What Children Need
Children are precious gifts from God that we should not take for granted. Sometimes I have to remind myself of that when they are running around the house, breaking things (accidentaly) and being a handful! I must think about the fact that God chose me to be their mother for a reason. If you are a parent it did not catch God by surprise! He knows what He is doing. His Word (the Bible) gives us some instructions on how to parent and what to teach our children.
Children come into this world with a mind that we get the privelege of filling! We can allow them to sit in front of the television all day and it will quickly get filled with all sorts of junk...or we can choose to teach them Scripture at the earliest possible age and put God's Holy Word in their mind.
Garbage in, garbage out. What our children (or you and I) watch on tv or read in books or hear from school or friends is going into our heads and hearts and will eventually make its way out of our mouths (or through our behavior). This is kinda scary. Kids are so easily influenced. We must be intentional in training them in the Lord.
Deuteronomy 11:18-20 says, "Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul (the Bible must be in you before you pass it to your children), and bind them for a sign upon your hand (is it obvious to others that God's Word is important in your life?), that they may be as frontlets between your eyes (Every decision should be made through viewing Scripture).
And ye shall teach them your children, speaking (you must say it out loud, don't assume they will 'catch it') of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. (We must talk to our kids about the Bible when we sit to eat, ride in the car, at bedtime and when they wake up)
And thou shalt write them (Have Scripture verses written in your home: We have them engraved on wood above the doors) upon the door posts of thine house, and upon thy gates:"
We must be diligent in teaching our kids over and over so it can be engrained in them. We have a grave responsibilty to do this. Some books to help teach Scripture are 100 Ways to Know God Loves Me by Stephen Elkins (We use this for family devotion). Also, Those Kids in Proverbsville by Elizabeth Rice Handford. (Read to teach character lessons from Proverbs)
Along with teaching them Scripture there are other things they need as well. I came across this list online somewhere and I love it.
What Your Children Want You To Do:
1. Tuck me in bed, sing to me and tell me a story of when you were growing up.
2. Hug me and kiss me and talk with me privately.
3. Spend quality time with just me without my siblings.
4. Feed me nutrituous food to make me healthy.
5. At the dinner table talk about what we can do together on the weekends.
6. At night talk to me about anything; love, school, family.
7. Let me play outside a lot.
8. Cuddle with me under a blanket to watch our favorite movie.
9. Discipline me to show me you care.
10. Leave me a special note in my desk or lunchbox.
All of this says to your child, "I love you!"
Children come into this world with a mind that we get the privelege of filling! We can allow them to sit in front of the television all day and it will quickly get filled with all sorts of junk...or we can choose to teach them Scripture at the earliest possible age and put God's Holy Word in their mind.
Garbage in, garbage out. What our children (or you and I) watch on tv or read in books or hear from school or friends is going into our heads and hearts and will eventually make its way out of our mouths (or through our behavior). This is kinda scary. Kids are so easily influenced. We must be intentional in training them in the Lord.
Deuteronomy 11:18-20 says, "Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul (the Bible must be in you before you pass it to your children), and bind them for a sign upon your hand (is it obvious to others that God's Word is important in your life?), that they may be as frontlets between your eyes (Every decision should be made through viewing Scripture).
And ye shall teach them your children, speaking (you must say it out loud, don't assume they will 'catch it') of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. (We must talk to our kids about the Bible when we sit to eat, ride in the car, at bedtime and when they wake up)
And thou shalt write them (Have Scripture verses written in your home: We have them engraved on wood above the doors) upon the door posts of thine house, and upon thy gates:"
We must be diligent in teaching our kids over and over so it can be engrained in them. We have a grave responsibilty to do this. Some books to help teach Scripture are 100 Ways to Know God Loves Me by Stephen Elkins (We use this for family devotion). Also, Those Kids in Proverbsville by Elizabeth Rice Handford. (Read to teach character lessons from Proverbs)
Along with teaching them Scripture there are other things they need as well. I came across this list online somewhere and I love it.
What Your Children Want You To Do:
1. Tuck me in bed, sing to me and tell me a story of when you were growing up.
2. Hug me and kiss me and talk with me privately.
3. Spend quality time with just me without my siblings.
4. Feed me nutrituous food to make me healthy.
5. At the dinner table talk about what we can do together on the weekends.
6. At night talk to me about anything; love, school, family.
7. Let me play outside a lot.
8. Cuddle with me under a blanket to watch our favorite movie.
9. Discipline me to show me you care.
10. Leave me a special note in my desk or lunchbox.
All of this says to your child, "I love you!"
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