As a homeschooling mom, I often find myself so busy trying to teach “reading, writing, and arithmetic.” Yes, we do Bible lessons, but I just feel like I need to focus more on instilling an authentic love for Jesus in my kids’ hearts. I am laying the groundwork for them to accept Christ as their Lord and Savior. For some reason, I have really been feeling the “burden” of this enormous honor!!!
So, in our lessons we have been learning about apples and the Fruit of the Spirit. We have done all kinds of apple related activies: taste tests, adding seeds, apple prints, fave apple surveys, Johnny Appleseed, etc. But, I have decided to be more proactive on the Biblical side of our lessons. What does that mean? Well, I often find that we do our Bible lessons and that is it. I get so wrapped up in the rest of the day that I fail to implement God and our Bible lessons into our everyday activities. So, what did I do about this? In practical terms, I decided to throw home decor out the window. I wrote out Bible scriptures that the kids and I are working on onto index cards and posted them on the cabinets in the kitchen. Just by being reminded of these scriptures, it will hopefully help me put more scriptures to memory and it reminds me to ask the kids their Bible verses throughout the day…rather than just during our “schooling” time. So, today it worked great! As the kids and I went about our daily activities, I made comments about how they were showing the fruits of the spirit. For example, during naptime/quiet time, I told KJ that she needed to use the fruit of self-control and stay in her room until quiet time was over. I told JJ that he needed to use the fruit of patience when he kept asking for ice cream after dinner. I praised KJ for using the fruit of kindness as she shared her brand new ball with her brother DC. We talked about how God is pleased when we use our fruits, so much so that I overheard KJ singing a little song that she made up on her own about the Fruits of the Spirit. Today, I felt like I was REALLY teaching my kids what they REALLY need to know!!!
So, how does the title, Hiding God’s Word, come into play? To remind me to go over Bible verses with KJ before bed, we made a little book. (I love scrapbooking, but usually have little time to indulge myself.) On the cover, KJ titled it “Hiding God’s Word in my Heart.” As we add more scriptures, we will add more pages to the book for her to write and decorate. Check out the pic below of our page for Galatians 5:22-23.
Thanks iluvbnamom! No, I just folded pieces of paper in half and cut heart templates and then traced it onto the red & pink paper and cut it out. (So I wouldn’t have the crease in the middle of the heart on the finished product!)
Oh, that’s so nice. Did you make the little heart with a diecut you have? I love scrapbooking too and try to incorporate it into our activities a lot, since I don’t get to do it on my own!
I also like the idea of incorporating the Bible lesson throughout the day. We often don’t revisit our lesson until the next day and I bet things would stick more if I made a conscious effort to carry them through the day.
-Oh, and thanks for the comment on my blog!
Thanks iluvbnamom! No, I just folded pieces of paper in half and cut heart templates and then traced it onto the red & pink paper and cut it out. (So I wouldn’t have the crease in the middle of the heart on the finished product!)
Oh, that’s so nice. Did you make the little heart with a diecut you have? I love scrapbooking too and try to incorporate it into our activities a lot, since I don’t get to do it on my own!
I also like the idea of incorporating the Bible lesson throughout the day. We often don’t revisit our lesson until the next day and I bet things would stick more if I made a conscious effort to carry them through the day.
-Oh, and thanks for the comment on my blog!
Great idea Jenn!