A Confession

By Karen Brown

photo by Tyra Bleek

The kids were on my last nerve. They were being unkind and disrespectful. I don’t remember the last straw, but I yelled at all of them and sent them to their rooms. I was frustrated, impatient and angry. I was tired of repeating myself and breaking apart their sibling rivalries.

I was so quick to judge their behavior as sinful and condemn their actions. Treating others unfairly, disobeying, exercising zero self-control. What would their punishment be? How would I choose to discipline them? As I sat on my bed in silence thinking, it quickly became apparent that in those moments preceding, I had failed as a mom. I had not modeled at all the character traits I try so desperately to instill in my children. How was my response and behavior any less sinful than theirs? Did they deserve the punishment of quiet time- absolutely. But what about the way I chose to raise my voice to them in anger, committing the same sins I had just admonished them for? It was hard to ignore the plank in my own eye. We were all in tears and in need of forgiveness.

photo by Tyra Bleek

I love that my Savior wipes the slate clean each day. That we are new every morning and given the chance to reconcile each day. I love that for my children and I love that for myself.

Grace covers a multitude of sins!

Source: ballerinainchrist.tumblr.com via The Queen on Pinterest

75 Books that Build Character

By Karen Brown

Our family reads together every night. Not a lot of things compare to snuggling up under a blanket with the kids and a book. It’s funny how they have favorites they insisting on reading over and over and over again. You know the ones where you skip a line and the kids correct you. Those are by far the most well loved.

I stumbled upon this blog post recently and found it too good not to share. It’s a list of 75 books that build a child’s character. This is an objective list, but we are always on the hunt for new suggestions and favorites. I kind of figure if I am going to be reading to them anyway, it should be something with some substance. Something that helps drive home the values and character traits we are already trying to instill in our children. Something that teaches them lessons about things like diversity, individuality, fairness, and being open-minded.

At our local library, you can reserve books online. I’m excited to grab this list and place some of these on hold. Then, the next time we go to check out books, these are added to the pile. (Brilliant for people like me know will never remember to bring the list along.)

Share with us. What are some of your favorite children’s books or authors? Do have ones you remember reading as a child?

No Time for Flashcards via Apartmenttherapy.com/family

our father

By Karen Brown

Last spring, Julie wrote a blog post about memorizing scripture with her children. It seemed like such a simple and easy concept to incorporate, but it wasn't something we were currently doing as a family.

At around the same time, REUNION was teaching a series on the Lord’s Prayer. Since our kids didn’t already know the Our Father, we thought this would be a perfect time to teach them.

This has become Owen’s prayer of choice. He says it just about every night. He doesn’t always get all the words right, but he melts my heart every time I hear him.

Owen- age 3

“I have hidden God’s word in my heart that I might not sin again thee.” Psalm 119:11

Why the City is a Wonderful Place to Raise Children

By Karen Brown

A friend recently forwarded me an article from The Gospel Coalition. It is written by Kathy Keller, wife of Tim Keller, lead pastor at Redeemer Presbyterian Church in Manhattan.

Her perspective on raising children in New York City is both thoughtful and insightful. I appreciate her point of view on darkness and light in the city. As a mom who has already raised her children into successful adults, her wisdom is invaluable. I really like what she has to say about the abundance of sin surrounding children in urban settings, since this is often a deterrent for city living. “In the city your kids see sin and its consequences while you are still with them and can help them process it. Eventually they're going to encounter it for themselves, usually when they leave the protected environment of home for the big wide world---just when you are no longer around to discuss things.”

You can read the full article here article.  

Photo by Mikhail Glabets

 

Photo by Mikhail Glabets

First Response

By Karen Brown

I woke up to my six year old crying. He had made his way in a sleepy stupor to my bedside to tell me he was sick. He climbed onto the pillow next to me as I asked him what was hurting. It was hard to really make out his words, but I did understand he was in pain and wanted me to snuggle him back to sleep. He told me, “I woke up and I prayed to Jesus to feel better, but it just isn’t working yet.”

