STEP 1: LIGHT THE FIRST, SECOND, & THIRD CANDLE
The third candle represents the JOY that comes with the proclamation that God was faithful to His promise to send His son Jesus.
STEP 2: WATCH THE VIDEO
STEP 3: READ THE SCRIPTURE
“Gabriel appeared to Mary and said, ‘Greeting, favored woman! The Lord is with you!’ Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. ‘Don’t be afraid, Mary,’ the angel told her, ‘for you have found favor with God! You will conceive and give brith to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give Him the throne of this ancestor David, And He will reign over Israel forever; His kingdom will never end!’ Mary asked the angel, ‘But how can this happen? I am a virgin.’ The angel replied, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you, so the baby to be born will be holy, and He will be called the Son of God.’... Mary responded, ‘I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true,’ And then the angel left her.”
—Luke 1:28-35, 38
”I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”
—John 15:11-13
“For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit…”
—Romans 14:17
“In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”
—1 Peter 1:6-9
“I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.”
—3 John 1:4
STEP 4: SING A CAROL
STEP 5: DO AN ACTIVITY THAT BRINGS JOY
IDEA #1: Go Christmas Caroling to friends house.
IDEA #2: Make a Christmas banner that spells “JOY.”
IDEA #3: Leave a plate of cookies for the mail carrier, local firefighters or garbage collectors with a blessing of joy to their lives.
STEP 6: DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Question #1: Tell of a time when you felt deep joy even in the middle of hard times.
Question #2: Talk about all the reasons why Christmas is a season for JOY!
Question #3: Think of someone specific. How can you bring joy into their world this week?
STEP 7: PRAYER
Lord God, Your Son, our Savior Jesus Christ, has brought us great joy! Teach us to be brave hearted and bold in telling others that Jesus give deep joy in the hearts of those who trust in Him.
Amen