Dangerous Journey, Part 7

Today’s Theme: The Key of Promise

After surviving Vanity Fair and the hill of Lucre, Christian and Hopeful “espied a stile which led into a meadow, and seemed to be a short-cut.”  But of course, there are no short-cuts in a Christian’s path, and what first seemed a pleasant way soon turned into a terrible trial.  They are pummeled by a thunderstorm and soon discovered by the Giant Despair to be trespassing on the grounds of his own Doubting Castle.  They spend the next few days in the dungeon of the castle without food, drink, and barely any hope of escape.  Yet for all the cruelty of the giant, Hopeful won’t let Christian give up, and “as so often happens in dreams, when things are desperate–Christian suddenly remembered.  ‘I have in my pocket,’ he said, ‘an old key called Promise.  It might just fit the lock.'”

Devotional Application

Doubting Castle and the Giant Despair represent the trouble we feel when we doubt God, when we forget His promises “never to leave us nor forsake us.”  Yet however painful life becomes, we need not give into despair.  We may escape with Hopeful’s simple but profound statement of belief from the original version, “I… believe, too, that this shall be for our good.”

Bible Verses

•  Romans 8:28: “All things work together for good to those who love the Lord and are called according to His purpose.”
• Jeremiah 29:11 Memory Verse: “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” [powerpress]
  

Activities

• Object Lesson: Key of Promise–Stand with your kids at your front door.  Let them see you lock the door, and then ask them to close their eyes while you hide the key nearby.  When you’re done, explain that there is a giant coming and you have to get into the house right away or he’ll take you all to his dungeon.  Tell him he has five minutes or some short amount of time to find the KEY OF PROMISE and unlock the door for you or else!  “Now on your mark, get set, go!”  You can play it up saying, “Oh, no, I hear him coming!  He’s getting closer!  I think he’s really hungry….”  If they can’t find the key or need help with the lock, you can of course jump in.  When you’ve found the key and are safe again, explain that often when we feel afraid or sad it’s because we doubt God really loves us and will take care of us.  Maybe tell them of a time when you felt that way.  Then remind them that no matter what happens, no matter how we feel, God has promised to take care of us.  His promise is the key that keeps us safe.  And since He can’t tell a lie, we can trust Him and His word.  Follow up with this week’s memory verse.

• Craft/Food Activity: When you’ve conquered your giant, here’s simple recipe for Giant Eyeballs that my kids love: take a Campfire-sized marshmallow, hollow out a small tunnel in the middle, and then let them pour chocolate syrup into the hole.  I’m pretty certain despair never tasted so good!  Or if you prefer, you can draw a large key and have the children write the memory verse inside it; then color it.

• Coloring/Make-a-book Project:  Today’s picture of Hopeful and Christian in Doubting Castle is my favorite so far.

Reading Notes

 A Short-cut–Ask your kids if they have ever tried to take a short cut that turned out badly?  Maybe they didn’t study enough for a test, or maybe they didn’t save their money for something they needed.  Or maybe like my brother, they stuffed every single pair of their underoos under the bed so as not to have put them in the dirty clothes.  Then as you read the next few pages, point out to them that often what Christian thought–and what we think–would make life easier just makes it more difficult.  Ooh, I just thought of a good one–lying to cover up sin.  So often our kids (and maybe we?) think that lying will make it easier on them when they’ve done wrong, but really it just makes the problem worse.

Stile–Dictionary.com says a stile is “a series of steps or rungs by means of which a person may pass over a wall or fence that remains a barrier to sheep or cattle.”  Also a turnstile.

In the Wrong, p. 89–So often when we are gloomy, we have brought some of the suffering on ourselves.  Here Christian and Hopeful knew they were “in the wrong” and thus had to suffer the giant’s cruelty.   That doesn’t mean we can’t be forgiven and escape our sadness.  Christ is always sufficient for us no matter how much we have sinned, and He can always make us a way back to the right road.

Diffidence, p. 90–Dictionary.com says diffidence is the state of “lacking confidence in one’s own ability, worth, or fitness; timid; shy.”  Here the female giant doesn’t seem herself very diffident, just as the Giant Despair doesn’t seem very despairing.  I think the symbolism here is that diffidence and despair are the twin pillars of doubt, and they shake Christian to the core with their terrors.  Ask your children if they ever feel like they aren’t good enough to do something they’re called to do.  Maybe it’s a soccer game they’re afraid they’ll lose, or going to a new class.  While it’s good for God’s people to take stock of their own talents, ultimately He makes us fit for every good work.  When we are railed upon by despair and feelings of inadequacy, we have to remember that God is able to use even our filthy rags to accomplish His purposes.  We are good enough because His is good enough.

Skeletons, p. 94–Doubt is a serious threat to the Christian life.  Many will and have been undone by it.  However, we can learn from Hopeful’s counsel.  When you feel despairing, remember the times when God has sustained you before.  Meditate on them, just as the Psalmists do in regard to the provision of God for Israel.  Be aware that even if we can withstand the Devil (Apollyon) and the temptations of the World (Vanity Fair), we may still find ourselves fighting within.  But we aren’t the only ones who suffer, and Hopeful’s advice is sound: “let us exercise a little more patience, and bear up as best we can, and keep on praying.”

Promise, p. 94–How long would Christian have had to stay in the dungeon if he hadn’t found the key?  If Christian was let out of his troubles by God’s key of promise, what is our key?  Can your kids remember our Memory Verse today?

Light of the Sun, p. 97–You can illumine the text a little more by reminding your kids that God is light, according to John.  In His light, our doubts and fears lose their power over us.  Maybe ask your kids if they have ever experienced that?  Felt terrible about something, only to have God’s truth relieve their worries?

So, that’s all for today.  Saturday we’ll cross the Dark River and enter the Celestial City (Part 8).  I’ll try to throw in a short post for Christiana’s story, too, so we can finish out the book.  If you haven’t seen it already, do read through Janie’s final post, as it will shed a lot of light on the meaning of our story.