I'm an unlikely homeschooler, if there ever was one. It was not my original intent to homeschool my children, but nearly four years in now, I am a "true believer". There was a time not so long ago when the thought of spending practically all of my waking hours with my children was overwhelming. 5 years ago, I was the mom selling her husband on the idea of sending our just turned four-year-old to preschool because I felt I desperately needed a break already. It had been a difficult year adjusting to having two children. I spent most of my days feeling completely at my wits end, dealing with a very needy infant who refused to nap during the day and suffered from chronic acid reflux, and a toddler who reacted badly to getting the short end ... Read More...
7 Christ-Centered Easter Activities For Kids
*Disclosure: This post contains Amazon affiliate links. That means if you choose to make a purchase, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a small commission that helps support this ministry. The Gospels' account of the Resurrection never gets old. Joy renewed after what seemed like an agonizing, crushing defeat. It has the power to instantly break through my worst day, and remind me of the hope I have for both this life and the life beyond the grave. It is absolutely my favorite part of the entire Bible, a story of victory and redemption almost too good to be true. But honestly, sometimes I fail to accurately translate this message to my children during the Easter season. There are store displays of cute stuffed bunnies, colorful ... Read More...
5 Bad Seeds You May Be Planting In Your Children
Parenting is like a front row seat to your own real life drama. As I watch my son and daughter interact with each other, experiencing life day in and day out, various scenes unfold right before my eyes. And these scenarios provide an excellent training ground for the formation of character, both theirs and mine. I use these encounters to guide them towards right living now so they won't have bigger problems later. Because certain "seeds", if left unchecked, can develop into plants that are potentially dangerous. For example, when my six-year-old daughter becomes enraged with her brother for something he did and refuses to forgive him. I don't want that to become a habit she models 20 years from now as a wife. Or when my son asks for ... Read More...
3 Ways To Intentionally Disciple Your Children
We are currently studying American History in our homeschool, and recently finished a unit on the Puritans (or Pilgrims). It was inspiring to learn about how their faith gave them the vision and courage to make that journey to America and then continue to persevere in the new world despite suffering many hardships. During one of our lessons my nine-year-old piped up, "It's like God was their life theme". Yes, it was pretty much exactly like that. For the Puritans, there really was no separation between the spiritual and the secular. They taught their children how to read for the express purpose of reading and understanding the Bible. Their schools included religious teaching in everything from the alphabet to arithmetic. The intent ... Read More...
Stop Relying on Church For Your Kids’ Spiritual Training
As Christian parents, I'm afraid we have been slowly outsourcing our roles as our children's primary influence. We now delegate them to the schools, the child psychologists, and yes, even to the church. For all the hours spent in Sunday school and youth groups growing up, how much understanding of the Christian faith do kids really have by the time they reach their late teens? A 2006 study by The Barna Group revealed troubling statistics that 70-75% of Christian youth leave the Church after high school. That translates to roughly 6 out of 10 twenty-somethings that have failed to translate high levels of church involvement into active spirituality during their early adulthood. Being connected to a local body of believers is ... Read More...