Showing Kindness to your Family - February Love Challenge

What better month to join us in our Love Challenges than the month of love – February! We are especially excited about this month’s challenge, as we continue to carry the love we talk about at camp home with us during the year. For this month, we want you to do something kind for someone in your family. Even better, make it something unexpected!

Loving the people we live with can sometimes be the hardest, can’t it? They see us at our best and at our worst, and we can’t get rid of them…they are family! It is sometimes easy to be unkind to your siblings or parents, but we encourage you to shine God’s love to your family members (even when they drive you crazy!).

Our theme verse this summer talked about love “always trusting” (1 Cor. 13:7). For me, when I was camper age, it was hard to trust what my parents said sometimes (as I didn’t always agree with what they were saying) or to believe that they had the best in store for me (especially when they made decisions I didn’t agree with). What if we showed love towards our parents and siblings by showing kindness even when we may not always agree with that they are saying?

Unexpected or surprise kindnesses in your house are the best! It is a great way to say “thank you” and show kindness in a way that can make your parent or sibling feel really appreciated. Need some ideas? We’ve got some for you:

• Smile and make eye contact with a parent when he/she comes into your room. Smiling is a small kindness but can go a long way!
• Do one of your sibling’s chores without being asked (and don’t even mention that you did it) – will make their day.
• Help set the table without being asked. You could even make something to put on each plate (like a nametag, cut out a heart, or write a Bible verse you memorized last month).
• Ask a parent how his/her day was – parents rarely get asked!
• Make some paper flowers to put in a vase and give to someone in your family.
• Leave a note on the mirror for someone in your family to read, telling him/her “good morning” or saying something nice (remember our Compliment Cards from September? A great idea!)
• Make a Valentine’s Day treat for someone in your family. You could make breakfast in bed, hand make a card, create a decoration for your brother or sister’s room, and more.

Being kind to those in your family is a great way to carry what we learned at camp home with you – we hope you will join us in doing something unexpectedly kind for someone in your family! Let us know what ideas you have or what you kindness you showed before the month is up. See you in March!