In that moment, I wanted to be more like my child. I wanted my faith to be as simple as his. I wanted my first response to be one of turning to my Heavenly Father for comfort and healing. There are so many times, in both distress and in joy that I turn to others first. I turn to my husband or my girlfriends to sympathize with what I am going through, or just to complain. I turn to others to celebrate with me, before giving thanks to God for the blessings He has bestowed on me.

I thank God each day for the joy and privilege it is to be a mom. And today I thanked God for the reminder from a six year old to make Him my first response. 

As a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you...  Isaiah 66:13 

Sharing the Gift of Giving

By Karen Brown 

When we started participating in Advent Conspiracy a few years ago, we shared the concept with our parents.  They were originally less than excited about toning down the gift giving, but they eventually embraced the idea and made it their own in a really cool way. 

They still wanted to spend what they had budgeted on the kids, but wanted to be able to give the kids the experience of “giving more” and “loving all."  Here’s what they came up with.  They took their budgeted gift amount and “tithed” a portion to the kids in cash.  The kids then took their envelopes of cash and were able to give away the money from Grandpa and Grandma.

I love the idea of the kids being engaged with their grandparents in blessing others.  It opens up doors for conversations about the impoverished and invites dialogue on what it looks like to love others with the resources we have.  Our kids ended up buying animals for a family though World Vision.  Here are some other great ideas for kids; many of the websites have great videos the kids can watch as well.  (Consider previewing them first to make sure they are age-appropriate.)

•Samaritan’s Purse: livestock, sporting gear, help build a school

 Photo from Samaritan's Purse

•Living Water: fresh water wells so children can attend school

 Photo from Living Water International

•Compassion International: child sponsorship

•A local homeless shelter or food pantry

How do you invite your children into giving cheerfully? 

Operation Christmas Child

By: Karen Brown

I’m certain my children could hardly fathom the thought of a Christmas without gifts. Even when we try to limit the consumerism and sheer amount of *things* they get, the stash from grandparents and others is still pretty overwhelming.

So how do we, as parents, give our kids a glimpse into the world of those children that are less fortunate? Those that not only won’t likely have Christmas gifts, but other basic provisions like food and a proper house. How do we make this reality tangible for them and allow them the opportunity to play a part in blessing someone else this Christmas? Maybe even a child their own age.

"Operation Christmas Child brings joy and hope to children in desperate situations worldwide through simple, gift-filled shoeboxes and evangelistic materials that tell the Good News of God’s love.”

The mission is simple. Pack shoeboxes full of necessities and fun gifts for needy children this Christmas. Share the message of God’s love and help be Good News to those who may have never heard the Christmas story.

all images from Samaritan's Purse 

Our family participated in packing shoeboxes. The kids each picked a child their same age and gender. They spent so much time scouring the store looking for what would fit in the box and be just right to send along. We picked out small toys & art supplies, fun toothbrushes & toothpaste, hair bands & barrettes, jumpropes and balls. My son included one of his most loved matchbox cars. We drew cards for the kids receiving the boxes and prayed for them. This year we will watch some of the videos from the website as well. I hope the kids will better connect when they see the images of the children receiving the boxes. Simple gifts with potential for profound, eternal impact.



National Collection Week is November 14-21. Check the website for details on where to drop your box.

Has your family participated in Operation Christmas Child before? How did it impact your children?

Favorite Bibles for Kids

By Karen Brown

My two oldest kids may have finally graduated from baby Bibles to something with actual chapters and verses. I thought it would be an easy task to simply grab them a new Bible from the bookstore, but the selection is a bit daunting. After asking some other parents and doing a little research, here’s a short list of favorites.

For Infants & Toddlers

This is a really sweet Bible that covers some of the more popular stories. The stories rhyme (hence the name) and the kids really enjoy listening to it. The illustrations are really nice and pretty to look at. This Bible makes a great gift.

For Preschoolers

This Bible is great because it covers a wide range of stories from both the Old and New Testaments. The stories are typically a couple short pages long and are written with age-appropriate language and discretion. All the pages have colorful illustration.

