Christmas for children
Lisa Frenz 1996
Surprised by God
A Children’s Christmas Service
A = Assistant
P = Pastor
The worship service centers around the way God uses the ordinary, and surprises us by making it special.
Several youth might also present the Readings, as well as act as ushers, greeters, etc.
To present the skit you will need a minimum of 5 participants. This can be expanded to as many as 15 or 20 by splitting the Judge’s role into 10 or 15 smaller parts. For a set all you need are 2 lecterns for the Master of Ceremonies and the Judge(s), and a table with 3 chairs for the Contestants. The contestants can ring a bell or raise their hands when they want to answer a question.
In addition, non-speaking roles can be used by presenting a pantomime of the nativity during the song after the skit. The narration of the nativity can also be presented using a visual display which the participants have made: anything from posters, to a mural, to a video or slides. This format is designed for a maximum of flexibility. Use your creativity and imagination.
Hymn are taken from the Lutheran Book of Worship (LBW) or With One Voice (WOV) unless otherwise noted.
.Prelude
Hymn: O Come, Little Children (by Schultz from Christmas in Song, Rubank, Inc.)
O come, little children, O come one and all,
To Bethlehem haste, to the manger so small,
God’s Son for a gift has been sent you this night
To be your redeemer, your joy and delight.
He’s born in a stable for you and for me,
Draw near by the bright gleaming starlight to see,
In swaddling clothes lying so meek and so mild,
And purer than angels the heavenly child.
See Mary and Joseph with love beaming eyes
Are gazing upon the rude bed where He lies,
The shepherds are kneeling, with hearts full of love,
While angels sing loud hallelujahs above.
Kneel down and adore Him with shepherds today,
Lift up little hands now and praise Him as they,
Rejoice that a Savior from sin you can boast,
And join in the song of the heavenly host.
A: There is a surprise coming.
C: What surprise?
A: Look in a town too small to be noticed.
C: What town?
A: Look in a stable instead of a house.
C: What stable?
A: Look in a feed box instead of a crib.
C: What feed box?
A: Look for a poor baby, not a great king.
C: What baby?
A: God’s surprise is coming in an unexpected place.
The town is called Bethlehem with a stable therein.
It houses three people who couldn’t find an inn.
The feed box cradles a newborn.
The boy who is king of us all. Emmanuel! Jesus!
C: Amen! Come Lord Jesus!
A; Praise God for the blessings given to us!
C: Alleluia!
P: The Lord be with you!
C: And also with you!.
Hymn: Oh, Come, Oh, Come, Emmanuel (tune: Veni, Emmanuel)
Oh, come, oh, come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
until the Son of God appear.
Refrain:
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to you, O Israel.
Oh, come, blest Dayspring, come and cheer
Our spirits by your advent here:
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night,
And death’s dark shadows put to flight.
Refrain:
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to you, O Israel.
Oh, come, O Key of David, come.
And open wide our heav’nly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery.
Refrain:
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to you, O Israel.
Reading: 2 Samuel 7:1-11, 16 (from ICB)
King David was living in his palace. And the Lord gave him peace from all his enemies around him. 2 David said to Nathan the prophet, “Look, I am living in a palace made of cedar wood. But the Ark of the Covenant of God is still kept in a tent!”
3 Nathan said to the king, “Go and do what you really want to do. The Lord is with you.”
4 But that night the Lord spoke his word to Nathan. The Lord said, 5 “Go and tell my servant David, ‘This is what the Lord says: You are not the person to build a house for me to live in. 6 I did not live in a house when I brought the Israelites out of Egypt. I have been moving around all this time with a tent as my home. 7 I have continued to move with the tribes of Israel. But I have never asked their leaders who take care of them to build me a house of cedar wood.’
8 “You must tell my servant David, ‘This is what the Lord of heaven’s armies says: I took you from the pasture when you were following the sheep. I took you to become leader of my people, the Israelites. 9 I have been with you everywhere you have gone. I have defeated your enemies for you. I will make you as famous as any of the great men on the earth. 10 Also I will choose a place for my people, the Israelites. I will plant them so they can live in their own home. They will not be bothered anymore. Wicked people will no longer make them suffer as they have in the past. 11 Wicked people continued to do this even when I appointed judges. But I will give you peace from all your enemies. I also tell you that I will make your descendants kings of Israel after you.
16 But your family and your kingdom will continue forever before me. Your rule will last forever.’”
Hymn: Gloria, Gloria, Gloria (tune: Gloria Cueca) WOV 637
Gloria, gloria, gloria, glory be to God on high! . . .
And on earth be peace to the people in whom God is well please.
Reading: Luke 1:26-38 (from ICB)
26-27 During Elizabeth’s sixth month of pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to a virgin who lived in Nazareth, a town in Galilee. She was engaged to marry a man named Joseph from the family of David. Her name was Mary. 28 The angel came to her and said, “Greetings! The Lord has blessed you and is with you.”
