Shirley’s Prepackaged Crafts

Everyone has times they can remember when the Lord uses their children to teach them some spiritual truth about His kingdom. I love how the Lord does that! It’s like having a personal trainer . . . only it’s spiritual and you never know when it’s going to hit you!

Several years ago on a particular evening my three-year-old and I were cleaning up the family room. This is during the time when he wanted to write and make letters but really it was only scribbling. For months he would ask for a piece of paper and sit at the table and write down his list for various things. It was such a routine for him that I bought a little notebook that would fit into his small hands.

Well, on this particular evening he came upon one of his many lists and he excitedly pointed it out to me. When I asked him what was on his list he replied, “Go grocery shopping. Show love together.”

Ohhhh, yeah . . show love. With life swirling around me and my little guy standing before me, little did he know how deep it sank on that day!

Oh, Father, it is wonderful that you use my children to remind me of what is important . . . to show love together!

Even now we chat about “showing love together” and make it practical for the smaller ones in our family by talking about what it means to show love. It’s something that goes quietly by the wayside until one day we realize what’s missing in the ordinary interactions 

I’m sure everyone here has a similar story of when God used your little ones to drive home a spiritual truth. I really do love how the Lord does that!

So, what’s on your list for today?

Do you have a baby in the house right now?  If not, maybe you still remember the time when they were about six months old and how very distracted they were!  At this age, nursing or feeding with a bottle is a bit of a challenge . . . any little noise and they stop drinking to look around and see what is happening.

 How much I am like that with the Lord!

 There are soooooo many different things that catch my attention or make me look off to the side to see what is passing by!  O, I settle down again for a while but then I strain my eyes to look to one side or I twist right around at an unfamiliar sound.

 And then I remember . . .

“Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”
Psalm 46:10

 In the midst of little ones and the chaos of newborns, infants and toddlers, it is almost impossible to carve out large chunks of time to be quite before the Lord.  You are legitimately busy caring for multiple, small children.  However, right in the middle of the blessings He has entrusted to you, you can quiet your mind and whisper up to Him your thanks, your praises, your concerns.

 As the busy holiday season approaches, ask the Lord to keep you mindful of Him and His ways and to quiet your mind . . . . even while the hungry mouths of your children are needing to be fed!

I first came across a Scripture Survival Kit a few years ago when one of my son’s Sunday School teachers gave them to the kids.  I have since done some research on them and found that there are many, many, many variations of them on-line.  Below is a combination of a number of them and explains what is in your kit.

 Scripture Survival Kit

Toothpick:  To remember to pick out the good in others. (Matthew 7:1,  Do not judge, or you too will be judged.)

Rubberband:  To remember to be flexible.  God has it under control. (Romans 8:28,  And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.)

Band Aid:  To remember to mend hurt feelings – yours or someone else’s. (Colossians 3:12-14,  Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.)

Paper:  To remember to list your blessings daily. (Ephesians 1:3, Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.)

Gum:  So you can stick to it.  With God you can accomplish anything. (Philippians 4:13, I can do everything through him who gives me strength.)

Button:  To remember to button your lip when needed. (Proverbs 21:23, He who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself from calamity.)

Lifesaver:  To remember that the Lord is there to help. (Psalm 46:1, God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.)

Candy Kiss:  To remember that Love should be a part of everyday. (1 John 4:7, Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.)

Puzzle Piece:  To remember that without God we are not complete. (1 John 4:12, No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. )

Ever notice when a child learns to climb, they will climb on anything and everything? They have full confidence that what they climb will hold them secure. Indeed, they need the various objects to challenge and strengthen their growing minds and muscles. Unfortunately a few tumbles are taken before caution is exercised.

As you begin this homeschool year, consider where your confidence rests. Is it in the Lord and His sufficiency or in the curriculum you’ve purchased? Is the curriculum needed? Of course! But it is the Lord who directs the paths of men and it is His mercy that sees us through each day.

Jeremiah 17:7 & 8
“But blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.”

Whatever this year holds, may you find yourself taking confidence in Him.

Are you including your children in the work of the household so they can learn and you are not left with everything to do at the end of the day?

This takes more than a week, a month, or even just one year.  This is a mentoring relationship that has rewards for all involved.  However, you’ll need to realize that at first it will take you longer to do everything than if you just do it yourself.  And there will be times you will need to do things by yourself.

Before implementing this, consider attitudes toward work – especially your own.  Do you consider work drudgery and complain when you have to do it?  Or are you thankful that you are healthy enough to be able to do your own work instead of relying on others to do it for (ie: you are in the hospital away from your family or laid up in bed at home)?  So first consider where you are at with this and go before the Lord if need be.

Then, consider what is easy for little ones to help with. . . and what can be done along side of the work to let them see what fun it can be.  Here are a few ideas for making it something other than drudgery:

• Periodically on cleaning days hide a treat, pennies or stickers in those hard to clean places so your good cleaners get a pleasant surprise.
• Play music when tidying up the house.  Let it be something they select and put it up loud!
• Set the timer for ten minutes and have a race to see how much can be tidied before it goes off.
• Make a game of who can get to it first and put it away or fold it first (and properly).  Again, at this age being first can be very important.  Let them be first at things that are important!
• “Gang up” on another child and help them do their work, especially if it’s more than usual for a given day.  Tell them what you are doing and why – because the Lord helps us when things get to be too much for us as adults too!