For Young Readers 

I asked my daughter what she loves about this Bible and she mentioned that she really likes to read the introductions of the books that talk about who wrote it and what was happening during those Bible times. She is often sharing “did you know?” facts that I don’t even know. It is just a really fun Bible.


At what age did you first buy your child a Bible? What are some of your family favorites?

meet: tim & stephanie hawkins

By Tim and Stephanie Hawkins & Karen Brown

I am honored to have a guest post today by Tim & Stephanie Hawkins.  Tim and Stephanie moved to Boston 6 years to start Sojourn Collegiate Ministry the same time our family moved here to launch REUNION.  We have had the priviledge of watching them parent their 4 kids as well as nurture and disciple dozens and dozens of students...both young children and young adults.  Tim is the Director of Sojourn Collegiate Ministry and Stephanie is a preschool teacher at Park Street Kids in downtown Boston.  Tim and Stephanie are one of those couples that you just want to sit down with over coffee and pick their brains about their philosphy on parenting and child rearing.  I asked them recently to give us some insight on what shapes their parenting style and some "best practices" that have worked in their family.

We do not compromise our values when we say that the child is more important than his conduct. Rather we affirm them at their deepest level. We dig down to bedrock and declare what is true. - Hold On To Your Kids, Gordon Neufeld & Gabor Mate

We were 25 when our first child was born and, over the following six years, we added three more to the clan.  We did not start out with a particular philosophy or guiding vision of raising our kids except the constant prayer, “God, please keep us from screwing this up.”  

It is still our prayer.  And confession.

Though we wouldn’t have defined our parenting philosophy this way, it is a particular phrase in Neufeld and Mate’s book, Hold On to Your Kids, that has helped articulate what we value as a family: 

To compensate for the cultural chaos of our times, we need to make a habit of collecting our children daily and repeatedly until they are old enough to function as independent beings.

We have come to realize that much of what we value as parents are rhythms and practices that help us collect our kids.  And these are a reminder to dig beyond conduct, and affirm them at their deepest level, which for us is how God is shaping them for His Kingdom mission.

These are our favorite collecting places:

Books –Books give us a common language to talk about redemptive themes and the Kingdom of God.  We read a wide variety of books that broaden our perspective on the world and what God is doing in it.  Most recently we have been reading, Same Kind of Different as Me, by Ron Hall and Denver Moore.

Allowance - We give our kids allowance every two weeks and let them spend it any way they want (as long as it’s legal), including planning ahead for gifts.  Beyond lessons about responsibility, allowance gives us a chance to talk about values and choices.  Our kids have become great gift givers to one another. 

Hospitality – Involving our kids in the preparations and responsibilities for hosting gives them more joy in the relationships they are building.

Travel – Mostly this is about having shared memories and stories to tell.  “Remember when we…”  

Prayer – Not just in the act of praying, but also talking (even just one-on-one) about how God is forming us as individuals through our prayer.  It also allows prayer to bring God into the everyday, as we encounter disappointment, fear, worry, sadness, joy. Prayer is not just a matter of asking God for things, but models formation.  

Storytelling – This happens daily in some way through something as simple as, “So do you want to know what happened to me today?”  Over the years the stories have gotten more entertaining.  Shared laughter strengthens the family bond (it’s the inside joke phenomenon). 

Traditions – Although many of our traditions are associated with holidays, some are as simple as Ebelskiver Saturdays or watching a specific TV show together.  Our traditions are the hands-on application of our family values.

Eating Out – We don’t do this everyday, but about once a week we break from the norm, free ourselves from the preparation and cleaning-up, to have significant time at the table together with nowhere to go and nothing to keep us busy except talking to one another.

Debriefing – Maybe one of the best pieces of advice we received from parents we respected was to, “Debrief everyday.”  When we’re going 6 different directions during the day, it’s important to come re-center at the end of the day.

