Memorize these verses as a family:

Galatians 3:26 You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.

Galatians 4:6 Because you are sons, God sent the spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.”

Listen. Jesus lived at a time that was unfair to girls. If your parents had a house or a farm and they were too old to take care of it, they passed it on to one of their children. The child who got the house or farm was called an heir. Only sons could be heirs. Girls were not allowed. Is that fair?

Paul tells us that when Jesus came, he gave us an amazing gift. Everyone can be a “son” of God. Everyone can be an heir. We don’t receive a house or a farm, but God’s three big promises:

• A forever home (heaven)
• A great, big, forever family (where God is our Father, and all who belong to Jesus are our brothers and sisters)
• A great big treasure (Jesus)

We open God’s gift with faith. Faith means trust:

• We trust that Jesus is who he says he is.
• We trust that God will keep his promises to us.
• We trust that when Jesus tells us to do (or not do) something we should listen.

God also gives us one more gift: the Holy Spirit. He reminds us that we are God’s sons and that he is our Father. He does this because we sometimes forget and when we forget, we have a hard time trusting.

Activity: Have the kids draw a picture of their favorite promise from God’s three big promises. Have them explain why this promise is so special to them. Put the pictures in a box and wrap it like a present. 

Ask the children, what do we need to have to unwrap the present? Faith. And faith means trust in God.

You can illustrate this with a “trust fall.” Have one child stand up, with you standing behind them. Ask them to fall backwards. They will have to trust that 1) you are a good parent and 2) you will keep your promise to catch them. See if they can trust you. Don’t drop them, otherwise they will be in therapy for decades. 

Discussion: What is one thing that our family needs to trust God with? Be personal and specific. How can the Holy Spirit help us trust God?

Share. What is one thing that we have learned that we can share with someone that we know? Make a plan to share it with them.