Ice Age: Family Devo

Ice Age: Family Devotional

In the movie Ice Age, there are many excellent themes to discuss with your child. Watch this movie together and then use the tools below to have a short devotional.

I am giving you a new commandment, that you love one another; just as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all people will know that you are My disciples: if you have love for one another. (John 13:34-35)

Read this out loud as a family.

Have you ever had a friend who hurt your feelings or made it hard to be friends? Have you ever felt competitive with a friend or a sibling? Whether we are at school, in sports, or even at home, it is easy for us to want to compete with one another or want our way more than anything else. Sometimes we can even get so angry when we do not get what we want that we use angry words or even want to hit or kick something. We might even feel like we need to scream! John 13 reminds that we need to love each other like Jesus loves us. Jesus gives us the example of loving the people who were mean to Him, who tried to compete with Him, and even to the people who sent Him to the cross. He always chose the path of love, even forgiving the people who hurt Him the most. We can follow His example to love and forgive our friends and family too.

Diego wanted to steal the baby to make himself look great and was even willing to put other people at risk to do it. When he comes together with Manny and Sid to stand up to the other saber-toothed tigers and get the baby to its family, we can see him choosing to love instead! If his friends hadn’t chosen to love him and help him learn to love, the baby might never have made it home!

Just like Diego in the movie, we want our way and we want to think only about the things that we need or want. Jesus tells His disciples that instead of looking out for ourselves, we should focus on each other. We should love each other. He tells them that they should love like He loves. Jesus knows that we were made to live like a family. He wants all of the people that know Him to live like they are His children, in His family. He even says that other people will realize that we are part of His family by how we love each other. It is not easy to love others when we want our own way or when we feel like they do not deserve it, but this is exactly what Jesus did. He loved his disciples even when they did not understand. He loved the Roman guards even when they crucified Him (“forgive them for they do not know what they do”). And He loves all of us whether we are having a good day or a bad day; whether we get it right or we make a mistake.

Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor…If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all people. (Romans 12:10, 18)

Discussion Questions:

Why does it feel so easy to compete with others or want our own way?
Why did Diego choose Manny and Sid over the other saber-toothed tigers? Do you think this was an easy decision?
How can we choose forgiveness and love in hard situations?
How does love show people who do not know Jesus that we follow Him and are a part of His family?
What is one way you can choose to love someone?