Thank you Tim & Stephanie for sharing your wisdom and insight!  Parenting is the hardest job there is and you do it with such thoughtfulness,  patience, and grace.

Creation: Preschool Style

by Karen Brown

Around here, this week is back-to-school week. While my two oldest will be gone all day, I will be trying to come up with ideas to keep my little guy engaged and learning.

When my other two were preschoolers, one of the things I did that they absolutely loved was assign themes to each week. We then planned activities accordingly to reinforce what I was trying to teach. We started with a week loosely based on each day of creation. 

So for example, when we were talking about ocean animals God made we: visited the aquarium, went to the beach and saw baby sea turtles, glued seashells together and added googlie eyes to make our own “animals”, drew pictures of animals in the ocean with crayons and then painted over with watercolors, the kids earned ocean animal silly bands for good behavior, painted wood sea creatures from the dollar section at Michael’s, checked out books from the library on sea creatures and we may have watched Finding Nemo a few times. The emphasis was always on who made the animals, “Kids, who made this Loggerhead turtle? Yes, God made the turtle!”

Other ideas for weeks could be:

Day 1: Earth, Day & Night
• Shadow play with flashlights 

• Glow-in-the-dark paint
• Homemade sand playdough 

Day 2: Skies with Water Below
• Talk about the globe or play with globe “beach balls”
• Water play (we made a pvc “water park”), water ballons, go swimming
• Lay on your back and make animals out of the clouds 

Day 3: Sea, Grass, Plants & Trees
• Trip to the plant nursery or arboretum
• Apple or berry picking at an orchard
• Leaf rubbings
• Rake & jump in the leaves
• Plant wheat grass indoors & watch it sprout in just a few days

Day 4: Sun, Moon & Stars
• Phases of the moon chart
• Rhymes like “I see the moon & the moon sees me”
• Make constellations on the ceiling with glow in the dark stars

Day 5: Birds & Sea Creatures
• Visit a petstore and check out the fish and birds up close
• Visit the aquarium or the tidepools
• Art using craft feathers
• Go fishing

Day 6: Land Animals & People

• Trace the outline of the kid’s bodies, make handprint art
• Trip to the zoo
• Bake cookies with gingerbread men shaped cookie cutters & decorate
• Check out animals books from the library or the video series Planet Earth

This way of teaching your kids is really only limited by your creativity and imagination. Have fun with it and don’t take yourself too seriously.

What are your favorite ways to teach your children?

HELLO, LIBRARY? THIS IS TODDLER! LET’S BE FRIENDS! How To Enjoy Your Library With Your Little One

By Katharine Grubb

One of the silliest things I did as a new mother was take my two month old to check out children’s books at my local library branch. I took them home, and read them to her. I had seen it in every parenting magazine that reading to you child, even your infants was important.

Honestly? After the first book, I felt ridiculous. Babies that small don’t need books. Instead, I talked non-stop to her (to develop those language skills) and we waited until she was a bit older to go to the library.

When my baby became a toddler, and had a baby sister, we went back. This time the purpose was to bring picture books home, look over them repeatedly and take them back to discover new favorites.

I knew, with time, that this would instill in my little girls a love of books and an interest in the world around them and hopefully make them life-long readers. We’ve gone to the same branch---with the same librarians---for the last eleven years and it’s become an extension of our home in some ways. The very goals that were mentioned in those parenting magazines are met: my kids are enthusiastic readers.

How does one start at the library? How does one go from first-time visitor to old friend?

1. Make the library a habit. The same day every week, or once every two weeks. Your toddlers will grow in their affection for books, the outing and time with you!

2. Bring A Bag. It is tricky to juggle a child, a purse, a stroller and a pile of books. Besides, you always check out more than you think you will. My personal record is 88 books. And I have two huge canvas bags.

3. Chat with the children’s librarian. It is her job to help you find with you need. If you have a good relationship with her, then you will get the most out of your library experience.

4. Start slowly. Toddlers only need two or three board books checked out at each visit. Don’t force their interests; let them develop naturally.

