(Giveaway details here)
A memory is formed in an instant…
But with baby brain, even the sweetest memories are bound to be forgotten without proper documentation…
Hope, Seth, and I were headed downstairs this morning.
I was carrying three of these…
Two of these…
This (Hope insisted Seth wanted to take it with us)…
My phone.
Oh, and one of these…
As in my super smiley little mister
Hope was carrying this…
When she turned to me at the top of the stairs and asked me to carry these…
Because, as she put it, “Mama, you please carry these for me…my hands kinda too full”.
…smile and sigh…
“darling girl…of course I’ll carry them for you.”
—– * —–
Yesterday I mentioned that we’re in the business of planting seeds around here. Little veggies yes, but more importantly God’s Word in our little peoples hearts.
The mind of a child is incredible you know. The ability to recall and memorize is at its absolute best right now.
So we’re trying to make the most of it.
Trusting that God will produce as much or as little fruit in their lives from the seeds we’re planting as He wills, but also knowing we’re called to train them up.
There are three verses that have really shaped our approach to training up our little people:
“Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” ~Romans 10:17
and
“So will My Word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.” ~Isaiah 55:11
and
“Thy Word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against Thee.” ~Psalm 119:11
Alright…that’s the foundation.
From there a couple of conclusions were drawn:
1. Part of training is helping our little people hide the Word of God in their hearts. At no other time in their life will their mind be more of a sponge than now so we’re starting now…we’re not worried about them “getting it” all right now but we certainly want to plant that little seed now so it’s there for God to grow into a producing truth throughout their life when He sees fit.
Here’s a side note…when I was very small…4, maybe 5…my mom played these Kids Praise CDs in the car for us. One of the songs was Ephesians 4:32…to this day I can remember the tune and “lyrics” of that song…couldn’t tell you much of anything I learned in high school or college but I can remember that song. And, more importantly, it being planted there has allowed the Lord to bring it to my recollection numerous times throughout my life at just.the.right.moment.
2. Faith comes by hearing. I’m not sure about this. I’ll be the first to state that it’s just one of my many theories…but I can’t help but wonder if many a Christian parent takes for granted that their first mission field is to their children?
Bible studies are great.
Ministering in your church is great.
Participating in world wide missions are great.
But first and foremost, our children need us to shepherd and minister to them because until they profess Jesus as Lord and Savior, begin walking in surrender to His will, they are in need of hearing the Gospel again and again and again.
3. And this is where I sigh the biggest sigh…God is responsible for the fruit. Thank you Lord it’s not my responsibility to make something happen! But…that is no excuse to not participate, to plant, and to tend.
There…I will now put my soap box back in the corner and get on with it.
🙂
Here are the resources we’re using around here to provide planting opportunities…they’re all a means to an end…the end being constant planting of Scripture in little people hearts…trusting in the God of the Word to take it from there.
1. Steve Green’s Hide ‘Em In Your Heart Bible verse CDs and DVDs, Vol. 1 & Vol. 2
-Brace yourself for a trip back to the early 90s! Contemporary Christian artist Steve Green and a slew of little people sing Bible verses as they sport their neon attire! I love both of these sets because the CDs are great for the car while the DVDs make for a great mid-morning video. The kids play and act out a skit according to the theme of the verse. Bottom line, what Hope is hearing and retaining is Scripture. Plus the skits provide conversation starters while we’re watching!
2. Playtime Devotions
– I sent this to a friend…rightfully so she thought the devos were a little cheesy…I think they’re a little cheesy…and I’m cheesy! But again…a means to an end. We do a handful of these together as a family before Alex leaves to go to work each morning. And because Hope is able to speak pretty well, Alex will say a part of the verse, let her repeat it, say the rest of the verse, let her repeat, and then give the address…which she repeats. Want to know something? She’ll ask for specific devos according to the Bible verse. Seeds are being planted.
3. Jesus Wants All of Me Prayer Edition
Oswald Chambers. Did you know he came to know the Lord under the teaching of Charles Spurgeon? Yep. Sound stuff. And this little book is the daily devos from Chambers daily devo, My Utmost for His Highest, written in the language of little people. However, cue the broken record…it’s a means to an end…Hope listens and repeats the verse and prayer that’s included with each devo.
4. My Utmost for His Highest, Jesus Wants All of Me
This one is on my list of books to check out…the only difference between this book and the one listed above is that it doesn’t include the prayer at the end…and I’ll be honest, it’s a blessing to be able to lead Hope in prayer every day with the simple format that’s given in the other book. That said, I’d still like to check this one out.
5. Songs for Saplings
– I have purchased a great many ABC Bible verse CDs and this is my favorite…for one reason: it includes the verse address in the song. I like that…helps me to remember them better that way.
6. Big Thoughts for Little Thinkers
– These books were sent to us by our good friends the Stimson’s just before the little mister arrived. They’re theologically sound and provide a great opportunity to discuss a few of the bigger topics in the Bible.
7. My ABC Bible Verses
– Nearly the last time with the broken record…each verse starts with the corresponding letter in the alphabet and includes a story to illustrate the verse. This book provides an opportunity for discussion and more importantly an opportunity to read/recite the corresponding Bible verse.
Hope is currently stuck on E…”Even a child is known by his deeds” ~Proverbs 20:11…good verse.
8. And finally, Bible verses throughout our home that we can read and repeat as we see them throughout the day.
It’s just about planting. As I was gathering the links to these resources I came across this quote:
“To suppose that whatever God requireth of us that we have power of ourselves to do, is to make the cross and grace of Jesus Christ of none effect.” John Owen
Well said. A good reminder that though we’re called to participate and train, it is only by the power of God in us that will enable us to do so day in and day out.
*Any resources you’re using? I’m always looking for ways to expose our little people to the truth of God’s Word…so if you have any on your bookshelf or in your CD player that you just love, please share!