Tuesday 9 October 2018, 9:00am
Credit to the photo of the cute boy above goes to my very dear friend DRG Jr. The story behind this photo is about when D. was seven years old, it was the day of his first Communion. The photographer had told him: “If you pray hard enough, Jesus will appear.” – D.: “So I was.” – D.: “and he did” – D.: “In the photo.” – D.: “I was truly praying hard to make Jesus appear.”
D.’s prayers are sweet loving and true as they are the very words the Lord Jesus encourages us in prayer: “You will call on Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen yo you.” Jeremiah 29:12 NIV.
D. inspired me to think about the “Children of God”.
In today’s busy and clamoring world in which many of us spend most of our time working, we often have little or no quality time left for teaching our children about our Loving Father God and His Son Jesus Christ.
Teaching the way in which a child thinks and understands is not always easy for us grown ups but, if we can remember the time when we were their age or trying to put ourselves in their shoes, it may be easier than we may have thought of.
What are some creative and imaginative ways of teachings that sticks with little children? Some of the Christian children books are an excellent, fun source for teaching our children about God and the Lord Jesus Christ. Many are interactive short stories and all teach and exhibit Christian values and/or morals; to love our Lord Jesus Christ, to do good and be good and to be good to others.
These books are written in kids’ language with many good, creative and fun cartoon like drawings. There are also a variety of Christian videos on You tube for not only the young but also for teenagers and of course, there are probably other free channels with the same type of valuable programs.
Another way of teaching is through our church. I think of last Sunday morning. So many children, of all ages with mom and paps or with mom or with paps but what struck me was how the family was united and together, all came to praise and glorify the Father God and the Lord Jesus Christ. I watched the bonds between families and friends. Young and old, their joy and laughter made me feel joyous as well.
I found some beautiful verses and a proverb showing God’s love for children yet, also reminding us the importance of nourishing our very young with the Word and Love of God.
This proverb reminds me of how parents’ Bible teachings instill His Words in a child’s heart. They may wander off for a while but sooner or later in Hope, Faith and Prayers, they’ll come back home to the Lord Jesus. “Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.” Proverbs 22:6
Learning about our Father God and our Lord Jesus Christ and the Word is “Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.” 1 Peter 2:2-3
Because of God’s gift of Grace to us, we now have Grace in us as well, so treasure and store these words into your heart: “Love the Lord your God with all your Heart and with all your Soul and with all your Strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.” Deuteronomy 6:5-7
And this beautiful verse is for parents and children alike… “But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.” 2 Timothy 3:14-15
How do I know that God loves children? The Bible says so 🙂 – and what fun way for a child to learn about how the Lord Jesus loves them through a sweet song like this one.