5. Look for books about those pet subjects. My daughter has checked out all the wildcat books dozens of times, even the ones that were too hard for her to read. My son did the same for the penguin books. This makes their library time more positive, allows for them to think about books as familiar friends and encourages them in their reading when they’re ready.

6. Have a plan, like alphabetically. Kids’ picture books are often alphabetized by the author’s last name. Start with the first five book that begin with A. Move on to the Bs when you’re ready.

7. Or, concentrate on one author per month. You can’t go wrong with H. A. Rey, Lois Ehlert, Steven Kellogg, Rosemary Wells, Margaret Wise Brown, Robert McCloskey, Chris Van Allsburg, Eric Carle, Virgina Lee Burton, Jan Brett, Don Freeman, and James Marshall. There are hundreds of great authors out there. If you need more suggestions, try Amazon.

8. Take Your Time. Rushing adds to stress, stress often makes noise. Libraries are supposed to be peaceful. If your visits are peaceful, then that will remind your child that this is a positive experience.

9. Limit the DVDs. That’s the first thing my kids want to check out, but I am always reluctant to do so. The main reason is that they are due in a week, while the rest of our books are due back in three weeks. This little fact had caused me to pay far too many fines because I forgot to renew the DVDs. I also want for my kids to see the library as a place for their minds. The latest Spongebob DVD doesn’t do much for that.

10. Check out the events. Libraries put a lot of energy into book discussions, story hour, lecturers, art shows, and kids programs. Take advantage of them. You’ll meet people, learn more about your community---and most of the time, they’re free!

11. Take advantage of online catalogs. Loved The Very Hungry Caterpillar but can’t find The Very Grumpy Ladybug on the shelf? A library’s online catalog is often system wide and can get titles for you to be held at your local branch. This is one of my favorite tools for educating my children.

12. And, get something for yourself! If your child sees you read, they will be far more likely to follow in your footsteps.

Now, thirteen years later after that first trip, all five of my children love going to library. They have their favorite titles and their favorite librarians. And all of them have a love of good books.

Saying Sorry

By Julie Wilson

If you are like me, you will be on vacation this summer, and around extended family. My sisters all live in Illinois with their families, and we only get to see them a couple times a year. The cousins all get along really well, but kids being kids, there tends to be an occasional argument or fight. There happened to be an argument this morning between my niece and nephew over a toy. They both wanted to play with it at the same time, so one pushed the other, and the other started crying.

When my own children get into an argument with one another, and are angry, they usually do not want to be around the one they are mad at. But, my husband and I have always made the kids say sorry and apologize to one another for the fight. We try to get them both to calm down, take a deep breath, and realize what they did wrong in the situation. Then we have them not only say they are sorry, but ask for forgiveness. Just saying sorry did not seem like enough. We want our children to realize that they need to not only ask for forgiveness, but then also extend forgiveness to the one that hurt them.

Kids of course can be very stubborn, and may not want to say they are sorry, or offer forgiveness because they feel truly hurt by the other one. But if you stay consistent, and patiently wait, they will learn that this is the process by which they need to solve their disputes in a healthy, God-honoring way. 

We also have the two who are in the argument kiss and hug one another. We are a very affectionate family, so this seems to work well for us. It usually helps soothe the hurt feelings or the pain. Today, my nephew was being stubborn, as any five-year-old can be, but we patiently waited for him to say he was sorry and calm down, so he could hug his cousin and make things right between them. If you establish these guidelines early on with your children, they will learn about forgiveness in a way that will only help them in their relationships later on in life.

barnes & noble summer reading program

By Karen Brown

I was recently at our local Barnes & Noble and came across a flyer for their summer reading program. Kids can download a reading journal, read any eight books and then turn in their journal for a FREE book (off a selected list.)



Fostering a child’s love of reading and working towards a goal is a wonderful gift we can give our kids. Activities we encourage now as they are little can form lifelong habits. I know my daughter reads her Bible every night not only because we encourage her to, but mostly because she just loves reading.

