The Third Way

Day 24

Scripture Meditation: Luke 2:8-14
“And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. 10 And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” 13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 14 “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”

Action Steps:

Sometime today, or as soon as you’re able, ask your family one of these questions:

• Does peacemaking seem practical to you? Why or why not?
• 1 Peter 3:9 says to “repay evil with blessing.” What do you think that means?
• What would peacemaking look like in our daily lives? 

You’ll also want to start planning today for your time together on Sunday. Remember, this all started with Sundays (or Saturdays) being an opportunity to slow down and enter into a different rhythm (Sabbath). This Sunday will be the culmination and reflection of all the weeks and days so far. If peace is something we have to work toward, our own homes are a great place to start. So here’s what you’ll need to begin to prepare. 

Plan a meal that allows time for a longer discussion (approx. 2-3 hrs.). Below is a basic outline of how your Saturday meal/discussion time could go. (Don’t worry we will give you a more detailed plan on Saturday.)

In order for the God of peace to rule over our lives we must first put ourselves in a posture to receive His peace. Here are four key shifts you can begin to make to be in the right posture:

• Shift from hurry to being more intentional and living with hope.
  • Before your meal, come up with a creative way to eliminate hurry from your family’s lives. Get some sticky notes or 3×5 cards to write down what you want to fill your life with in 2020. (More details on Saturday’s email)
• Shift from envy to more joy. 
  • Have this conversation over everyone’s favorite family meal.
  • We’ll give you discussion questions to go over during the meal. 
• Shift from indifference to love.
  • Discussion over dessert. (More details on Saturday’s email)
  • Remember two weeks ago when you gave away your favorite desserts? This week have everyone actually eat their favorite desserts.
• Shift from anxiety/worry to peace.
  • After the meal, go over the discussion questions provided in Saturday’s email.

Anxiety & Depression Podcast: https://www.buzzsprout.com/74326/6740707
Anxiety Conversation Video: https://drive.google.com/file/d/14syvvPgzK6F6-lS_gDxOgc8M1gFU2SB4/view?usp=sharing