25 Days of Scriptures & Activities for Christmas

Merry Christmas! Today I have a new reading schedule for Christmas! This schedule has 25 days with 25 different Scriptures and suggested activities. You can download in a calendar format or as a lesson plan with more detailed instructions . . . or, scroll down, and find the whole thing on this page! (Tip: If you use the calendar, you might want to have your child color in each space as you go to keep track of your progress!)

I hope you are able to use this with your family this Christmas!

Keep serving Jesus!

Cheri

25 Days of Christmas (Advent Calendar pdf)

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25 Days of Christmas Scriptures & Activities (full instructions pdf)

December 1^st:

• Read John 1:1-5, 14
• Turn off all the lights in your house. Then plug in your Christmas lights. Notice how the light shines in the darkness – the same way Jesus did and the same way we should! Don’t have your Christmas tree up yet? Light a candle!
• Sing “Here I am to Worship”
• Make a Christmas Candle Paper Craft. 

December 2^nd:

• Read Isaiah 11:1, Jeremiah 23:5-6 & Matthew 1:1
• These verses show us the prophecy that Jesus would be from the line of David – and the fulfillment of that prophecy! Jesus’s earthly parents were both descended from David. David was in his family tree! Use your Christmas tree to explain the idea of a “family tree”. Start at the top of your tree – if David was the top branch of the tree, his son (Solomon) was the branch right under him . . . and so on . . . Go all the way until you get to the bottom of the tree . . . then Jesus came along! He is the most important branch on this tree! The one who holds the whole tree up! Without Jesus, this tree would fall down. Jesus is the foundation of this tree – just like He should be the foundation of our lives!
• Make a Christmas tree craft for your tree.
• Eat Christmas tree snack cakes!
• Check out this fun genealogy song:  

December 3^rd:

• Read Isaiah 7:10-14
• This is another prophecy about Jesus! According to these verses, Jesus was going to be called Immanuel, which means God with us! Isn’t it amazing to think of God living right among us as a baby? That’s exactly what happened!
• When people are expecting a baby, they often have a baby shower – a special party to celebrate the fact that a baby is coming. Have a baby shower for Jesus today! Eat cupcakes, drink punch, and celebrate!
• Go out and buy a new baby shower gift – diapers, an outfit, anything at all! Take this gift to your local Pregnancy Resource Center to be used to help pregnant moms who could use the extra help!
• Make an Immanuel craft.  

December 4^th:

• Read Luke 1:26-38
• Mary was chosen to be the earthly mom of Jesus! She wasn’t sure how this was going to happen, but she trusted God and did what He wanted her to do. Who told Mary that she was going to be the mother of Jesus? The angel Gabriel. If you have a nativity scene, act out this passage using your Mary and angel pieces. If you don’t have a nativity scene, you can use dolls, minifigures, or even yourselves!
• Make an angel craft.  
• Make an angel snack craft using bugles and pretzels.  

December 5^th:

• Read Matthew 1:18-25
• Yesterday we read Mary’s story. Here’s Joseph’s! Joseph also did what God told him to do – even though it seemed to go against what he thought he should do at first! He also trusted God. Do you trust God? Are you willing to obey Him no matter what?
• Joseph was also visited by an angel! Make another angel craft – this one using paint and your child’s handprints! Use handprints for the wings and body and then draw (or glue a circle cut out of paper) for the head. Let your child draw the facial features and anything else he/she wants to add to the picture.
• Eat angel food cake!

December 6^th:

• Read Isaiah 9:2, 6-7
• Here is a birth announcement for Jesus – hundreds of years before he was born! Look at the names that are used for Jesus in these verses. Write the names on index cards and hide each card somewhere in your room. Send your child on a “Name of Jesus” search. Each time he/she finds an index card with a name of Jesus on it, stop and talk about what that name means. Play this game as many times as your child wants!
• Find a fun song for these verses here:  

December 7^th:

• Read Micah 5:2-5
• Here’s another prophecy – this one telling us where Jesus was going to be born – hundreds of years before his birth! Where does Micah say Jesus will be born? The town of Bethlehem!
• Make your own little town of Bethlehem using gingerbread houses.  

