Hello Parents!
Whether you've got school-age children or not, send your kids to public school or school them at home, whether you've got a house full or an arm full, these next few weeks are going to look and feel very different. I wanted to give you just a few ideas of ways to spend your time together and to fill in the gaps of what we’re missing by not gathering together each week in City Kids. We will be working this week to come up with more online worship resources for families and ways to maintain connection while we maintain social distance. If you have any ideas or suggestions of resources that would be helpful for your families during this time, please let me know!
As we begin this first week of social distancing, I’d challenge you to ask yourself this: How do you want your kids to remember the Coronavirus outbreak of 2020? What do you want them to tell their grandchildren about this experience? This will be a collective memory for our communities, so how can we let this memory be shaped by the hope of the gospel? In a culture consumed with fear and anxiety, how can we instill the hope and peace of Christ in our children? I’m so eager to partner with each of your families to do just that. In light of that goal, here are some ideas for these next few weeks:
Daily Devotions for Families from the BCP — Maybe you’ll be together as a whole family at different times of the day that usual. Maybe this is a good time to try a lunch-time midday prayer!
46 for 46 — Bishop Stewart challenged us in his message this morning to join with our entire family of churches for the next 46 days, to pray Psalm 46 together. This is an awesome exercise to commit to as a family. I’ve split the Psalm into 7 chunks and coloring pages out of a chunk for the next 7 weeks. Here are the seven coloring pages!
Neighbor Notes —Bishop Stewart also challenged us to use this unusual situation to love creativity and intentionally find ways to love and serve our neighbors and neighborhoods. One suggestion was to put notes in your neighbors mailboxes. Here’s what I’ll be doing based on the Ruch's note.
Join us on Facebook Live each weekday morning at 11:30am for a City Kids devotional from our pastors and city Kids Shepherds!
Read a whole book out loud as a family or older kids to their siblings
Go for a walk around your block, pray for your neighbors and your neighborhood
Learn to do something new together
Bake something
Try a new recipe
Write a story
Teach your children a new chore or have them help you do something you’ve been meaning to do for awhile
Teach your children, and maybe remind yourself, how to enjoy some quiet time alone
Set a time limit
Find a comfortable space and stay there the whole time
Go to the bathroom before you start the timer
Make sure you have everything you need
A book
Some art supplies
A pillow and blanket
Some gentle music
Give it a try, keep at it even if it’s a rough go the first time
Give yourself and your kids a lot of grace
Build a blanket fort
Have a dance party
Have a fancy tea party
Start a donate box and go through your closet to find things you don’t need but may bless someone else in need
Call grandparents and loved ones far away
Have a joke telling competition
Learn how to say a few things in a new language
Make a video documentary of “a day in your life”
Build a time-capsule
Check back here later for more updated ideas and resources!
May your homes and hearts be filled to overflowing with the hope and peace of Christ, our ever present help in trouble.
Grace Kircher
Director of Teams and City Kids
c. (630) 881- 4864
grace@cityoflightanglican.org