We are certain to add this to our family summer get-to-do list!

teachable moments

By Julie Wilson

This last week my family received some heart-breaking news. My sister, who was 14 weeks pregnant, lost her baby. This was her second miscarriage and just as difficult to understand as the first one. I myself lost two babies, and all of my sisters have as well. Unfortunately, we all understand the devastating loss and deep sadness that accompanies a miscarriage.

When my brother-in-law called me to tell me he was taking my sister to the hospital, I immediately got off the phone and started praying. It was early in the morning, so my two oldest had already headed off to school, and my little girls were still upstairs asleep. I was praying through my tears and pleading with God to not let my sister lose another baby. I had to compose myself enough to call the rest of the family, letting them know so that they all could be praying for my sister.

When I got off the phone with my youngest sister, I heard my little girls upstairs stirring. I went upstairs to talk to them about what was happening. I could not hide my fear. They saw me crying and hugged me, comforting me. We stopped right then and there in the bathroom to pray. I wanted my little ones to know how important it was to include God in that moment.

We got the news later in the day that my sister had, in fact, lost the baby. I had to tell my two oldest children when they got home from school. We were all terribly sad. But I knew I had an opportunity to teach my children about God’s love and peace in this moment.

I have recalled verses from Psalm 34 through this:

I will extol the Lord at all times, his praise will always be on my lips…I sought the Lord and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears. The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them, he delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

I want my children to know that even though this happened, we still trust and believe that God is love. We may not understand why this happened, but I want my children to know that in times like these, it is even more vital that we turn to God and not away from Him.

God’s Garden

By Julie Wilson

My family and I have recently been volunteering with a community garden. About a month ago, we helped get all the beds ready for planting. We pulled weeds, picked out trash, and shoveled in compost. Then we planted carrots. This last week when we went back, the girls got to see the carrots starting to grow and they also helped plants herbs.

For us, living in an urban city has many advantages. But one disadvantage is that we do not have a yard to plant a garden. Being able to help our neighbors plant fresh food for those not able to grow produce on their own has been a joy for us. Last year, the majority of the food from this community garden was given away to the Greater Boston Food Bank and other non-profit organizations for those in need. This has been a great opportunity for my “city” kids to be a part of producing and cultivating a garden that they would not otherwise be able to experience.

If you live in an urban area I encourage you to find ways to have fresh produce. See if there is a community garden that you can volunteer at. Or try growing in pots or a small, raised bed. As we continue to help at the garden I hope this will teach my children about God’s goodness and His plan. God’s plan of creation and His design are amazing. It is incredible to think how God can take a tiny seed and grow it into a large, beautiful plant. He is the ultimate gardener!

God's goodness journal

By Phil McArdle

This past Christmas, my wife came up with some really incredible gift ideas for our kids. One of them was a journal in which our whole family would collaboratively write with the theme of recognizing God’s goodness in our day-to-day lives.

In practice, it’s very simple. Each night as we settle into the dinner table, Alexis (age 9) pulls out the God’s Goodness Journal and writes each of our names leaving a few blank lines before the next. We then take turns mentioning good things that happened throughout our day. It might be a compliment someone gave me, a fun activity at school, another new client at my wife’s business, a fabulous story we heard from a friend or a new word Skylar (18 months) learned to say. We come up with good things that happened in our own days and good things we experienced as a family.

My wife found the idea and started our journal, and Alexis pulls it out the majority of the time. But I think I’m the one who would miss it the most if we stopped. It’s great that something so simple could impact our family in so many ways. Time around the dinner table is pretty solid to begin with, but this journal definitely takes it up a notch. With the help of this journal, our new routine is discussion about positive things we are each excited about and connecting all of it to God’s movement in our lives and world.

It’s subtle, but I can definitely see how our time writing in our God’s Goodness Journal is not only giving us a better picture of who God is, but is also helping form our attitudes as we focus on the good around us. 

shooting miranda

By Katharine Grubb 

This is dedicated to my daughter, Miranda.

