What You’ll Need:

• an open space (indoor or outdoor, for running)
• Find a big open area for the game, indoors or outdoors. There will be running, so keep that in mind!

Time to Play!

This game is a cross between “What Time Is It, Mr. Fox?” and Sharks and Minnows. If you’re playing outside, tell your family to dress for the weather and make their way out!

To start, select one person to be Mr. or Mrs. Fox. This person will stand with his or her back to the rest of the players. Players should be standing 10 to 20 feet away from the fox. This is the starting line. On your cue, instruct the players to ask the fox what time it is. The fox will then respond with a time, such as 4 o’clock. The players must then take the same number of steps forward (in this case, four steps). These steps may be as large or small as the players wish, no matter how close they get to the fox.

Whenever the fox decides, she or he may yell in response to the question, “It’s 12 o’clock!” When this happens, the fox will turn around and begin chasing the players with the intent of tagging one. The players should run back to the starting line where they are safe. Once the fox tags someone, that person becomes a fox as well. Similar to Sharks and Minnows, after each round, the number of foxes chasing players increases until there are no longer any players. Then it’s time to start the game with a new fox!

Remember!

When you think about “identity” a million aspects of your life may pop up. Parents, maybe you’re a teacher, a stay-at-home dad, a grandmother, a police officer, etc. Your children may identify as good students, soccer players, dancers, etc. We may identify with these titles, but they are not our identity. Our identity is “child of God.” If that identity has been obscured for you, this New Year is the perfect time to embrace truth and step into it … without question. It may be a silly comparison, but when Mrs. or Mr. Fox tagged a running player, that player became a fox without question. He just was. On a similar note, we have been “tagged” by God, and there should be no question of who we are in Him. We just are. And what an amazing identity to have! As your winter break comes to an end, encourage your children to enter this next season taking hold of their identity in Christ and finding their confidence in Him alone.