A Prayer for Our Children
September 17, 2008
Dear Jesus,
Thank you for the blessing of our children. The time of year has come for our children to go back to school. Some of them are going to school for the first time. Give them confidence as they start this new year. Help us, as parents, to be joyful for them as they begin this new year. Protect our kids as they go without us. Give us peace and comfort that they are safe. Watch over them as only You can. Give wisdom and guidance to their teachers. Give wisdom and guidance to the administration. We trust that our children will grow in both wisdom and in their relationship with you as this school year goes on. Thank you for being our most caring and loving father. Thank you for being there for us always.
Love,
The moms and dads of the most wonderful children
Summer Fun
July 2, 2008
The season of summer is upon us. Our kids are looking for fun things to do. I have come up with a list of fun things that you can do with your children at home. My background is in early childhood, so the activities tend to lean towards younger children. Happy Summer! 
1. Go on a nature walk. This is a great time to talk about God’s creation. Collect things along you walk. When you get home, sort the items you collected. After you sort them, ask your child if they know another way they could sort them.
2. Write or type Bible verses on a sheet of paper. Cut the Bible verse apart. See if your child can put the Bible verse back together again.
3. Tell the story of Noah and the ark. Make a list of animals. Go outside and lay in the grass. Look up at the clouds and see if you can see any of the animals on your list.
4. FiIll a large tub or pool with water. Bring out household items such as pots, cups, bowls, etc. Have your child fill up the items and discover which item holds more water. This also works great with sand.
5. Go on a neighborhood scavenger hunt. Make a list of things to look for in your neighborhood ( the neighborhood entrance sign, Mr. X’s mailbox). Check off each item as you find it.
6. Make a simple lunch and go out and have a picnic. If it is raining, spread a blanket on the kitchen floor and have an indoor picnic. My daughter loves it when we have indoor picnics!
7. Get a list of people at your church that are in need of encouragement. Sit down with your child and have them draw a picture or write a letter to that person. Mail them. Children’s art work and writings are special!
8. Tell your child your favorite Bible story. Have them make clay characters and retell the story. The following is a clay recipe from Highlights High Five magazine for children:
Pour 2 cups of baking soda, 1 cup of corn starch and 1 1/4 cups of water into a pot. Cook the mixture over medium heat, stirring until it looks like mashed potatoes. Let the clay cool. Divide into 4 pieces. Add food coloring and knead until smooth. Have your child create their characters. Place them to dry in the sun.
9. Print out Bible coloring pages from the internet. Allow your child to choose what pictures they like. Use 2 pieces of construction paper to create a front and back cover. Gather the pages together and punch with a 3 ring hold punch. Tie together with yarn. Your child will have great fun coloring a book that they created.
Hope you enjoy these activities!
After singing one of her favorite songs, my five year old with her ever expanding mind asked me, “If God is so big, why can’t I see Him?” Another day after mulling over a large map of the United States, that same daughter asked me, “Mommy where is heaven on this map? I can’t find it.” I was caught off guard for a few seconds following those questions; then I thanked God for those teachable moments. We had a great discussion about the greatness and vastness of our Lord and His kingdom in heaven. I know some of the concepts were a little hard for her to understand, but to know her mind is already searching and knowing warms my spirit.
We are called to evangelize our faith. Who better to start with than our own children. It occurred to me not long ago to really take a close look at how I was modeling and living the Christian walk for my children. While some things were looking good, I admit there were some areas in which I was lacking. Deuteronomy 6:6-7 states, “These commandments I give to you today are to upon your hearts,impress them on your children. Talk about it when you sit, at home, when you walk along the road, when you lie down, and when you get up.” We have made some changes in our daily schedule that allow us time to focus on Christ. Here are some practical things we do in our home to make Christ the focus of our lives.
Prayer. In the morning before we leave the house we kneel in front of the door and hold hands. We pray for protection over each member of our family as they enter the world. Then we pray for whatever event or activity we will be participating in that day. On days I forget, my girls are quick to remind me in the car but you can’t hold hands in the car. We also pray regularly at our meals. We have started to remember praying when we eat out as well. Lastly, we always close our day with prayer. At that time we thank God for the blessings of the day and say a special prayer for any family and friends that may be sick or struggling.
Church. We strive to make church attendance an integral part of our lives. My girls know that Sunday is church day. Its is as normal for us as getting up to go to work any other day of the week. On Sundays when we can’t make it for some various reason, my girls are always disappointed. My 5 year old asked me the other day why her aunt didn’t go to church. She thinks everybody does! Our church has Wednesday night activities for the whole family. This past year Halloween fell on a Wednesday, I wanted my children to know that church will always take precedence over anything else. We were able to go trick or treating for a short time and make it to church on time. However if I thought it would interfere with church we would have not done it.
Daily Living. Throughout the day I am trying to be more conscious to live out my daily Christian walk. I wake up at 6 a.m. to have my quiet time with the Lord. On several occasions my 3 year old will be up with me. I let her lay quietly on the couch with a book. Usually she just sits there and stares at me. She know that mommy is meeting with the Lord and needs her quiet time. When we are in the car we are only listening to Christian music. I love our local Christian radio station (although with the girls in the car its usually Veggie Tales). It is neat for me to see my girls learn and sing the same songs I sang as a child.
