We have a little tykes nativity set that we have kept out for all of December and January so our 6 month old daughter can play with it. All sorts of things get added to the nativity scene. At the moment Mary and Joseph are fawning over a yellow rubber duck and baby Jesus is nowhere to be found!
Recently when Zoe had a bath in our kitchen sink, we threw all the nativity characters in with here. They needed a wash and so did she so it made sense! After the bath I got Zoe dried and dressed and left the nativity characters to drain on the board.
Later, as I rushed around to leave the house, busily trying not to forget something important, I noticed the nativity characters on the draining board. I stopped and smiled. There were Mary and Joseph and the others standing next to my whisk, sieve and casserole dish 🙂
It reminded me of the passage in Deuteronomy 6: ‘Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.’ (v4-7).
We try as hard as we can to make God a normal part of our everyday life. Whether that is praying often, not just before food. Asking one another ‘where we have seen God today?’ or ‘How has God revealed himself through scripture or prayer?’ We have Christian/Bible stories to read as well as “That’s Not My Dinosaur” and ‘The Wonky Donkey.” Putting the nativity characters in the bath/kitchen sink with Zoe seemed like the most normal thing to do. As I saw Mary, Joseph and a wise man draining alongside my whisk, sieve and casserole dish, I was reminded Jesus is present with us in church, at small group and in band but also at the supermarket, in the car, in the kitchen, and even in the bath!
If you would like to learn more about how to make Jesus and every day part of the lives of the children in your midst, then you should join in our new online course: Discipling Children in Our Midst. You can find out more about this and all our other online courses on the Inspire School of Discipleship by clicking the button below.
Rachel is an Inspire Missioner in England and Mum to Zoe and Boaz (who lives forever with Jesus)Â
