A Different View
When you read this verse are you encouraged or overwhelmed? Does it excite you as a challenge? Or does it cause you agony -- one more thing added to your already massive to-do list?
Zachary started physical therapy a couple weeks ago. It has been a delightful experience for me. God has blessed us with a wonderful therapist. She is kind and so loving toward my son -- a child who has offended more than a few people with his strong personality. The best part of this experience is learning to see things differently.
When we were ordered to start PT, I was upset. I didn't understand why he needed it. In fact, I vented to a friend (momentarily forgetting she was a PT) about a therapist not being able to do anything anyway. "What are they going to do that I can't do here? Isabel learned to walk just fine without any help!"
But it's not about what I can or cannot do. It's about knowing which things to do when. I don't want to say she "tricks" him into exercising the right muscles ... She just approaches it differently. She knows what actions strengthen which muscles and how to get him to do it without a fight. In my mind, if Zach needs tummy time, we put him on his tummy and make him do it. If he needs to walk, we make him walk. He hates it! Sarah, in contrast, draws him in through a game. She gets him to crawl toward a bright, red truck or stand up to throw balls in a giant tub. Zach doesn't realizes he's learning. He has no clue this is exercise. He's just having fun! It's only been a couple weeks and I am looking at everything my kids do differently. I am noticing which activities encourage the skills they need to learn.
It's the same thing with faith. We can force our kids to sit and study Scripture or we can draw them into it.
If we force them, we should be ready for a battle because no one likes to be forced to do anything. Furthermore, everyone - parents and children - will quickly become exhausted by the effort. So much for that verse in Deuteronomy.
If we want to teach our children while we sit and we walk; when we wake up and go to sleep, we need to look at things differently. Scripture is not just about rules. It is a wonderful handbook for life filled with delightful stories!
So, how do we use every moment to teach our children about God?
Prayer is a good place to start. Pray whenever you feel led. We've made prayer quite a habit in our family. We pray for safety whenever we get in the car; we pray for good parking spots; we thank God for saving us a special car-cart at the grocery store. We pray before meals and before bed. We pray all the time! They don't need to be long, drawn-out theological prayers. A short "Thank you, God!" is all it takes to remind the kids of His presence and provision.
Answer your kids' questions. All kids are filled with questions! Think about ways to incorporate Scripture truths into your answers. Remember my faith discussion with Isabel?
Enjoy nature. I love sharing all the wonders of God's creation with Ellie and Zach. We don't just admire the grass and the bugs living there; we admire the One who created the grass as a home for all those little critters.
Read to your kids. I'm not just talking about the Bible. Yes, read the Bible to your kids, but there are also a ton of great Christian books that teach biblical truths through stories. If you need some ideas check out your favorite publisher websites or our site: Christian Children's Book Review.
Sing choruses, hymns or your own songs! What kid doesn't love to sing?
Offer rewards. Something as simple as a sticker or ice cream treat can get a kid asking for more! You can reward them for knowing the right answers to questions, memorizing verses or living out something they've learned in the past (telling the truth even when it's hard or exemplifying the fruits of the Spirit).
I took for granted that Zachary would learn to walk. "He'll figure it out on his when he's ready." In truth, he needs help, and I need to look at things differently in order to teach him. Likewise, we cannot take for granted that our kids will learn what they need to know about God. They can't learn it on their own. We need to teach them. When we learn to look at things differently -- seeing it as a fun game or challenge instead of a chore -- our teaching can be more effective. Our kids will enjoy learning about God! What a wonderful encouragement that will be.
8 Comments:
What a terrific post Tanya! I love it when something I fight against doing brings a fresh new perspective on things!
That verse is encouraging yet it scares me too. We have begun homeschooling our oldest - just preschool this year but we'll start Kdg in Fall. I love to try to look for fun new ways to do things! Thanks for the challenge to think outside of the box!
PS - and I'll try to bring some friends along next time ;)
Momma: You're cute! :) Glad I could encourage you. What curriculum are you using? We're not planning to homeschool, but I do want to do some preschool stuff with them. Any suggestions?
Very cool Tanya. I totally understand. I used to read that verse and cringe, but now I read it and get so excited! I too had to learn the hard way that kids can enjoy learning if it's presented to them in the right way. And now I can honestly say that I do my best to tell my children about God when we awake and before they go to bed, in the grocery store and the park. God's omnipresence is so amazing once you see it for that. So simple and yet so incredible! It started out a chore, but once Myia started pointing God out everywhere, it became more natural and fun for me as well. I am positive my little 3 year old already has crowns in heaven to throw at Jesus' feet.
Sarah: I agree -- it is easy to be spiritual with kids! Isabel remembers everything I say and reminds me of those truths when I forget. :)
We are using the Weaver Curriculum's Interlock for preschool. It is about 38 weeks and you study Genesis 1-11. We just finished week 25 and we are on Day 6 of Creation. It is a unit studies curric and we love it. This year has gone well so we are going to give kindergarten a try. Weaver Curric has 5 volumes and we'll start in fall with vol 1. If you'd like to read more about it http://unofficialweaverpages.com/index.php
Momma Roar: Thanks for the tip! I'll have to look into it.
Young moms: I, too, was excited to tell my little ones about the Lord, read them bible stories, lead them in prayer, and chronicle all the wonderful insights they themselves came up with. I also homeschooled for ten years. I can tell you that you're all on target.
About Zach's PT, it actually relates to what we're going through with our twenty-year-old son. He isn't "normal"--average, that is, inside or out. Outwardly he has a rare skeletal syndrome, which doesn't make him look different enough in a crowd to worry overly much, but you can't help not worrying at all, not in this world. He's always been as smart--intellectual and a deep thinker--as they come, but because of his physical syndrome we have emotional maturity issues to help him walk through now. He doesn't just grab the car keys and head off to college or a job. And to compare him to others would be cruel; we have to take his life to God in prayer daily, and look for ways to encourage him. It's hard and tasking.
But the foundation we laid for him as Christian parents, doing the things I read about you all doing, helped, I can tell you. However, brace yourselves: you'll ALWAYS be mom's first. As you said, Tanya, prayer is a good place to start--and to keep going!
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