Make Yourselves at Home

READ:
The prophet Jeremiah wrote to people who had been forced to leave their homes and make a new life in a far-off land called Babylon. Jeremiah encouraged them to find goodness wherever they were and not to spend their lives wishing they were somewhere else. He wrote, “Build houses and make yourselves at home. Put in gardens and eat what grows where you live. Marry and have children. Raise your children and bless them as they create families of their own in this new country you live in. Make yourselves at home there. And make sure you do what you can to help that country thrive. And don’t forget to pray for Babylon, too. When things go well for that country and its people, good things will come to you, too.”
​(Jeremiah 29:1, 4-7)
WONDER:
I wonder how it felt for the people to leave their homes behind?
I wonder if you’ve ever had to move from a place you called home?
I wonder how it feels to move to a strange place?
I wonder what makes a place feel like home?
PRAY:
Dear God, thank you for the place we call home. We pray for our neighbors, for those who help make our neighborhood safe, for those who care for us, and those who help make our neighborhood better. Help us be good neighbors, too. Amen. 
EXTEND

• Using materials you have available (boxes, paper, glue, markers, crayons, etc.), design a home. As you create your design, talk about what makes a good house? What is necessary? What makes a home special? What sort of neighborhood does your designed home need? Add streets or other homes to your design as you imagine the neighborhood.
• Read the book Blackout by John Rocco. You can hear the author read the book himself on YouTube. The power goes out in a city on a warm summer night. What do you do when the lights go out? The story follows one family as they discover ways of enjoying the sudden darkness. They find their neighbors on the rooftop watching the stars and out in the streets for an impromptu party. Have you ever found something beautiful in an unexpected situation?