There are many more ways that we parents can better incorprate Christ in our lives. These are just a few practical suggestions for living out your faith for your children.
Christian Parenting Books
February 9, 2008
“How shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?” Romans 10:14.
Pastor and teacher John MacArthur states that as Christian parents, we are the first and most important preachers that God has given to our children. He goes on to say that we have a better opportunity than anyone to help frame what they know about Christ and that every moment of their lives is a teaching opportunity (Deut. 6:6-7). Here are some books to help us bring up our children in the nuture and admonition of the Lord (Eph. 6:4).
What The Bible Says About Parenting: Biblical Principle For Raising Godly Children by John MacArthur
* More than ever, Christians need to know what the Bible actually teaches about parenting, and put it into practice. In What the Bible Says About Parenting, pastor/teacher John MacArthur presents time-proven principles of Biblical parenting, clearly and carefully, to help parents make sense of their duties before God and to bring up their children in the ways of the Lord. This is an absolute must-have book. I am going through it for the second time now, highlighting and soaking in every word, especially those on effectively sharing the law and gospel with your children. My husband and I love MacArthur’s work and this book is no exception.
Teach Them Diligently: How To Use The Scriptures In Child Training by Louis Paul Priolo
* Priolo gives detailed explanations along with categorized scriptures of how to convict, rebuke, teach, and train your children with God’s Word. A must-have for any parent who desires to bring up children to be spiritually equipped to handle life.
Parenting With Scripture: A Topical Guide for Teachable Moments by Kara Durbin
* Author Kara Durbin’s passion is for parents to capture those teachable moments and use Scripture to shape their children’s behavior. She offers Parenting With Scripture, a unique topical guide to prepare parents with scriptural teaching and helpful activities on 100 specific behaviors.
My ABC Bible Verses: Hiding God’s Word in Little Hearts by Susan Hunt
* With this colorful book, Susan Hunt provides a fun way to help young readers learn about God’s truth. Each letter of the alphabet has a corresponding Bible verse and is accompanied by a story to illustrate the scriptural passage.
For Instructions in Righteousness: A Topical Reference Guide for Biblical Child-Training by Pam Forster
* This book will help you use the Bible every time you discipline your children! It includes hundreds of verses on over 50 areas of sin. But it is more than just a topical Bible. Each chapter includes listings such as “What the Bible says will, or should, happen to a person who sins in this way;” “Ideas for discipline that parallel these Biblical consequences;” and “How God blesses the person who resists temptations to this sort of sin.” This book is based on the premise that if we train our children to submit to the authority of God’s standards, those standards will not change when the children grow up and leave the authority of our homes and we don’t want to discipline in anger; we want to show grief over the child’s sin, and we want to lead him to true repentance. This book is has wealth of material for parents’ personal Bible study, family worship, character training, unit studies, and Bible study projects for older children.
Thanks to Karen for sharing this last book with me, along with all of her other tried and true mothering tips. What a mentor! I should also mention that when we were discussing the book, my friend Julie shared that it was by the same company (Doorposts) that made the “If-Then chart” that she keeps on her fridge (see an example line below). It sounds like another great Biblical parenting tool. Thanks, ladies! If you have a book or tool for Christian parenting that you have found helpful, please, please share it. That’s what this site it all about — learning from each other so that we may nurture and admonish our children in the ways of the Lord!
Bible Verses for Kids
January 31, 2008
What a privilege it is to teach our children the Word of God! I have a lovely book titled My ABC Bible Verses: Hiding God’s Word in Little Hearts by Susan Hunt that I would recommend to every parent of preschoolers. Each letter of the alphabet has a corresponding Bible verse and is accompanied by a story to illustrate the scriptural passage, mostly about behaving God’s way. I recently read that some parents use the book as a family devotional for their grade school children. All in all, its more than just a list of verses.
If you are not interested in purchasing the book, but would like a list of ABC Bible Verses, be sure to check out the following pdfs:
I would suggest no matter which route you chose — book or pdf — that you set up a family chart to keep track of how everyone is doing. It should be a source of encouragement and accountability rather than a competition. Across the X-axis put each person’s name, including Mommy and Daddy. Down the Y-axis write each letter of the alphabet. When little Johnny has mastered the A verse, put a check or a sticker in the corresponding box. Then, before getting credit for B, he has to say A from memory again. The goal is for each person to be able to say the entire alphabet with it’s matching verse when this family project is over. This could be a fun pre-dinner exercise or done over dessert.
Finally, there is one last resource. I found the Presbyterian Church’s Parent Handbook for Scripture Memory online and have provided the pdf here for you. It includes information on how to get started, ways in which to help you child memorize scripture, and then age-appropriate verses from age 3 through the 5th grade.
Please, if you have tips for what has worked with your children, please share them here. May God bless you in your diligence.