December 8^th:

• Read Luke 2:1-7
• Here we see the fulfillment of yesterday’s Scripture. Mary and Joseph have to travel to Bethlehem for the census, and while they are there, Jesus is born!
• Make a baby Jesus snack using string cheese and ham! Cut the string cheese in half and wrap the ham around it . . . just like Mary wrapped baby Jesus in swaddling clothes. Go even further and make a manger out of pretzels and use shoestring potatoes for straw! Put baby Jesus in the manger!

December 9^th:

• Read Luke 2:8-20
• Make candy cane cookies to remind you of the shepherds’ staffs! Don’t want to make cookies? Eat a candy cane instead!
• Act this passage of Scripture out using your nativity scene (or anything else you have)

December 10^th:

• Read Luke 2:21-38
• Jesus is now 8 days old and he is presented at the temple – where he meets two people who have been waiting for the Messiah to be born! How do you think Simeon and Anna felt when they saw Jesus?
• It was at this time when Jesus was given his name. Make a name of Jesus ornament for your tree! One way you can do this is to cut 5 circles out of different colored construction paper. Put one letter of Jesus’s name on each circle using glitter, stickers, markers, paint, or anything else you have on hand! Punch a hole in each circle and tie them together with ribbon. Hang it on your Christmas tree!

December 11^th:

• Read Psalm 72:8-13
• Another prophecy! This one prophecies the kings coming to visit Jesus and bringing Him gifts!
• Have you done any Christmas shopping yet? Wrap some of your presents and put them under the tree!
• Make a homemade gift for someone who could use some cheering up. Wrap it up and take it to that person!

December 12^th:

• Read Matthew 2:1-12
• The Magi saw the star and followed that star to find Jesus! Make a star craft for your tree. Cut a star shape out of any type of paper and give your child craft supplies to decorate it. Punch a hole in the top and use ribbon to attach it to the tree!
• Play “follow the star”. Similar to follow the leader, except one of you is the “star”. You could even make a star and hold that star up as you lead. Have fun following the star to Bethlehem!

December 13^th:

• Read Hosea 11:1, Matthew 2:13-14
• King Herod did not like the fact that a new king was born and Jesus was in danger! Joseph was warned in a dream, and the family quickly left for Egypt. Find Egypt on a map. Find Bethlehem. Discuss the trip they took to get to safety.
• Jesus was a King! Make a crown ornament for you tree. Trace the shape of a crown on hard paper, cut it out and let your child decorate it. Use ribbon to attach it to the tree.

December 14^th:

• Read Jeremiah 31:15, Matthew 2:16-18
• This is a very sad passage of Scripture, but it is part of what happened when Jesus came to earth as a baby. Talk with your child about the terrible things that happened because of Herod’s hatred towards Jesus. Herod did not value human life at all – and today, many people still do not value human life. But we know that every life is precious because every person was made in the image of God.
• Spend time today praying for people to realize that every life is precious!

December 15^th:

• Read Luke 2:39-40
• Now they are living in Nazareth, where Jesus grew up. Jesus grew up . . . just like you are growing up. Talk about some of the things that Jesus may have done as a child. What things are similar to what you do? What things are different?
• What do you think it was like to be the brother or sister of Jesus? Mary and Joseph had other kids after Jesus was born . . . can you imagine having Jesus as a big brother? Help your child write (or draw) what that would have been like.

December 16^th:

• Read Philippians 2:5-11
• Jesus humbled himself – he became like a servant – and we need to be servants, too! What are some ways that you can serve the people around you? Look for ways to be a servant today.
• Someday every knee is going to bow and every tongue is going to confess that Jesus is Lord! Eat fruit roll ups today (let the fruit roll ups remind you of tongues!)

