Effective Children's Ministry

Children’s workers are always busy people ( as are others in the Lord’s service!) This time of year may be very stressful, with our own family Christmas to sort out and, on top of that, our church presentations to organize and events to run. If bereavement has placed an additional stress on you, there is help. I found the following article very helpful and hope you will too.

>‘He is… acquainted with grief…’ (Isaiah 53:3).

Christmas can be a difficult time, especially when you’ve lost a loved one. The sounds and sights that once brought you such joy now remind you of them, and reinforce your sense of loss. There’s no magic formula; grief is a process you must walk through, and it takes time. Here are some personal thoughts that might help:

Try to keep things in perspective: Christmas is only one day out of 365. You can do anything for 24 hours because God promised that  ‘. . .your strength will equal your days’ (Deutronomy 33:25 NIV).

Check and see if there’s a needy family or a lonely neighbour who’d enjoy spending an hour with you. Reaching out is difficult – but it brings healing.

Don’t accept the myth that everybody else is having ‘a perfect Christmas’ while you struggle. The truth is, even for Christians, Jesus’ birth gets eclipsed by unrealistic demands and the pressures of shopping, entertaining and gift-giving. Why do you think we’re so relieved when it’s all over?

Don’t maintain old traditions if they make you feel worse. Create new ones that work for you now – you might even want to keep them.

If you’re struggling with Christmas this year, here’s a prayer for you:
‘Lord, You know how I feel today, because Your Word says You are familiar with grief. Heal my heart and fill its emptiness. Become more real to me than the activity without and the loneliness within. Help me to discover You and, in so doing, make this a Christmas like none I’ve ever known. Amen.’ Reprinted from Word for Today by kind permission of UCB, PO Box 255, Stoke-on-Trent, ST4 8YY, from whom free copies of this daily devotional booklet are available for the UK and the Republic of Ireland.