I am an Oklahoman by birth, a Texan by current living situation, but claim the world as my playground.I love to travel and hope to someday soon take our family on adventures to far off lands, where we can share God with others and experience all the wonders He has created.
I am a mother of 5 crazy, homeschooling children ages 10 & under, wife to an amazing man, and daughter of the King of the Universe!I enjoy reading, making my kids laugh, cooking, all things natural, learning to play guitar and dusting off my piano skills.One day I hope to run again, but until then I’m learning patience.
As a mom of 5, our Bible Time has looked different over the years. The last two years we have settled into a pattern that I am loving and the kids seem to do well with too. Since a friend asked what Bible time with our kids looks like, I decided I would share and hopefully encourage you in your Bible time too!
I posted a sweet picture of our 3rd child on Instagram and Facebook prepping the table for our Bible Time mid-morning snack. I am always amazed at how God’s word delivers exactly what we need to hear. On this particular day, we needed to be reminded that we are each invited to feast with God, but in order to do that we need to put ourselves and our excuses to the side.
What Our Bible Time Looks Like
1. It’s Flexible
We try to have our Bible time daily, but that doesn’t always happen. I would say at the moment we are running at a 90% success rate. We typically have Bible time around mid-morning, once all the kids are awake. We have one late sleeper. Since we homeschool, we can be flexible and I really enjoy it.
So sometimes we have our Bible Time at mid-morning, sometimes during lunch, and sometimes we have it at night over dinner with their dad. And other times we do it before heading off to bed.
Again for us, being flexible is key. Every day looks different, but most days, we have it mid-morning.
The location is flexible too. Many times we gather together in the living room, sometimes at the kitchen table, other times on the back porch while they snack and draw with chalk, and sometimes on the school room floor while they are putting puzzles together.
As long as they are paying attention and not causing a distraction, then I will allow them to color, play with legos, or color when I read longer passages.
2. Start with Songs & a Chant
Once the snack has been prepped and my precious daughter, who loves to present the food prettily has done just that, we start to sing. First, we sing the Books of the Old Testament, then the Books of the New Testament.
Then we pat the Bible while we sing the “B-I-B-L-E” song and add “YIPPEE!” to the end. It just makes it more fun!
Then, before I open to the passage we are reading for the day, I say/chant the following:
The Bible is the Word of God. Everything in it is true. It tells us all about how much God loves YOU!
Now, that our kids have heard it so often they, I pause and they fill in what I underlined above. Often times, they race to see who can say it the fastest. Sometimes, they finish before I can even start.
Recently, I also started asking if both the Old and New Testament go together or if they should be kept separate. I want our kids to understand this is one seamless story. We can’t just pick up in the New Testament and think we will understand what’s going on. We need to know what the Old Testament says to get a complete picture and understanding of the Bible all together.
3. Fuel the Soul & the Body
I typically present a snack along with our Bible time. This is for a few reasons:
#1 – It helps them gather together. My family eats several times a day. For some the mid-morning snack is what they call second breakfast and they will always come running when food is available. #2 – They are eager for me to start. Mainly, because they are not allowed to start eating their snack until I have started the Bible lesson. #3 – This keeps their mouths closed so they can listen better. When you have 5 mouths that like to give commentary, it’s a nice treat to be able to keep them engaged and listening.
4. Now, it’s time for the Bible lesson.
Several years ago, I became convicted about what we were reading for our Bible lessons. At first, I was using children’s bibles. They were ok, but they left out all the good details and even many of my favorite stories.
I believed that it was a good thing to read the whole Bible in it’s actual context to our children, instead of just working on surface details. God is in even the smallest details and I didn’t want them to miss out on his amazing ways by skipping what He has deemed important to share with us.
Of course, I remember praying about this and thinking,
“God, there are some parts that aren’t really rated G but your word is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword. It is good for teaching and rebuking and our family really needs to be taught, so as we come to the parts where I want to cover their ears, please help me explain it to them in a way that honors you and teaches them how to love you.”
