build your family’s faith. You could even go beyond that – host a fall party, invite your neighbors, and make this fun pumpkin activity part of the experience. It’s a fun, no-pressure kind of way to share your faith with your neighbors!

*This post makes use of affiliate links. For more information please visit the About page for Being Confident of This. Thank you for helping to support this blog!

Note: I have recently learned that there are a variety of books available to help with this object lesson. This one seems closest:

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And Here is one for little hands:
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So, if you’re looking for a fall family activity or even an object lesson for your church or homeschool group, consider redeeming a little bit of Halloween and using the Pumpkin Gospel. Year after year when children see pumpkins lit up, they can remember the story of Who put the light inside of them!

If you have other ideas or stories for redeeming Halloween, I’d love to hear them in the comments!

Jen 🙂

Pumpkin Gospel FREE Printable

This year I’ve added a special bonus for newsletter subscribers. Just fill in the information below to access the free printable version, which includes preparation instructions and the Pumpkin Gospel parable for you to read! You will need to confirm your subscription before you receive access to the library of printables. (Hint: Look for it in your Welcome email!)

Also sharing this post with: The Mommy Club at Crystal and Co, Salt and Light Linkup