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The devotionals on these pages are designed to guide you and your family through two months of short, simple times with God and each other.

You’ll need a mustard seed for each family member (look in the spice section of the grocery store). Place each one in a small glass jar (such as a baby food jar) or if you have time, use an iron to seal each seed between two two-by-two-inch pieces of wax paper (place a towel between the iron and the wax paper). You’ll also need a picture of a full-grown mustard tree (check on the Internet or in an encyclopedia).

He told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches" (Matt.:13:31-32).

Place a seed in front of each family member, then read the passage. Now place the picture of the tree in the center of the group. Can you imagine this tiny seed turning into a large tree? What do you think Jesus meant when he said the kingdom of God is like this small seed? How is your faith in God like the mustard seed? End your time by asking God to help your faith grow. Post the picture of the tree on the refrigerator and have each person keep his or her seed during the month as a reminder of our faith and what it can become.

Make sure everyone has his or her seed, then ask one of the older children to read the passage. Talk together about the ways God has planted, nurtured, weeded and watered your family’s faith. What are the roots of faith in your family? Do you know the first Christian in your family tree? Over the next week, see if you can find out. End your time by thanking God for being faithful to your family.

After reading the passage, ask each person to share one way he or she has received protection or support from another family member. Now read the passage again. As you read, ask each family member to place his or her seed in the center of the group, one at a time. End your time by asking God to help your family grow closer to him and to each other.

Once everyone has his or her seed, ask the youngest reader in the family to read the passage. Have everyone talk about what they think heaven is like. We know very little about heaven, but we know we will be with Jesus and praising him forever. What activities and attitudes can your family adopt to make life on earth more like heaven? End your time by thanking God for the promise of heaven.

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