29 But Mary was very confused by what the angel said. Mary wondered, “What does this mean?”
30 The angel said to her, “Don’t be afraid, Mary, because God is pleased with you. 31 Listen! You will become pregnant. You will give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. 32 He will be great, and people will call him the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of King David, his ancestor. 33 He will rule over the people of Jacob forever. His kingdom will never end.”
34 Mary said to the angel, “How will this happen? I am a virgin!”
35 The angel said to Mary, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will cover you. The baby will be holy. He will be called the Son of God. 36 Now listen! Elizabeth, your relative, is very old. But she is also pregnant with a son. Everyone thought she could not have a baby, but she has been pregnant for six months. 37 God can do everything!”
38 Mary said, “I am the servant girl of the Lord. Let this happen to me as you say!” Then the angel went away.
Hymn: Gloria, Gloria, Gloria (tune: Gloria Cueca) WOV 637
Gloria, gloria, gloria, glory be to God on high! . . .
And on earth be peace to the people in whom God is well please.
P: Let us pray:
C: We are often surprised by God: in our lives taking unexpected turns, in our failures which become our successes, in our everyday tasks which mean nothing to us, but are an inspiration to those around us. But most of all we are continually surprised by God’s love in giving us Jesus, who comes not with a clash of symbols, but softly and gently to be our Savior. May we always look for the unexpected presence of God among us, so that we may continually walk and live as servants of the living God. Amen.
Hymn: I Wonder As I Wander (tune: I Wonder) WOV 642
I wonder as I wander, out under the sky, . . .
I wonder as I wander, out under the sky.
When Mary birthed Jesus, all in a cow’s stall, . . .
the promise of the ages it then did recall.
If Jesus had wanted for any wee thing, . . .
he surely could have had it, ‘cause he was the king.
I wonder as I wander, out under the sky, . . .
I wonder as I wander, out under the sky.
Skit:
Master o f Ceremonies: Welcome to What Was That? Today we will have our contestants answer some simple questions. Or are they? Are you ready Contestants?
Contestants: Yes.
Master of Ceremonies: What is a King?
Contestant 1: A King is a powerful ruler who has the power of life and death over his subjects.
Master of Ceremonies: Wrong! Judges, if you please...
Judges: Matthew 20:25-28: Jesus called all the followers together. He said, “You know that the rulers of the non-Jewish people love to show their power over the people. And their important leaders love to use all their authority. But it should not be that way among you. I if one of you wants to be become great, then he must serve the rest of you like a servant. If one of you wants to become first, then he must serve the rest of you like a slave. So it is with the Son of Man. The Son of Man did not come for other people to serve him. He came to serve others. The Son of Man came to give his life to save many people.”
Master of Ceremonies: Next question. Where should a king come from?
Contestant 2: A king should be from a great or important city.
Master of Ceremonies: Wrong!
Judges: Micah 5:2, 4-5a: But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, are one of the smallest towns in Judah. But from you will come one who will rule Israel for me. He comes from very old times, from days long ago. Then the ruler of Israel will stand and take care of his people. He will lead them with the Lord’s power. He will lead them in the wonderful name of the Lord his God. They will live in safety. And his greatness will be known all over the earth. He will bring peace.
Master of Ceremonies: Who should be the parents of a king?
Contestant 3: The parents of a king are the king and queen, or other royalty.
Judges: Matthew 1:18-25: The mother of Jesus Christ was Mary. And this is how the birth of Jesus came about. Mary was engaged to marry Joseph. But before they married, she learned that she was going to have a baby. She was pregnant by the power of the Holy Spirit. Mary’s husband, Joseph, was a good man. He did not want to disgrace her in public, so he planned to divorce her secretly.
While Joseph thought about his, an angel of the Lord came to him in a dream. The angel said, “Joseph, descendant of David, don’t be afraid to take Mary as your wife. The baby in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son. You will name the son Jesus. Give him that name because he will save his people from their sins.”
All this happened to make clear the full meaning of what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will be pregnant. She will have a son, and they will name him Immanuel.” This name means “God is with us.”
When Joseph woke up, he did what the Lord’s angel had told him to do. Joseph married Mary. But he did not have sexual relations with her until she gave birth to the son. And Joseph named the son Jesus.
Contestant 1: Wait a minute! None of this makes sense!
Master of Ceremonies: Well the show isn’t called What Was That? for nothing. Remember the obvious isn’t always the answer. Now, where should a king be born?
Contestant 3: A king should be born in luxury, in a palace.
Master of Ceremonies: You weren’t listening, were you? Incorrect.
Judges: Luke 2:1-7: At that time, Augustus Caesar sent an order to all people in the countries that were under Roman rule. The order said that they must list their names in a register. This was the first registration taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. And everyone went to their own towns to be registered.
So Joseph left Nazareth, a town in Galilee. He went to the town of Bethlehem in Judea. This town was known as the town of David. Joseph went there because he was from the family of David. Joseph registered with Mary because she was engaged to marry him. (Mary was now pregnant.) While Joseph and Mary were in Bethlehem, the time came for her to have the baby. She gave birth to her first son. There were no rooms left in the inn. So she wrapped the baby with cloths and laid him in a box where animals are fed.