Those can help get you started.  And as with everything, ask the Lord to show you how you can continue to show Him to your children in the everyday life of keeping a home.

Rewards.  What do we consider a reward?  What about our kids?  And the Lord?

This month in addition to the certificate, arm yourself with tangible treats like M&Ms and give a reward throughout the month when you see and hear any of your children living out what Jesus has called us to – a life of love and grace.  Talk about rewards here on earth and rewards waiting for us in heaven.

Are there acts of kindness that can be shown in secret?  Do them!  Have you overheard one child say to a down-cast sibling, “I’ll do your chores for you” or “I’m sorry for . . . ”

Is one child willing to take the punishment for another?  Has a child come along side of another to offer help and assistance in a loving manner?

Once the concept has caught on, “catch” one of them doing it and then give them a tangible reward (a treat, sticker, sweet grapes, a bit of pop, shinny penny, etc) and tell them how proud you are of them for doing something that doesn’t always come easy.  Choose to make a way to talk about rewards.  Talk about how you want your family to function and live a different kind of way.

If you are not seeing any of these things in your children, then let it start with you.  Instead of a punishment one day, extend grace and tell them what it is, why you are doing it and then introduce them to Jesus who extended grace to us, who so desperately need it.  Tell them all they have to do is ask Jesus to be their friend and for Him to come into their life and help them do what is right.  Then ask them if they want to do that.  Some will say yes (pray with them right there if that’s the case – and then write it down and celebrate!), some will say no.  The spiritual realm is abstract and at this age kids are very concrete learners.  If they have questions and don’t understand, you can talk about how we can not see the wind, but we can see what the wind does and where it blows.  Same is true of God and His son, Jesus.

After a few days of giving rewards, wonder together at God’s rewards.  He is a good and gracious God, filled with creativity.  What does He consider worthy of being rewarded?  Who does He reward?  What kind of rewards does He give?  When does He give them? (Look in your Bible’s concordance under “reward” if you need help.)

Now imagine together how wonderful the reward will be when they see Jesus face-to-face and no reward has been given here on earth! (Matthew 6:3-4)  And remember when you pray together to tell the Lord how proud you are of your child, so they can hear you!

Even if it’s nasty outside on the day you read this note, nice weather is coming!  Maybe you live in a mild climate and flowers are already blooming in your yard!  Along with the mild temperatures and sunny days come walks outside again.  Time outside lifts the spirits and brings smiles to little faces (and to mommy’s face too)!

When heading out for your next walk, go for a “God Walk” instead.  Go in search of evidence of God.  Those little hands like to be busy, so set their mind on things above, and have them collect anything that God created.  Stones have always been a big hit around our place – we actually put a limit on those!  Wonder along with your children about all the things they can be collecting.  There’s the grass and leaves of course, but what of bee or wasp nests (empty ones of course!), empty bird eggs now found on the ground, bird feathers, twigs, moss. . . and the list goes on!

What on earth do you do with all these things collecting in your home?  It can be your nature center!  Get a shoe box, decorate it, put your items in zip lock bags (label them if you want) and call it your God Box.  If you find you’re collecting a lot of leaves and feathers then tape them to a piece of paper and put them in page protectors inside a binder.  Use field guides to determine which bird or tree God has made that this particular item came from.  It’s amazing at just how creative God is . . . and that’s only in your part of the world!

So get out on some God walks and let your spirits be refreshed!

Why do you want to stay home?  Are you just a mom?  You homeschool?  Those questions from someone truly wondering about our choices can lead to some interesting conversations.  From others, those questions can leave us questioning if we’re making a good decision.

Edith Schaeffer in her book, What Is A Family? answers one of those questions.  Each chapter is basically a response she thought of after the face-to-face conversation.  It’s an encouraging book.

In one of those chapters Edith talks of a mother’s opportunity to be a curator of a museum.  Because you are there with your children, you are able to keep memories.  Some of us do it by taking photos or videos.  There are journals and scrapbooks of special events.  There are more opportunities for keeping memories than there is time to do it all.

With the monthly calendars provided each month you can also be a curator of your family’s museum with very little “extra” time needed.  Use the calendar to write in happy moments that pass so quickly and never return and are often forgotten.  It can be good to write in hard times too but use wisdom here.  When the month is done either keep the pages to read at Thanksgiving or put it in your school records and review them at the end of the year.  While nothing comes close to reading the Bible and hearing of God’s faithfulness to those in the Bible, there is something so close – so personal – when we routinely write, and remember, of His faithfulness to us personally.

Ideas for the monthly calendars:

• Extra time or days with dad
• Last minute family adventures (even if it is a bon fire in the back yard!)
• Seeing an eagle or the first robin sighting of the season
• An answered prayer for desperate need
• Tender moments or special words exchanged between siblings
• Awards earned