And what God started teaching us was truly amazing!
Now, I will say, that I may wait to read over Song of Songs until their married. That book just might be a marriage gift to them. It’s a great book, but obviously still praying about that one! LOL!
Using a Chronological Bible
We started reading the chronological Bible, which was fantastic for me too. I wanted our kids to understand the timeline of the Bible. I remember being so confused as a kid and an adult about what happened when, so the chronological Bible allows us to read the Bible as one whole story instead of a bunch of little stories.
We have had many wonderful conversations around stories that I may have skipped over had it not been for asking God to help guide our conversations and their hearts.
It was just like the Holy Spirit gave me the words and helped me out.
We read the passage then talked about how God created marriage with Adam and Eve. Anything outside of what that relationship looks like is wrong. We don’t have to talk through every wrong situation and I didn’t even point out the details after reading over it. We simply reflected on that if we know what God is wanting us to do, anything outside of that isn’t following His ways.
One of my older son’s favorite stories is when the ground opened up and swallows Korah alive. Now, that’s a story that definitely speaks to many things, especially how to react in a situation when you don’t agree with the leader God has appointed and how to handle your anger.
I can’t help but think about the richness our kids would have missed had we decided to hang back and wait to expose them to God’s word until an appropriate age. What age is that any way?
Using the Timeline
Every now and then we have to pull out my favorite timeline to figure out when someone lived or what time period an event happened. I love to be able to place the Bible timeline along with what we learn in history, because surprise – it’s all part of the same history!
When we pull out the timeline, I’ll remind our kids that they too are part of this timeline. They are just as important as the people that we read about in the Bible. God has a calling for their lives too. He wants them to share God with others and encourage others in their faith just like those in the Bible encourage us to follow God too.
Reading through the New Testament
Reading through the Chronological Bible with kids takes a looong time. We still aren’t finished!
Sometimes we will read one little passage and discuss it. Other times we will read pages and pages. It just depends on their temperaments at the time and where our conversations take us.
We made our way up past Job and past the conquering of most of the Promised Land. We read through the teachings in Leviticus and Deuteronomy, some of which are hilarious!
Then, I decided to jump to the New Testament. We read all of Acts and now we are reading Luke! LOL!! We totally got that backwards, but that’s ok. I love reading Acts, so we will probably read it again after reading Luke. Then go back to the Old Testament.
I love reading the New Testament in light of the Old Testament because pretty much every principle mentioned in the New Testament can be found in the Old. So we like to talk about the similarities and see the points Jesus makes about each topic.
Family Time Training
We also like to throw in some Family Time Training Activities. They have a free activity every month. But they also have an activity vault filled with activities on almost any Bible subject you might want to delve into and help your kids understand.
5. We Pray
We tend to close out our bible time with kids in prayer. It is a good time to practice letting the kids pray. Allowing them to think of things they are thankful for and who we can pray for, provides glimpses into their hearts. It even lets us hear what they picked up from the Bible lesson that day.
These are the things we do during in our Bible time with kids. Some days go exceptionally well and the discussion flows and other days they are eagerly awaiting when they are excused. But what is important is that they are hearing God’s word. They are being trained to listen to it, absorb it, and talk about it. They are hearing the truth so they will know how to fight the lies with the truth.
Each time you choose to sit down with your child(ren) and study the Bible, the devil will not like it. He will try to make it not worth your time and wish it was just over and done with, but take heart! Getting God’s word into the souls He created is so worth it. When it seems like a struggle, know goodness will eventually come from those moments! May God bless you as you dig into His word with His children!
I am an Oklahoman by birth, a Texan by current living situation, but claim the world as my playground.I love to travel and hope to someday soon take our family on adventures to far off lands, where we can share God with others and experience all the wonders He has created.
I am a mother of 5 crazy, homeschooling children ages 10 & under, wife to an amazing man, and daughter of the King of the Universe!I enjoy reading, making my kids laugh, cooking, all things natural, learning to play guitar and dusting off my piano skills.One day I hope to run again, but until then I’m learning patience.
