Thank you for joining Keys for Kids Radio's Countdown to Christmas Advent Activity! Read the story below, answer the questions on the cards, and send us a voice message with your answers! Then you could hear yourself on Keys for Kids Radio as we talk through each day's story!

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Hugo's Rescue

Rose sat forward in her seat, her eyes riveted to the screen. “Oh, no!” she exclaimed as Hugo, the main character in the movie they were watching, fell into the ocean while trying to get the sail of his ship down. “What will happen to Hugo now? He was sailing alone!”

Her brother Barrett grinned. “He’ll get rescued,” he said. “Just wait.”

The music played. Excitement mounted. Rose nibbled on a handful of popcorn as she watched the man on the screen struggle for his life. He kicked and splashed to stay afloat as angry waves rolled about and threatened to drown him. Suddenly, a shark’s fin sliced through the water behind the man. “Look out, Hugo!” Barrett exclaimed.

“Now who’s worried?” said Rose. But her heart pounded as the shark got closer and closer to Hugo. He fought the sea, unaware of the danger behind him. Just when it seemed the shark would surely gobble him up, a boat roared into view.

“Someone jumped in and got a hold of him!” Barrett yelled. “They’re reeling him in!”

“Wow!” Rose said when the movie ended. “Good thing that boat came when it did!”

Barrett nodded. “That was a good movie.”

“Yeah.” Rose got up and adjusted an ornament on the Christmas tree. “It was good, but I like watching Christmas movies this time of year, and that wasn’t very Christmassy.”

“Well, it may not have had any Christmas trees or caroling in it,” said Dad, who had watched the movie with them, “but Hugo’s story actually reminds me a lot of what happened at Christmas.”

“Really?” asked Rose. “How’s that?”

“Christmas is the day we celebrate God rescuing us,” Dad said.

“You mean because it’s when we celebrate Jesus’ birth?” Barrett asked. “He came to earth to rescue us.”

Dad nodded. “God knew we had no hope of being saved from the sea of sin we were drowning in without Him, so He sent His only Son to jump in and rescue us. When we trust in Him, He reels us in and gives us eternal life.”

“I’m glad Jesus came to our rescue,” Rose said. She looked at her dad and grinned. “I guess that really was a Christmas movie after all!”

So how about you?

Have you been rescued by Jesus? Or are you still drowning in sin? At Christmas, we celebrate that Jesus, God’s Son, was born in Bethlehem. He grew up and lived a perfect life. He died on the cross to take the punishment for your sin, and He rose from the grave to give you eternal life. Trust Him as your Savior today! (See “Have You Heard the Good News?” at keysforkids.org/GoodNews.)

Key Verse

1 John 5:12 "He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Song of God does not have life."

Key Thought

Jesus rescues us from sin.

Further Reading

1 John 5:9-13