Epipha-Who?: Christmas Devotionals with Movies and Music: Family Friendly Epiphany Devotional
Written by The Hobbit and The Elf
We hope that our Advent series of devotionals was helpful and encouraging to you. As we start a new year we would like to dip back into the Christian calendar. What is Epiphany exactly? Why do an epiphany devotional as a family if your church doesn’t celebrate it?
What is Epiphany?:
Most of us have listened to and sung “The Twelve Days of Christmas”. It is fun, lighthearted, and, although we can’t be entirely sure, is probably nothing more than that. But why twelve days? Well, there really are twelve days of Christmas. December 25th is the first day and January 5 the twelfth. It is a time of festivity. It ends on a day called Epiphany. This strange sounding word comes to us from the same Greek the New Testament was written in. It simply means manifestation or appearance.
It MAY have started as a feast to honor the baptism of Jesus (since that is when He started His public ministry). It soon also became associated with the visit of the Magi, as this is when He became known to those who were not Jewish. We know that it was being celebrated by the fourth century. And today Epiphany is usually associated with the Magi (or wise men) bringing their gifts to Jesus.
Regardless of when the wise men actually visited Jesus–and the New Testament does not give us a lot of information on the Magi—this is a great way to spend some fun devotional time with your family. There are many traditions around the world associated with Epiphany. Our family has, for several years, added a fun element by giving small gifts to commemorate the gifts the Magi brought. Many of the traditions involve various types of food, and you may want to incorporate a special meal. But whatever you do for fun, there are some amazing Epiphany devotional resources that point us towards the spiritual focus of the event. Jesus has come, and He’s shaking everything up with awe and wonder.
Epiphany Devotional:
The wise men brought beautiful gifts to Joseph, Mary and Jesus. Their story also brings us a couple of beautiful reminders. 2 things we were reminded…
- Give Your Best: The wise men gave gifts that reflected the importance of who they were honoring. There’s such a beautiful spirit of compassionate giving at Christmas. How can we bring that forward into the new year and continue to be compassionate givers? Describe a time that someone gave something invaluable to you? How can you serve or give this week?
- Awe and Wonder: We don’t know a lot about the wise men, but we know that they were gentiles and that God revealed Himself to them in a way they were both used to and amazed by- a star. They probably crossed cultural, religious, and status barriers to worship Jesus. It’s easy to forget just how amazing, and hope filled, Jesus’ journey was. How can we take in some of the wonder of Jesus this week? (art, music, silence, prayer?) When you deal with someone frustrating, or different than you, this week- remember that everyone has value in God’s eyes and that miracles abound everywhere.
Songs to celebrate Epiphany:
Songs for All Ages: We Three Kings & The Twelve Days of Christmas
Reflect on your favorite gift that you have given someone else. Look at the lyrics of We Three Kings, how does that song tell Jesus’ story?
Movies to celebrate Epiphany
For All Ages: The Little Drummer Boy (Claymation version) *Preview this one before showing kids, there are some scenes that might upset younger viewers.* If you have really little ones watching, try Veggie Tales “It’s a Meaningful Life“
For 12+: The Ultimate Gift -it’s a little bit of a tear jerker, but a beautiful reminder about what is truly important and what generosity and compassion look like.
Think about how you’re serving Jesus? How are you using your gifts and talents? What are your top five most important things in life? When has someone shown you compassion? How can you be generous this week?
Verses to Read and Pray Over:
Isaiah 60:3 (NIrV): Nations will come to your light. Kings will come to the brightness of your new day.
Isaiah 60:3 is often seen as a prophetic message about the visit of the Magi. Isaiah speaks several times about the coming Messiah bringing God’s light to other nations, to the Gentiles, as in this verse:
Isaiah 49:6 (NIrV): Here is what the Lord says to me. “It is not enough for you as my servant to bring the tribes of Jacob back to their land. It is not enough for you to bring back the people of Israel I have kept alive. I will also make you a light for the Gentiles. Then you will make it possible for the whole world to be saved.”
The light has come, and the light is coming again. We serve the “greatest king of all and the most powerful lord of all” (Revelation 19:16 NIrV). Kings came to give gifts and bow down to the King at His birth. When He comes again, all kings, all rulers, will bow before Him.
Matthew 2:9-11 (VOICE) “The wise men left Herod’s chambers and went on their way. The star they had first seen in the East reappeared—a miracle that, of course, overjoyed and enraptured the wise men. The star led them to the house where Jesus lay; and as soon as the wise men arrived, they saw Him with His mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped Him. They unpacked their satchels and gave Jesus gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. (These are exceptionally good gifts, for gold is what is given a king, and Jesus is the King of kings; incense is what you expect to be given a priest, and Jesus is the High Priest of all high priests; myrrh ointment is used to heal, and Jesus is a healer. But myrrh is also used to embalm corpses—and Jesus was born to die.)
Check Out:
If you enjoyed this devotional, you might like our Advent Christmas series, Overcomer & Breakthrough Movie Small Group Discussion Questions, Faith Lessons from Classic Sci-Fi Movies, or our post on Practice Prayers.
If you enjoyed this Epiphany devotional, please take a moment and share it!
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