Things you’ll need:
- A simple recipe
- Write the recipe on an index card.
- Shop for ingredients.
Faith Talk: Regardless of age, instructions are a constant in life. Children follow instructions for math formulas, book reports, and soccer competition. Adults follow instructions for financial reports, house payments, and car maintenance. Outcomes are better when we follow the instructions. What would happen if you didn’t follow the instructions in a recipe? This cooking activity for your family emphasizes the value of following instructions. If possible, allow the family to help plan a meal or menu. Emphasize one recipe’s instructions. Before making the dish, discuss the ingredients and the steps in the recipe. Speculate what the outcome would be if you:
- Switched two steps in the preparation
- Eliminated a step or an ingredient
- Measured the ingredients incorrectly
- Cooked it too short or too long
Each family member should begin with their own index card with their name written at the top. Consider one strength or skill of your own that you recognize in yourself and write it on the card, under your name. Then, pass your card to your right. Similarly, write at least one positive trait for the person named on the card. Once complete, pass the card to the right. Continue until your card has made it back to you.
“Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.” Psalm 119:105
Some mistakes have a small impact on an outcome but some mistakes make a big difference. If you failed to cook the chicken, for example, the dish would not be edible. Just as a recipe provides instructions for a delicious dish, God’s Word gives us recipes for life. Because God is our Creator, He knows what is best. When we follow His instructions, we know how to handle circumstances. When we have to make tough decisions, the Bible gives us guidance.
Read the following passages together: “All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16).
For a fun alternative, gather the ingredients for a second recipe but don’t share the recipe with the kids. Allow them to make the dish without using instructions. A probable outcome will be a dish that is not edible, even though there was nothing wrong with the original ingredients. Proverbs 14:12 says, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but ends in death.” God loves you. His instructions are for your good. Discuss some of God’s instructions and how you will encourage each other to follow them.
Thank God for His instructions. “We thank you, Jesus, for the Bible Your instruction book. Help us read the Bible and learn more about Your good plans for us so we can make better decisions. In Jesus’ Name we pray, Amen.”