God gave us our feelings!
God created us to have all kinds of feelings. Feelings are important because they help us to enjoy the amazingly good things that happen to us as well as the very sad and difficult things. To be healthy we need at least three happy kinds of feelings for every sad or hurt feeling.
Jesus had feelings too!
Discover some of Jesus’ feelings. Look up the Bible verses to discover some of the feelings Jesus had. You may have to guess at some of His feelings by reading the stories around the verses.
Mark 6:34 ...................................................
Mark 3:5 ...................................................
Mark 8:11-13 ...................................................
Mark 10:21 ...................................................
Mark 10:13-16 ...................................................
Mark 6:6 ...................................................
Mark 14:32-34 ...................................................
John 11:33-36 ...................................................
Comfort menu
Make a comfort menu with your family by making a list of all the ways you could comfort someone who is feeling sad. Include things like giving them a hug, listening to them talk without trying to fix things, making their favorite drink, doing something fun together, praying with them, etc. Talk about your favorite ways of being comforted. Print the list neatly and put it where everyone can see it. Provide a different color clip for each person so they can put their clip next to the comfort they need when they are having a hard time. Make sure everyone gets comforted—when we comfort each other we are putting God’s love into action.
Sharing craft
Buy a box of tissues. Cover it with plain paper. Write a comforting message, prayer, or Bible verse on each side of the box, decorate it with pictures or stickers, and give it to someone who’s feeling sad, sick, or lonely. Or make a simple folded book and write a special message or Bible verse on each page.
Feelings game
Find a small cloth bag and fill it with the letters of the alphabet—use toy letters, such as magnets or game pieces, or write each letter on a small square of paper. Pull a letter out of the bag and think of a feeling word that begins with the letter. Then describe a time when someone in the Bible might have felt that way. Pass the bag to the next person and let them have a turn. See if you can find one for every letter of the alphabet.
Something Sweet and Something Tough
When you’re together as a family, pass around a bowl of dried fruit and nuts, or any other mixture of sweet and hard foods. Take turns describing something sweet and good that happened during the day or week. Thank God for the lovely thing that happened and celebrate together by eating some dried fruit. Then let the next person have a turn. When everyone has described a lovely event, take turns describing something tough you’re facing tomorrow, or in the week ahead. Pray that God will help the person facing the tough challenge, and invite everyone to chew a tough nut as you think about how you can help each other through the challenges.
Feeling Kind
God gives us feelings so we can be kind and compassionate with each other.
What kind things could you do for someone who was feeling:
Sad ...................................................
Disappointed ...................................................
Lonely ...................................................
Angry ...................................................
Frustrated ...................................................
Afraid ...................................................
Worried ...................................................
Stressed ...................................................
And what would you like someone else to do for you if you had one of these feelings?