Isn’t it amazing how God created us? There are so many things to be in awe about but one of them is our need for relationships and community.
There are many wonderful reasons why God created marriage, families, friends, and the church body. He knew what a blessing it would be to have others rejoice with us and also help us during difficult times.
This month’s Family Time Training Activity called Cord of Three Strands emphasizes the great gift God has given us by creating a need in us to have relationships with others. This activity shows so well why living in isolation isn’t beneficial.
The kids and I were able to enjoy this activity even while we were at the lake. (I like that I can just click on the website for a digital version of the Bible activities and I don’t have to print them off unless I want to. It’s definitely a lighter way to pack when going on vacation!)
Cord of Three Strands Activity
For this activity, all you need is:
Access to the Family Time Training Activity Script either via your phone or download it and print it off. Access the monthly activity here. (The free activities change every month so if you missed this one, enjoy doing the next one OR sign up for the extremely affordable unlimited access to all of their activities.)
Your Bible, a Bible app, or you can read the verses straight from the Family Time Training Script
3 steak knives or other knives that are the same length (use caution if using sharp knives with small children)
4 cups
Water or dirt–fill one of the four cups with either water or dirt.
That’s it!
The Activity:
Read the verses listed from The Cord of Three Strands Activity script. One, of course, is Ecclesiastes 4:9-12:
Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up. Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
The Cup of Water
We chose to use water instead of a cup of dirt. The water represents the tears we shed during troubled times.
She couldn’t help but smile while holding the cup of tears! This was taken right before she “shared” her cup of tears with others. She was skeptical if others could hold her tears.
The Lone Knife
Each knife represents a person (aka one of the three strands). By putting our burdens/cup of troubled tears onto just one lone knife (ourselves), we quickly see that it become impossible to carry our burdens alone. We often try to do this, but that is not how God created us. We all too often collapse under the weight of these unshared burdens.
Supporting Knives
Again each knife represents a person. Now we know that God created us to allow others to help carry our burdens but are we willing to do it? Do we believe others are willing to share the burden of our troubles, or are we skeptical that they will let us down? It’s easy to be skeptical, but God has created marriage, families, friendship, and the church body to hold us up and help carry us as Jesus would during our good times and difficulties.
Will the knives be able to support the tears and burdens?
Just as my children were shocked that these three knives were able to hold up a cup full of water, often times we are overwhelmed by the grace and love that we feel when others hold us up during times we are barely able to stand.
Prayer Over Our Hearts
Lord, we praise your name for knowing that this life would be difficult and we would need help not only from you but from others on this Earth. Thank you for creating relationships and encouraging us to rejoice with each other, mourn with each other, and live life together instead of in isolation. May we be willing to allow others to come alongside us. May we also be willing to walk with others during their time of need. In your son’s precious name we pray – Amen!
I am an Oklahoman by birth, a Texan by current living situation, but claim the world as my playground.I love to travel and hope to someday soon take our family on adventures to far off lands, where we can share God with others and experience all the wonders He has created.
I am a mother of 5 crazy, homeschooling children ages 10 & under, wife to an amazing man, and daughter of the King of the Universe!I enjoy reading, making my kids laugh, cooking, all things natural, learning to play guitar and dusting off my piano skills.One day I hope to run again, but until then I’m learning patience.
One of the things I love most is finding ways to help explain concepts to our children that even we adults can have a difficult time grasping. I’ve mentioned before that Family Time Training’s lessons are such a resource to our family and this month’s free activity is no exception. It’s all about what the kingdom of God is like–a mustard seed!
Again [Jesus] said, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it?It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth.Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade.”
So here is why I love using Family Time Training’s lessons so much: They use interactive visuals to get the point across and they script the whole lesson out! Sometimes, I’m rocking the analogies with my kids but other times, when pregnancy brain kicks in, I have a difficult time making a coherent sentence. Being able to read the bolded words and follow the script is helpful! (Of course, you can always ad lib if you want.)