December 17^th:

• Read Matthew 26:47-56
• Now we are getting to the reason Jesus came to earth. He came to die for our sins! This passage talks about what happened when Jesus was arrested.
• Judas betrayed Jesus with a kiss. Make a snack using pretzels, Hershey kisses, and red and green m&ms. Put one kiss in the center of each pretzel. Cook them in an oven (350 degrees) for 3 minutes. Place an m&m on each kiss and push it down. Let it cool. Now you have a Christmas snack you can eat that can also remind you of the night Jesus was betrayed.

December 18^th:

• Read Matthew 27:33-54
• Make a cross ornament for your Christmas tree. 
• Use pretzel rods to make a cross snack! Melt chocolate chips (or white chocolate) and dip the pretzel rods in the melted chocolate first. Then add sprinkles. Let it harden and then eat your snack.

December 19^th:

• Read Matthew 27:57-66
• Jesus died on that cross and then he was placed in a tomb. A rock was placed in front of the tomb. Paint a rock today. Add it to your Christmas decorations.
• Use playdough to make a tomb. Put your painted rock in front of it. Leave it there overnight.

December 20:

• Read Matthew 28:1-10
• Yay! Jesus is alive! Have a race to see who can get to Jesus’s tomb first . . . designate a place as the tomb and have races to see who can get there first!
• Make empty tomb crescent roll snacks. Roll a marshmallow in sugar and cinnamon, place the marshmallow inside a crescent roll, cook the crescent roll according to package instructions. When you take it out of the oven, the marshmallow should be gone!

December 21^st:

• Read John 20:19-31
• Make a wreath showing the life of Christ! Use a paper plate, ribbon, and muffin tins. Cut out the center of the paper plate. On the muffin tins, draw a different scene from Jesus’s life. Some things to include could be his birth, the shepherds and angels, the wise men, his crucifixion, and an empty tomb. Glue the muffin tins around the outside of the paper plate. Put a bow on the top and you now have your own wreath!
• Find some nails. Tie them together with ribbon and hang them on your tree to remind you of Jesus’s sacrifice.

December 22^nd:

• Read Acts 1:1-9
• Jesus wants us to be his witnesses to the whole world! Make a world ornament today. Use a plain glass or plastic ornament, a map of the world, and mod podge. Cut several circles out of your map of the world and then mod podge them onto the ornament. If you’d like, add a cross over the map to remind you to take the Gospel into the whole world. Tie a ribbon through the top and add this to your tree.
• Going into the whole world starts with your own neighborhood! Make Christmas Cookies and pass them out to your neighbors. Add a homemade card with a Bible verse or an invitation to come to church with you. Deliver them to your neighbors!

December 23^rd:

• Read Romans 5:6-11
• Jesus died for you! Make a beaded ornament to remind you of what Jesus did for us! Use a pipe cleaner and add beads for the following colors: Black: sin, Red: the blood of Jesus, Blue: Baptism, White: Jesus cleanses us from our sins, Green: growing in Jesus, Yellow: the promise of heaven. Do those colors in the same order over and over until the pipe cleaner is filled. Shape it to be a circle (wreath) and attach it together. Add a ribbon and tie it on the tree.
• Make a photo ornament craft.  

December 24^th:

• Read Acts 2:37-47
• Make church window cookies to remind you of the importance of meeting together as a church! Melt one bag (or more) of chocolate chips in a pan on the stove. Allow it to cool a little and then add an equal amount of bags of mini colored marshmallows. Mix it together. Then split the mixture up into rolls on waxed paper and put them in the refrigerator to harden (at least 24 hours). Take them out, unwrap them, and slice them and you have yummy church window cookies!
• Buy presents and take them to someone who is in need!

December 25^th:

• Read John 3:16-17
• Spend time today thanking Jesus for his gift to us!
• Merry Christmas!!

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