Becky Crenshaw

Thank you to those who entered our First Friday Giveaway!!  How fun!!  Last week I gave away Tricia Goyer’s book Mom’s Night Out!  And thank you random.org for picking our two winners this morning! Mindy and EB come on down!!  Yay!  I will be in touch with you today and make arrangements to give you a Mom’s Night Out!  (Too bad it isn’t complete with me babysitting and gift cards to Fleming’s.  Maybe next time – grin)

So last week we looked at the childrearing instructions given by Moses to the people of Israel.  And tucked away in this familiar passage are little nuggets for you to have An Abundant Summer with your kids…

Hear O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord is one! And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your should and with all your might. And these words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart; and you shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up. Deuteronomy 6: 4-8

In these verses we see three ways to Biblically teach our children:

1. Informal Teaching

2. Formal Education

3. Modeling

Formal Education

For many parents, the first and the third approaches to Biblical parenting may be the least intimidating, but for some of us, we get a little nervous when it comes to teaching our kids the nitty-gritty of God’s Word.

Why is that?

Maybe its because the Bible feels overwhelming and we aren’t sure how to begin?

Maybe its because we as parents are new to the Bible ourselves.

Maybe its because we’ve tried reading the Bible before and failed.  

Maybe its because we start with great intentions but don’t follow through.

Maybe its because our kids don’t respond well to “go read your Bible”.

Whatever the reason, let me encourage you today, “By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence.”  2 Peter 1:3

You have what it takes to shepherd your children to Jesus.  You have what it takes to teach them about God and lead them in Scripture.  You have what it takes!  You have the mind of Christ (1 Cor. 2:16)!  So there. Put your fears to rest.

And formal education is taylor-made for your child.  Paul asks for prayer in Colossions 4:4 that he would have wisdom on how to proclaim the Gospel clearly to each audience.  Because different people require different approaches.  As do our children.  So what is working well for one family may not be right for yours!  This morning, let’s look at a few options for formal instruction this summer! And then I want to hear from you!…

1.  Use a chalkboard.  OK,  I never claimed to be a Pinterest-worthy blogger.  Here’s proof:

Nothing fancy.  At. All.  But here’s what the Crenshaws are doing – reading through the Gospel of John.  Every morning I write a passage on this board and we all read through it.  Later we discuss over breakfast.  Some mornings, I encourage them to write a brief journal entry about the theme of the story or parable. (ex.  last week they wrote about “Thirst” then later we tied that into Jesus being the Living Water.  Nothing fancy, but it stirred a great conversation about how Jesus relates to us in every circumstance and meets our every need, as well.  Great conversation.)

2.  Children’s Bibles.  Luke is too small to read through the Gospel of John, LOL.  BUT!  He isn’t excluded from our 15 minute devotional time.  While the older two are self-led, I snuggle a little pookie in my lap and we read his passage from the Jesus Story Book Bible.  He loves it.  I love it. Win win win.  Here’s a link summing up some great options for preschool devotionals.

3.  Family Devotionals. The other night I saw this devotional on my Bestie’s kitchen counter… Long Story Short by Marty Machowski.  All I can say is WOW!  I can’t wait to get my hands on this!!  It is a comprehensive snapshot of the entire Bible and appropriate for a wide age range.  Run don’t walk, people.

4.  Websites.  My running partner has older kiddos and they spend their formal instruction reading a daily devotional from She Reads Truth.  If you have never spent time on her blog…. see you in an hour.  I get lost in her archives.  So. Rich. In. Scripture.  I love her so much I want to change my blog to #She Drinks Coffee And Reads Truth.  Love her.  Go over there and see if there is a daily study appropriate for your family.

OK… I could go on and on, but I will stop because I want to hear what you are doing with your family this summer!  Can I steal your ideas?!  Share in the comments below!