“Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!” – Matthew 25:21
APPETIZER
- ASK the family: Imagine that for your birthday a relative gives you an expensive gift (bike/new toy/ cell phone…whatever is age appropriate for your kids). But let’s also imagine that you never take it out of the box, put it together, or use it. Is that why it was given to you?
- ASK: “How might your relative feel who gave you the gift if you never opened or used what was given to you?”
- Today’s Big Idea: God has blessed us with gifts to use for His bigger purposes.
MAIN COURSE
- Read Matthew 25:14-28 aloud together.
- ASK the family: In this parable, what did the master entrust to each of his servants before leaving on a journey? (“talents” were amounts of money in Jesus’ day) What did each man do with what had been given him?
- ASK: When the master returned, why did he call the first two men “good and faithful” servants? What reward was given to each one?
- ASK: “How did the master respond to the third servant’s report? Why did the master not accept the third mans’ excuses?”
- EXPLAIN: God has blessed you with time, talents and treasure. Your time is the gift of doing something of eternal value each day. Your talents are your abilities (gifts). Your treasure is your money or valuables.
TABLE TALK (QUESTIONS TO DISCUSS AND WRAP UP)
- What is a steward and what does it mean to be a “good steward”? (a steward is given the responsibility to take care of things that belong to someone else)
- How can you honor God with your time? Your abilities? Your money or possessions?
- Read (or assign a child to read) Luke 21:1-4 and then ask: After hearing this story, can we ever use the excuse, “I’m just too poor to give”? What is God most concerned with? (giving from the heart)
- Close your time in prayer.