Miranda is eleven, the second child and the second daughter. She probably gets the least attention around here. The reason for that is this: she isn't full of the witticisms and writing passions of her older sister, she isn't the math whiz her brother is, she's not the cute little penguin her other brother is, and she's not the baby. She is laid back and easy going. She wants to please me, so she isn't corrected. She is contrite when she is corrected, so we don't spend a lot of energy on bad attitudes. So, when it comes to reporting the daily drama to Daddy, Miranda is often omitted just because she's generally calm and obedient.

Because of this, I've noticed, that she's a little frustrated. She's been comparing herself to her sister and coming up short. Ariel's talents are obvious. They are big and loud and visual. Miranda's though, are quieter, like the fact that she is a favorite assistant in church nursery, or that she can memorize lists in an instant. I've spent a lot of time praying for her because I want to point out her strengths to her. I want to be able to say to her, "You're good at THIS! Go in THIS direction! No one can do THIS the way you do."

Slowly, the beautiful blessing of who she is is being revealed to us. In one way, she's shown a profound interest in music; she’s a mimic and can easily memorize. She learns audibly, so as of this week, we've just let her sit with a CD player and headphones, listening to anything she wants, because she really digs using her ears to learn. Last week, she spent hours looking at a dictionary. Then today, I picked up our Greek and Latin root word cards (you know, the kinds with prefixes and suffixes on them) to drill the kids. She lit up. She knows them better than anyone at the table. She doesn't want to stop when I get to 20, she wants to keep going.

Then all of a sudden it hit me - LANGUAGE! Miranda is perfectly suited for learning language! The audio learning, the memorization, the fascination with words and their meanings, God's plan for her must have something to do with language! Not necessarily creative work, but for the purpose of teaching it perhaps, or speaking it, or traveling or interpretation. This is who she is. These are her strengths.

We spent some time this morning speculating on what precise occupations would need an expert in languages and the more I talked about this, the more excited she became. And I saw it, the verse from Psalm 127:

3 Sons are a heritage from the LORD, children a reward from him.
4 Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are sons born in one's youth.
5 Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. They will not be put to shame when they contend with their enemies in the gate.

I told her, "Miranda! You are an arrow! It is my job to figure out where to shoot you!"

I'm telling all of you this because all of you need to be shot. Okay, that was poorly said. I mean, you need to know who you are, and then be launched out into the world to do great things.

You, like Miranda, are gifted very specifically. You have strengths that might be a little mysterious. Rest-assured, they look nothing like your neighbors’ or your siblings’. You are designed for a complete and perfect assignment, be it writing or be it something else.

If you don't already know what you were designed to do, take heart. For one, it is never too late to find out. Additionally, you are not a creation of your own making, you were made by a loving Creator who wants to shoot you, in a good way. I really, really love my daughter, but how much more God loves you! I can communicate these truths to my daughter and help her succeed in life, but HOW MUCH MORE does our Father love you and want to help you! I want to encourage all of you to seek God and ask him what your strengths are.

And you will be a great asset to the Family of God. Just like Miranda. 

http://library.duke.edu/digitalcollections/hasm_b0950/#info

1 Kings 17

By Julie Wilson 

I home school my two youngest girls, who are in third and first grades. Recently, Jonah has been studying the story from the Bible, found in I Kings 17. A widowed mother is down to her last bit of flour and oil, only enough left to make one small loaf of bread. Elijah comes along and asks the woman to first make him some bread and give it to him before she and her son eat. I’ve heard this story before, but this time it really struck me as we read it. As a mother, I don’t know if I would have the compassion that this mother did to give away some of the food that was intended for my starving child. Especially to a stranger whose God I did not know or believe in! If my child were hungry, I would want to do everything I could to provide food for them. The thought of giving away the very nourishment that could help save my child from hunger is one that I cannot comprehend. Yet, Elijah promises her that if she fulfills his request the Lord will not let her flour or oil run dry until the day the Lord sends rain. And this is exactly what happens. God blessed her compassion and willingness to share with another who was in need. I pray that God will help me to have a heart that would be so willing.

