Tonight the Henry, Harmony and I biked, triked and walked to the place where I had my oil changed to pick up my car, about a half mile away. It was after dinner, so I brought a flashlight. I shone (shined? what's the grammar here?) it ahead of the kids, but Henry tended to ride faster than my lightbeam, and at one point he yelled back,
"Mom, I need my own light. Yours isn't bright enough."
So I gave him the flashlight, and he figured out a way to hold it and ride.
About a block from our destination, one of his training wheels fell off. Henry has had the bike since he turned four, and has constantly had issues with the training wheels--one of them tends to slide down, and he ends up with a trainer bike instead of a training bike. We tried taking them off after his 5th birthday, but despite his highly skilled riding, he was scared and wanted them back on, so we obliged. But now, the training wheels are worn out--it's not that a screw came loose, the hole in the wheel has worn so big that the bolt no longer holds it to the frame of the bike. So one way or another, we're done with training wheels.
It was a spiritually revealing trip. First, my light isn't going to shine bright enough to equip either of my children to find their way--they need the light themselves. Second, it's time to start taking the spiritual training wheels off for Henry. While Henry and Harmony both enjoy hearing Bible stories and have memorized various Bible verses, and Henry in particular has confessed faith in a very Henry way ("I wanna be on God's team!" and all kinds of variations), it's time for us to make a more concerted effort at writing God's word in their hearts and applying it to their lives, so they can have their own light and use it to walk with Jesus. Tonight Henry was excited when I talked about working together to memorize Bible verses in the new year, and we'll be adding a daily devotional for kids to our nightly routine.
So any suggestion for a set of Bible verses to start with? Or a fun but relevant devotional for kids?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
4 comments:
Thanks for sharing. They grow up so fast. As we were praying over Noah last night I wondered how we were going to teach him more about Jesus as he continues growing. It's an exciting challenge.
We love the Bedtime Bible story book. We have two copies and have found that the older version has much more detail. For some reason, the newer version has left out details that someone decided kids couldn't comprehend. We have found the opposite to be true...I could go on and on about folks making the Bible cutesy etc... As for scripture memory, we tried several programs and what not designed to help kids memorize "relevant" verses and you know what? We found that the most relevant verses to teach our kids are the ones that we ourselves are seeing God applying to our own hearts. There's lots of great stuff out there, but what we are beginning to realize is that they are only tools (and sometimes distracting ones, at that!) and unless they fall into hands designed to use them, they are actually quite useless. God has really been showing me that we have to be on guard about "dumbing down" scripture to our kids. We run the risk of removing the awesome POWER of His Word and we also don't let God be God to our kids. After all, He is completely capable of making Himself real and understandable to children...He loves children! This is turning into a book of a comment all to say, I think if you just apply the tools that God is already giving you in your own walk (like the memory verse program etc) He will also equip you with the wisdom to teach your kids what you are learning. After all, it was Him speaking to you on that bike/walk showing you it's time to go deeper with Henry and teach him to ride on the wheels he's been given. I think God has been preparing you for a long time now to take the next step. It will be awesome!
I really enjoyed your post. I always love to read how God is working in other families. What a wonderful lesson on your bike trip!
We sing memory verses and talk about what they mean. I liked what the previous person said about just applying to living. God bless!
So far none of my 7 grands have professed a change of heart or been baptised. The oldest is 13, the youngest 6. The Princess and Wonder Boy went to Christian school and memorized numerous verses. Princess says some sweet prayers that sound nothing like the standard children ones but come from the heart. They read the bible, we talk about the stories there. They've been raised in church, all of them. I don't know if that makes it harder or not. I expect one day soon, a sermon will come along that makes them realize they need more. They might ask why they can't take communion or express a desire to be baptized.
My own children were around 11 or 12 years when they accepted Christ. They too had grown up in church.
Although, your light might not be enough for them, it will certainly leave a lasting impression.
Mama Bear
Post a Comment