Posts Tagged ‘nativity’

Bethlehem Scene

Friday, October 24th, 2014

bethlehem-sceneMy children drew a Bethlehem scene from the nativity story in the Bible. They could choose any of the scenes from the birth of Jesus found at the beginning of the books of Matthew and Luke. My favorite rendition of the nativity story is from Luke 2. My father used to read the story to us each Christmas Eve before opening gifts.

Linus in the Peanuts cartoon told this story from the book of Luke:

An angel appeared to Mary, telling her that the Holy Spirit would cause her to conceive and give birth to the Son of God. While Mary was trying to figure out how to explain the situation to Joseph, an angel appeared to Joseph, telling her that Mary was going to give birth to Jesus, and that she had conceived through the Holy Spirit.

joseph-and-angelHere is a drawing that one of my sons decided to choose for his scene of the nativity story. The angel appears to Joseph in a dream.

bethlehem-scene-2

Mary and Joseph travel to Bethlehem, where they give birth to a son and place Him in a manger, because there was no room at the inn. That’s because there were a lot of people in town for the census.

nativity-drawing

Angels appeared to the shepherds in the fields outside of Bethlehem, and the shepherds ran to find baby Jesus. They bowed down and worshipped Jesus, and Mary and Joseph must have marvelled when the shepherds described the choir of angels announcing the birth of their baby.

Here are a couple of ways to experience the Bethlehem scene in a hands-on way:

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If you enjoyed these drawings, you will love the entire series 31 Days of Drawing through the Bible.

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Homemade Nativity Scene (Easy & Beautiful!)

Wednesday, October 23rd, 2013

homemade-nativity-scene

When celebrating the birth of Christ, you can make a homemade nativity scene with your kids. This will focus their minds on the true meaning of Christmas. In this tutorial I will show you how to easily make a beautiful scene with figures of baby Jesus, Mary, and Joseph surrounded by an earthy, twinkling barn environment.

How to Make a Nativity Scene

For this homemade nativity scene, you will need the following items:

  • cardboard box (large shoebox)
  • white Christmas lights
  • drill
  • light brown paint with paint brush
  • mom, dad, and baby dolls
  • popsicle sticks
  • white Elmer’s glue
  • straw (or dry grass)
  • cloth
  • hot glue
  • 2 rubber bands
  • string

Cut the flaps or remove the top from the box. Paint the box light brown. Let dry overnight. Get a drill, and use a large drill bit (9/32) to drill holes in the top of the box. Space the holes apart according to the amount of space between your Christmas lights.

Assemble a manger out of popsicle sticks. My son made a “V” out of popsicle stick halves, and then glued an “X” on either side, with a horizontal bar to finish it off on each end.

Hot glue some cloth onto the dolls, making their clothes look more authentic for Bible times. Use a string for a belt for Joseph and Mary. Place a square of cloth on their heads, tied with a rubber band.

Put straw or dried grass inside the manger and on the bottom of the box. Assemble the figures inside the box. Turn on the Christmas lights, and enjoy your homemade nativity scene!

Video tutorial on how to make a handmade nativity scene:

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If you liked making this homemade nativity scene, you will love Using Simple Costumes and Props to Teach the Bible. You receive this 2-hour video for free when you sign up for the Unit Study Treasure Vault, which has an enormous Bible section!

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