Parents Say This: I loved watching Horton Hears a Who with you! What was your favorite part? When we were watching, Horton said something that made me realize how much he really cared about the people living on the speck. Do you remember what he said? (“A person’s a person no matter how small.”) Horton also did something that showed he cared—he searched an entire field of flowers to find the one that held the speck! Is there anything that you love so much that you would stop everything just to find it? (listen to responses)

This love reminds me of a couple of stories from the Bible. Let’s open our Bible and find Matthew 18:10-14. Jesus tells a teaching story about a shepherd who leaves his 99 sheep to go find one lost sheep. Let’s see what happens. (Read Bible passage.) What happened when the shepherd found his lost sheep? (Listen to responses.) When he finds the lost one, he calls his friends to celebrate with him because he is so happy he found his lost sheep!

There’s another story in Luke 15:8-10. This time Jesus tells a story about a girl who loses a coin, and she searches all over her house to find it. Let’s see what she does. (Read Bible passage.) What did she do when she found her lost coin? (Listen to responses.) When she finds the coin, she’s so happy she invites her friends to rejoice with her!

Jesus tells us that in both stories when the person found what was lost, they were so happy that they rejoiced with their friends—they celebrated finding what was lost. Jesus also says that in heaven there is an even bigger party with the angels when one person repents of their sins! So just like the sheep and coin are lost, we are lost in our sin until we realize only God can help us get out of our sin, and we ask God to forgive us. God is so happy that we are turning away from our sin and choosing to walk with Him that He rejoices with the angels! “I tell you, in the same way, there is joy in the presence of God’s angels over one sinner who repents.” Luke 15:10

ACTIVITY

Let’s play a game together! You will need a coin to play. Take turns letting one person hide the coin. Then challenge your family to try and find it. When one person finds it, they will call everyone over and say, “Rejoice with me, because I have found my lost coin!” Everyone will go to that person and celebrate with cheers, hugs, and high-fives. Continue playing until everyone finds the object and calls for a celebration.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. When Horton said, “A person is a person, no matter how small,” what did he mean? (He may have meant that no matter how small a person is, they are worth protecting and looking after.)

2. Do you think you can hide from God? (No, we cannot hide from God. Adam and Eve tried, but God knew where they were (Genesis 3:8-9). In Psalm 139, we learn there is nowhere we can go that God is not with us.)

3. Read Luke 15:11-32. This is the parable of the lost son. How is this story similar to the story of the lost sheep and lost coin? (The man thought his son was gone forever, so when his son came home, the dad was so happy he called his friends to have a party and be happy with him that his son was home.)