Master of Ceremonies: Who should be the first to know of the birth of a king?
Contestant 3: The nobility, and other important people.
Master of Ceremonies: (shaking head) Nope. Wrong again.
Judges: Luke 2:8-20: That night, some shepherd were in the fields nearby watching their sheep. An angel of the Lord stood before them. The glory of the Lord was shining around them, and suddenly they became very frightened. The angel said to them, “Don’t be afraid, because I am bringing you some good news. It will be a joy to all the people. Today your Savior was born in David’s town. He is Christ, the Lord. This is how you will know him: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a feeding box.”
Then a very large group of angels from heaven joined the first angel. All the angels were praising God, saying: “Give glory to God in heaven, and on earth let there be peace to the people who please God.”
Then the angels left the shepherds and went back to heaven. The shepherds said to each other, “Let us go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened. We will see this thing the Lord told us about.”
So the shepherds went quickly and found Mary and Joseph. And the shepherds saw the baby lying in a feeding box. Then they tod what the angels had said about this child. Everyone was amazed when they heard them. Mary hid these things in her heart; she continued to think about them. Then the shepherds went back to their sheep, praising God and thanking him for everything that they had seen and heard. It was just as the angel had told them.
Master of Ceremonies: Ok, last question for the show. What is the point of all these question? Contestant 3?
Contestant 3: This is stupid. I don’t know - do you?
Master of Ceremonies: Contestant 2?
Contestant 2: Uh?
Master of Ceremonies: Contestant 1?
Contestant 1: I think I got it. We’re talking about Jesus Christ, who was a carpenter and a king, God and human. Isaiah 44:21-25 says: Remember these things, O Jacob, for you are my servant, O Israel. I have made you, you are my servant; O Israel, I will not forget you. I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist. Return to me, for I have redeemed you.
Sing for joy, O heavens, for the Lord has done this; show aloud, O earth beneath. Burst into song, you mountains, you forests and all your trees, for the Lord has redeemed Jacob, he displays his glory in Israel.This is what the Lord says - your Redeemer, who formed you in the womb: I am the Lord, who has made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth by myself, who foils the signs of false prophets and makes fools of diviners, who overthrows the learning of the wise and turns it into nonsense.
Master of Ceremonies: Right! Our new winner is Contestant number 1! The King is Jesus who was born in a stable in a nowheresville-town called Bethlehem of a carpenter and a young girl from the sticks. What Was That? you say?... God surprises!
From Heaven Above (tune: Vom Himmel Hoch) or other narrative carol or song
[(Tell the Story with pantomime or with posters]
Offering
Hymn: What Child Is This (tune: Greensleeves) LBW 40
What child is this, who, laid to rest,
On Mary’s lap is sleeping?
Whom angels greet with anthems sweet
While shepherds watch are keeping?
This, this is Christ the king,
Whom shepherds guard and angels sing;
Haste, haste to bring him laud,
The babe, the son of Mary!
Why lies he in such mean estateWhere ox and ass are feeding?
Good Christian, fear; for sinners here
The silent Word is pleading.
Nails, spear shall pierce him through
The cross be borne for me, for you;
Hail, hail the Word made flesh,
The babe, the son of Mary!
So bring him incense, gold and myrrh
Come, peasant, king, to own him.
The King of kings salvation brings;
Let loving hearts enthrone him.
Raise, raise the song on high,
The virgin signs her lullaby;
Joy, joy, for Christ is born,
The babe, the son of Mary.
Prayers
The Lord’s Prayer
Hymn: Away in a Manager (tune: Cradle Song) WOV 644
Away in a manger, no crib for his bed,
the little Lord Jesus laid down his sweet head;
the stars in the bright sky looked down where he lay;
the little Lord Jesus asleep on the hay.
Be near me, Lord Jesus; I ask you to stay
close by me forever and love me, I pray.
Bless all the dear children in your tender care
and fit us for heaven, to live with you there.
P: Now may the God who acts not as the world acts, whose logic is not of rules but of wisdom, bless and keep you ever in the peace and joy of life in Christ Jesus, our Savior, friend and hope.
C: Amen. Praise be God!
Hymn: Angels We Have Heard on High (tune: Gloria) LBW 71
Angels we have heard on high,
Sweetly singing o’er the plains,
And the mountains in reply,Echoing their joyous strains.
Refrain:
Gloria in excelsis Deo;
Gloria in Excelsis Deo.
Shepherds, why this jubilee?
Why your joyous strains prolong?
What the gladsome tidings be
Which inspire your heav’nly song?
Refrain:
Gloria in excelsis Deo;
Gloria in Excelsis Deo.
Come to Bethlehem and see
Him whose birth the angels sing;
Come, adore on bended knee
Christ the Lord, the newborn king.
Refrain:
Gloria in excelsis Deo;
Gloria in Excelsis Deo.
Postlude