Family Guide: Confession

Note for Adults: In this guide, your family will have the opportunity to practice confession together. Confession is difficult, but it doesn’t have to feel scary or intense. It’s simply naming the ways we mess up and inviting God—and each other—into those moments. Confession is a regular part of our life together as God’s family. Regularly confessing sin as a family helps kids see that everyone struggles, everyone makes mistakes, and God’s love is always repairing and restoring us. Together you’ll learn about kintsugi, the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery with gold, to make God’s love visible and tangible. 

Supplies: paper plates, gold washi tape (you’ll need to order this, or use tape and a metallic permanent marker), and something small for communion (juice and crackers or bread).

Have you ever dropped something you loved and it broke?

Maybe a cup, a vase, or even a toy? It can feel really sad, like it’s ruined forever.

Give space for answers.

There’s a special kind of art in Japan called kintsugi (kin-tsoo-gee).

Can you say that with me? 

Give space for kids to try. 

When something like a bowl or cup breaks, instead of hiding the cracks, the artist repairs it with glue mixed with gold. The cracks become part of the beauty of the bowl, and the bowl tells a story of being broken and then made whole again. 

Today, we’re going to do a little kintsugi of our own. But first, let’s think about our own lives. We all make mistakes or feel “broken” sometimes. Maybe we hurt someone, said something unkind, or made a poor choice. The Bible calls this sin. Just like the broken pottery, sin can feel like cracks in our lives, in our world, and in our relationships. But just like a kintsugi artist, God’s love never gives up on us or says we are too broken to put back together. God can take the broken pieces and make something beautiful.

Here’s what we’re going to do. Everyone take a paper plate. Carefully tear it into 3 or 4 pieces. 

Pause to tear your plates.

Now, let’s take a moment to remember our weeks. As we look at our torn plates, let’s think quietly: In the past week, was there a time I went my way instead of God’s way? Maybe you said something unkind, made a choice that wasn’t loving, or got frustrated and yelled at your sibling. Let’s ask God to help us remember. 

Pause for a few moments to reflect. If your family uses timers as a tool, consider setting a one minute timer.

Now, this is the part that might feel a little hard or uncomfortable: we’re all going to have the chance to share out loud what the Holy Spirit brought to our mind. This practice is called Confession: telling the truth about our sin. It simply means naming the ways we mess up and inviting God—and each other—into that brokenness. Confession is a regular part of our life together as God's family—because all of us sin. When we confess, we let God make those broken parts whole again.

We confess sin not to make anyone feel bad, but so we can help each other carry the hard things and remind one another of God’s love. After someone shares, another person can respond by saying: “God loves you and forgives you.” Every time we do this, we practice being honest with God and with each other. 

Take a few minutes to confess as a family. Each time a person confesses, someone else should respond: “God loves you and forgives you.”

Now, we’re going to put the pieces back together using the gold tape. As you tape each piece, think about God's love. The Bible tells us that God, out of his great love, is making everything new—including us! He is making all of the wrong things right and all of the dark things light. The gold isn’t just a pretty decoration—it’s a reminder of God’s love that is repairing and restoring everything in the world.

Take a few minutes to repair your kintsugi plates with the gold tape, on the front and back of each rip. If you are using regular tape, color it with the gold permanent marker. 

As we’ve confessed our sin, we remember what is true about God: He is full of love and grace. He doesn’t turn away from us when we mess up. He moves towards us and welcomes us with his love. With this in mind, we’ll finish our time of confession remembering God’s love by taking communion together. 

Take a moment to pass out the communion elements.

When we take communion, we remember what Jesus has done for us. The bread reminds us of Jesus’ body, and the cup reminds us of his blood. Jesus gave his life to free us from sin and make us new. When we confess our sin, we come to Jesus and receive his love and forgiveness.

Jesus said, “This is my body, given for you. And this is my blood, poured out for you.” Let’s eat and drink together.

Take communion together.

Let’s end by praying together. 

God, thank you for hearing us when we confess our sin. Thank you for being kind and full of grace. Because of Jesus, you forgive us and make us new. As a family, we receive your forgiveness now. We trust that you are putting us back together and making something beautiful out of our lives. Fill us with your love, and help us to walk in your ways this week. Amen.

Confession is hard. And just like other hard things—learning to play the piano, mastering your chess skills, or shooting a 3-pointer in basketball—confession takes practice. Let’s make a plan to return to this practice again as a family, so we can remember God’s love together, which is making everything new, including us.