Welcome Home!

"Jesus told the story of The Lost Son (Luke 15:11-32) to help people know how much God loves them and is eager to welcome them into His kingdom.

A young son wanted to be on his own.  Why not take his share of the inheritance now and go?  Reluctantly his father agreed, and the son did have fun for a while. But the fun ended when hard times came. Hungry and humiliated, he made his way home.  A loving, compassionate father saw him coming and ran to meet him before the young man had a chance to apologize. The father welcome him with total forgiveness, a big hug, clean clothes, and a great banquet. This is a picture of the joy in Heaven when a sinner comes back to God."*

 

Everyday, many men & women sacrifice the comforts of home & family to protect the freedom we have in this country.  In the midst of the dangers they face on a daily basis, they also miss their loved ones they left at home. When they come home it is time to celebrate!

 

 

This is my nephew Kevin and his wife Kristen after he returned from a tour of duty in Iraq.

(Please pray for them and their 2 children.  Kevin was deployed again in November 2012)

 

This picture always brings tears of joy to my eyes.  I know how much they missed each other, and this day was one full of joy.  Just imagine how much love & joy God is filled with when one of His children comes home!

 

One way you can get your children involved in welcoming home our servicemen & servicewomen is to make cards to send to returning soldiers.  If you know some servicemen or servicewomen personally who are returning you can flood them with cards.  If you do not know anyone personally, you can contact your local military unit for names, or you can visit Yellow Ribbon America to find more information.

 

Let the children be creative.  Use blank note cards, have the kids write notes to the returning servicemen & servicewomen that simply say, "Thank You & Welcome Home!".  They can decorate the cards with patriotic stickers or drawings. Anything fun & encouraging.

 

Another option for this project is to send "Any Hero" cards to men & women who are currently deployed.  Operation Write Home is a great resource to use to reach out to those who are serving our country far from home.  Follow the link above for directions on making "Any Hero" cards. A card like this could really brighten the day of a man or woman who is missing home.  Include a Bible verse, or a note about how God loves them. 

 

*This lesson & project were taken from Inside Out & Upside Down on Main Street VBS curriculum by Standard Publishing .