Faith in Parenting

As you might imagine, my husband didn’t really have time to go shopping for souvenirs in Africa!  So he brought back different rocks for each of us, and he wrote “Psalm 18:2″ on them.  “The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.”

This is an easy verse to memorize and then build into a spur-of-the moment devotion with your kids.  Sometime when you’re taking a walk, hiking, or skipping rocks into a steam, talk about what the Lord means to you personally, how He’s proven himself to be your Rock, your Deliverer, and the One in whom you take refuge daily.  ~Amen!

This is a great verse to share with your kids the next time they express fear of the unknown.  Maybe your son is anxious about his first sleepover, or your daughter is worried about attending a new dance school.  Our kids enter into situations that are “new” to them all the time, but it’s not always comfortable.  Reminding them - and ourselves, for that matter! - that God himself goes ahead of them and will be with them is incredibly reassuring.

So the next time you’re presented with a “what if…” from one of your kids, consider sharing this verse and turning the moment into a quick One-Minute Devotional opportunity!

Don’t you just love kids’ questions? The other day, my 5-year-old asked me if I wished for her and her brother before they were born. And it led to such a neat conversation! I got to explain how much I prayed for each of them before they were born, and how I trusted God to use me to bring into the world the exact children He wanted me to raise. (And look - He did!)

It was also an ideal opportunity for incorporating these two verses, and turning her natural inquiry into a quick one-minute devotion opportunity.

You can do the same thing. The next time your kids spontaneously ask you about the day they were born, share with them how purposefully God created them, knitting each cell together until they grew into the little person they are right at this moment!

The verse Ephesians 4:32, Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you, is a great choice for a quick one-minute devotion because it’s so applicable to our daily lives. Once you have this verse in your mind, you’re going to find lots of situations where it just naturally applies, and - ideally - that’s the time to slip in your one-minute devotion. Right there in that teachable moment.

For example, let’s say your kids are arguing. Remind them that God wants us to be kind to another and forgive one another; and then ask them why they think that is. They might say, “Because He wants us to love one another,” or “Because he want us to get along.” That’s certainly true! But it’s also a good time to point out to our kids that forgiving one another is one way we can acknowledge the extent to which God has forgiven us.

Pretty easy, right? Because sharing Christ doesn’t have to be hard, and it doesn’t even have to be well-planned or come from a formal devotional book.  Simply put the message into your own words, and look for an opportunity to share it with your kids this week.

Blessings,

Jennifer