especially at Christmastime? What does gingerbread have to do with Christmas? Was Jesus born in a gingerbread house?
What kind of place was Jesus born in? Jesus was born in a place where animals were kept. It may have been a cave. It certainly was not a gingerbread house.
I learned that gingerbread was first made more than 1,000 years ago in Europe—in Germany, France and England. Ginger cakes were baked for celebrations and holidays. Sweet, baked treats were made with ginger because the spice helped them stay fresh and last longer. At that time plastic wrap and plastic bags had not been invented.
Then about 200 years ago, the Grimm Brothers wrote a story about Hansel and Gretel. Do you know that fairy tale? Hansel and Gretel were lost in the woods when they came upon a house made of bread with a roof of cake. After that story was written, German bakeries made decorated gingerbread houses with icing for snow on the roofs.
When people moved to America, they brought the idea of gingerbread houses with them. Making gingerbread houses is now part of the Christmas season celebration for many families.
So, do you think there is any connection between gingerbread houses and Jesus? I think we can make a connection. What is the name of the town where Jesus was born? Do you know that the name Bethlehem means “house of bread”?
Is there bread in any of the stories you know about Jesus? Jesus fed more than 5,000 people with five loaves of bread and had twelve basketfuls left over (John 6:1–13). Jesus taught his disciples to pray to God, “Give us this day our daily bread” (Matthew 6:11). At the Last Supper that Jesus shared with his disciples, he called the bread “my body” (I Corinthians 11:24). And Jesus said, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty” (John 6:35).
Does this mean that if we believe in Jesus, we will never have to eat or drink again? No. We need to eat and drink to keep our bodies alive. There’s another kind of food that we need. We are hungry for spiritual food. Jesus satisfies our hunger for love and for hope. He tells us that we can be forgiven when we have done something wrong. If we believe in him, we can live with him in his house in heaven forever. In this way Jesus is the bread of life.
Stretching Further:
With adult volunteers, have the children make gingerbread houses to display in their classrooms or in an area where adults can also enjoy them. You may want to serve gingersnaps for a snack.
Let’s pray.
Our Father, we thank you that we can celebrate Christmas and build gingerbread houses. Thank you for the food we eat. And thank you for Jesus, the bread of life. We invite him into our hearts. Help us to love you and to love one another. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
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Christmas Mail
Theme: The reason for our joy is Jesus.
Scripture: But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Messiah, the Lord.” — Luke 2:10,11
Preparation: In a small, seasonally-decorated basket or box, place a varied assortment of Christmas cards, used or new, so that each child may hold one. Also bring blank postal cards, one per child.
It will soon be Christmas Day. Do you get excited when you think about Christmas coming? Tell me some things that happen during the weeks before Christmas.
I’ve been getting a lot of mail. I brought some of it to show you. (Hand a Christmas card to each child.) What do we call this kind of mail?
Tell me what you see on your Christmas card. (birds and other animals, snowmen, children, candles, toys, bells, snow scenes, candy canes, Christmas trees, Santa Claus or Father Christmas, angels, a star, camels, the Magi, Jesus in a manger, Mary and Joseph, etc.)
Why do people send Christmas cards? (because it’s a special time of year, to keep in touch with family and friends, especially those who live far away, etc.) What do Christmas cards often say? What are some words we find on Christmas cards? (Merry Christmas and Happy New Year; best wishes for happiness, joy, peace, blessings, etc.) One card says, “What better time than Christmas for wishing joy and cheer to all the special people who touch our lives each year. Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.”
Another kind of card came in the mail for me the other day, along with a package. My daughter sent me a birthday card and a present because my birthday is in the week before Christmas.* That made me think about the real reason we celebrate Christmas. Whose birthday do we celebrate on Christmas Day?
Then I thought, We are Christians. We believe that God sent Jesus to show us what God is like. Shouldn’t the Christmas cards that Christians send say something about Jesus Christ?
I wondered, too, how the custom of sending cards at Christmastime got started. I learned that in London, England, in 1843, more than one hundred fifty years ago, a man named Henry Cole wanted to send letters to his friends at Christmastime. But he didn’t have time to write and sign a letter to each of his friends. So he asked an artist to draw a design that could be printed on a card about this size. (Show postal card.) It would have one message that he would send to everyone. In the middle of the card the artist showed a family eating Christmas dinner. The drawings on the sides of the card showed people giving clothes and food to those who needed them. Ivy, grapes and vine leaves decorated the edges. The message on the card said, “A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to You.” That was the first Christmas card. Henry Cole had 1,000 cards like that printed, and he sold the ones that he didn’t use.
People liked the idea of having cards printed with drawings on them at Christmastime. Artists added other things to the cards they drew: mistletoe, holly, mail-wagons in the snow, turkey, children, animals and fairies. Later on, they added Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Santa Claus and Christmas trees. Sometimes they showed the countryside in spring and summer with flowers, butterflies and birds. They wanted to remind people that nature was only taking a rest in winter and there would be warm, sunny days again.
In America a printer named Louis Prang decided to have art contests for people to draw Christmas card designs. The winners won money for their drawings. Many of the winning pieces showed scenes from the Bible, including the birth of Jesus. So it wasn’t until about forty years after Henry Cole had his first Christmas card printed that some cards began to show manger scenes with Mary, Joseph and Jesus. That surprised me. I didn’t know that, for so long a time, Christmas cards didn’t say or show anything about Jesus.
What I learned was that the first Christmas card and most of the Christmas cards in more than one hundred fifty years have been sent for this reason only: to wish family and friends best wishes of the season and for the new year.
Among the best wishes I often see, however, on Christmas cards is the word “joy.” Santa Claus, Christmas trees, Christmas cards and toys are fun, but let’s remember the most important reason for being happy at Christmastime. Listen to what Luke tells us in the Bible: “But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord’” (Luke 2:10,11). Jesus came to live with us and to save us. Jesus is the reason for our joy at Christmastime and all through the year.
Stretching Further:
With the children, select the Christmas cards that show scenes, people and messages about