Prayer for Preschoolers

By Anna Hamman

As a preschool teacher in a Christian School, that also has many students without Christian backgrounds, I wondered about how to pray with kids ages 3-5 that had never prayed, or maybe had never even heard the word “Prayer” before. Although prayer is a small part of our day, I wanted to make it meaningful and accessible for them.
So here are some tips on praying with tots this age:

1. Know that God loves to talk to children and children do talk to God. That may sound simple, but sometimes it is easy to think that prayer is too abstract or difficult for a child or that they would find it too boring. But neither is true. A child’s mind is often much more trusting and straightforward than our grown-up, busy minds can be. Some verses I love that show God’s love and acknowledgment of a child’s connection with him:

Matthew 18:1-5. 1 At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”
2 He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. 3 And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 5 And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me. 

God says that children have great faith and that we must become like them. That takes some of the pressure off of us as we try to teach them this “big thing” called prayer. God does speak to them and loves their faith, which suggests that they pray or think in a way that He likes. The other verse I love is:

Mark 10:14-16 14 When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. 15 Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” 16 And he took the children in his arms, placed his hands on them and blessed them.

2. Prayers do not need to be sophisticated or long to be meaningful or heard. They could just be, “Please make my grandma better” or “Thank you for sunshine” and God hears and loves their faith. For kids who don’t like to use many words, I have some creative ideas below.

3. Sometimes kids don’t always like to pray out loud. That’s OK. That doesn’t mean they never will or that they are not part of the process. You can model simple and heartfelt prayer. You can ask about what they want to pray for and then pray a simple prayer for them. In time, as they develop more language skills or feel more comfortable, they may choose to pray out loud.

They may also need another format. Below are just some creative ideas I have come across or thought of. Next to them I have suggested the ages I think are appropriate for each activity.
• Make a book with photos of things or people your child would like to pray for. Alternatively, your child could make drawings of each thing. Let them choose one each night where either you or they say the words. You may choose to pray for all of them (ages 2-5)
• If your children enjoy creating things, decorate a prayer box with a lid together. Include a slot where you place pieces of paper with things they want to pray for written on them. The child can draw one out and pray for it each night. Alternatively, write down your child’s prayers or have them write them down (if they can write) on pieces of paper and then post them in the box after saying them. At the end of the week/month take a look at them again and thank God for his answers. (ages 3-8)
• Link your prayers with action. For example, if you’re praying for a sick grandma, make a drawing or card together and send it to her. If you’re praying for kids in Haiti after a disaster, start sponsoring a child and write letters to them together to make it tangible and meaningful. (ages 4-12)
• Have a corkboard that you pin prayers to. I saw this on a kids prayer website and it was used with older children, but I think you could do this with younger kids too (4-12 yrs)
• Pray using a beanbag. The child holding the beanbag gets to pray then pass it onto the next person. If you have two or more children, this might be great. (ages 3-6)

4. Children are really compassionate. Sometimes we think children will only want to pray for things close to them or to receive things that they want (we do this as adults sometimes, too). Children really do care for issues beyond themselves , whether or not we talk about them.

I was touched when teaching a three to five-year-old group one day. When I asked what they wanted to pray for, one five-year-old said, “I want to pray for all the people in Haiti right now who don’t have houses and food, that God would look after them.” There was no prompting from me or anyone else at the time. She and one of the other children then prayed for Haiti. I think it is really important to think about others in prayer, and it is not beyond children to pray for people suffering on the other side of the world, if we talk about it together.

Prayer is powerful. Enjoy the journey
 

(in)courage

By Karen Brown

Do you know about (in)courage?  It’s a ministry of Dayspring, the Christian subsidiary of Hallmark.  Each day there is a post for women, by women, about...well, a little bit of everything.  Family, finances, love, life, kids, grace, joy, gratitude.  Their posts are encouraging and are made up of real stories from women about their struggles and triumphs.  I love the transparency in their writing, not to mention the many amazing contributors.  So grab some coffee and check it out!