Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name:
Why do we hallow God? Why do we call God our Father? Are there other ways for us to address God? Jesus called God, Abba: “daddy” - might we call God "daddy" or “mama” - or something else? God calls God's own self: "I am" (Exodus 3:14).
Who, in your family and circle of friends, and beyond, is hallowed? Who are your children's role models; who are their mentors? Did you ever learn a lesson or receive special encouragement from someone? Send them an email or text, or a letter/postcard, or make a phone call, or say a prayer for those special somebodies.
Create a family gallery of Special Someones – photos, drawings, or memorabilia. Post on refrigerator, or somewhere that everyone can admire and learn from.
Surprise somebody at home with a little love note or funny message. Hide it, perhaps! Make a family mailbox, leave it on a table at home, keep stationery handy, and see what happens. Take turns being the daily mail deliverer.
thy kingdom come, thy will be done:
Does your family have rules (spoken or unspoken)?
Make a poster and display it proudly: “In our family, we. . . ” (Talk about what makes your family special: what do you especially like to do, and to do for others? Laugh, protect, play, hug. . . add your verbs to your list!)
Go for a walk or a car ride and look for signs that instruct and/or protect. Point out the shapes and colors (how many sides on a stop sign, and what color is it?). Enjoy a pause at a stop light and talk about the three colors. (Some people say a quick prayer at stop lights: for instance, for the protection and safety of themselves and others – what prayer or phrase would you use? Make it a family thing!)
on earth as it is in heaven.
Let's look down, and up. Start at ground level - dig in the dirt, if you have a garden or are starting plants. At our house, we've put carrot and scallion ends in water, and are watching for green growth. We've started clearing leaves and sticks outside, and have been surprised to discover growing things and even some insects already.
Thank a farmer or grocery worker with a note or a smile. Offer a grace at meals.
Let's look at the sky. Learn about clouds; cut out cloud shapes and make a mobile. Ask children what each day's clouds look like. . . keep a sky and weather journal!
Learn about the phases of the moon. Be a pretend astronaut. Name the planets. Check out Pinterest for outer space learning!
Do you have a globe or an atlas? Pick a place at random, and pray for those people. Take a few minutes to look up that area online and talk about the challenges they may be facing.
Outside, close your eyes and listen. Try this at different times of the day and night.
Give us this day our daily bread.
Think about things that happen
daily.
What happens every day, or most days, or on special days? Do you have a routine or schedule? Sometimes it's comforting to know how one's day is organized. And it can be fun to sometimes
not
be scheduled!
And. . .
bread!
Every culture has its own specialty, and there are so many variations to enjoy! Brainstorm “bread” (here's are some: sourdough, matzoh, pita, tortillas. . . ) and make a poster or booklet with pictures. Lots of recipes, many of them quite simple, are found online. There's always pancakes – a favorite breakfast “bread”.
Write a poem about bread, using b, r, e, a, d as the to start each line. Or try haiku: 3 lines of 5 syllables, 7 syllables, 5 syllables. Look up quotes about bread.
And forgive us our trespasses/sins, as we forgive those who trespass/sin against us:
“It's not fair!” is one of the first sentences we hear from our children, and that feeling of indignity at injustice never leaves us. What's not fair to us and our children these days? How can we forgive?
Start a poster/chart, maybe for your fridge, with all kinds of trespasses, sins, injustices - age-appropriate ones - written in a list. Listen and write without comment. Now – together, brainstorm ways to forgive, let go of, to address with justice, care, and more – each item on that list. Write them down, make it an action list, a challenge! Offer hope and help.
At the bottom of your chart, write this Bible message: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and mind. . . and love your neighbor as yourself."
And lead us not into temptation/Save us from the time of trial, but deliver us from evil:
Time for more prayer, and some moments of calm. Last week, did you begin to create a family altar? If yes, work with it some more, adding or removing items. If no, now's a nice time to set aside a spot: a shelf, a table, a planter, some little dedicated area – to place items that remind you of the power of God, of love, and forgiveness, of hope and mercy. It can be simple or fancy, it can change. Would a cozy blanket and maybe a candle (real or battery-operated) help make this space a place to intentionally linger and chat with God? Or: simply, wherever you are, sit, stand, or kneel, and pray, together, or by oneself, at a set time or any time: often!
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever: Amen.
Put on some sweeping classical music and draw, build, or write about kingdoms, power, glory, and eternity. Make a pillow fort castle, wrap up in robes and crowns, and chat about what makes someone royal; who earns their kingdom and the respect of their subjects? What is power? Dance or march in a powerful parade.
What does glory mean? Name or draw 10 glorious things.
Learn how to read an analog clock. Make a pretend one out of a paper plate and practice reading the big hands and little hands. Find the sun and guess the time.
Use a stopwatch or timer to measure how long it takes to do things. Make a chart.
Amen means "so be it" - read the whole prayer through; add your own prayers, for what you are asking God to make be so, and shout a big amen. Sing amen! AMEN!
And:
Write out this prayer, or parts of it, and illustrate.
Send me pictures
of everything!