This activity is good for all ages because it gets all the kids involved, and honestly, it even made my husband and I think about this parable in a different way, a way that made every day practical sense. Isn’t that what we need to be able to live out Biblical truths–practical applications?
Needed Supplies
Family Time Training “Mustard Seed: Kingdom of God” Printout (Print it out now! It’s only available for free this month – Feb. 2017. If you missed it for free, no worries. They have a great activity available every month AND the option to have a monthly membership which gives you access to all their activities! Go ahead and click on the link to see their current activity.)
A large glass or clear container like a mason jar or vase.
Dark food coloring
Water
Tablespoon
1 cup measuring cup
dropper
mustard seeds or picture of a mustard seed
picture of a mustard seed tree
The Activity
I mentioned even my husband and I learned to look at Jesus’ parable about the kingdom of God in a different way when we did this bible study and hands-on activity. We started this study by describing what earthy kingdoms are typically like then compared that to what the Bible has to say. One of the kids read the corresponding verse. Then we handed out mustard seeds to everyone so they could see how small they are. Next we moved on to the activity, which includes some math. But don’t worry, even the little ones can participate in it!
We began by filling a dropper and counting how many drops it takes to fill up a tablespoon.
What’s your guess?
It took us around 300 drops of water to fill this tablespoon! That was way more than we imagined! Now, just imagine how many thousands are in an eight-cup jar! No, we did not use the dropper to fill the big glass jar. Oh my, that would have taken forever. Thankfully, in the script they point out how many tablespoons it takes to make a cup. The script recommends that you allow your older kids (or parents) to calculate about how many drops are in the big glass jar based on how many cups you put in the jar.
It took us around 300 drops of water to fill this tablespoon! Now just imagine how many thousands are in an eight-cup jar!
From this point, we watched how just a handful of drops of food coloring can make an enormous impact on those thousands of water droplets. At the end of the lesson, we showed them how big a mustard tree grows and how it is able to protect many animals. Once again it reiterated the point that God can use small acts for big purposes!
Lessons Learned
We started talking about how God makes small things big and weak things strong! This is actually one of my favorite points in the entire Bible. We all want to be super heroes in some way. Yet we need to realize that even our smallest actions done for the glory of God can have a huge impact! It doesn’t matter that we are just one humble, unfamous person. God can use anyone if they are seeking His will! It doesn’t matter that we might not be a king or queen, we are the children of the King! He uses the weak to do powerful things!
So what small act can you do today that God may use in a big way? Maybe it’s simply doing a fun Bible activity with your kids! Or maybe it’s passing this activity onto another family. Perhaps it’s passing on a smile or praying over someone. Don’t underestimate what God can use to impact generations!
Check out some of the other Family Time Training Activities we have done and be sure to follow their Facebook page to get future activities!
Hello. I grew up traveling the world as a military brat. I ultimately felt God's pull to Oklahoma Christian University where I met my husband. We now have 3 beautiful children and have settled in Mustang, Oklahoma.I am a homeschooling mom and with 3 kiddos it is a full time job! I am daily encouraged by God's great patience and grace in my life. In my free time I enjoy reading and crafting.
This month I had the privilege of doing a lesson about delayed gratification from Family Time Training. Can I just tell you how much my kids loved this little activity? They were so excited that we were going to do something new and fun that we’ve never tried before. When I mentioned the plan, they speculated what it might be. As I filled our bucket with ice, water, and marbles, they threw out all sorts of crazy ideas. They marveled at how very cold the water was while I gathered my camera and bible.
(Click here to get this activity for free during the month of September. )
Princess Ballerina and Iron Man are feeling a little unsure about sticking a foot in this icy cold water.
Learning about Delayed Gratification
My kids took their best guesses on what they thought delayed gratification meant and then I read the definition from the lesson. We discussed a few good examples that they would be able to relate to and then we read our verses from the bible. I always enjoy reading from the bible with my children because Iron Man can read very well, however his comprehension of what he just read lines right up with his age and life experience. Princess Ballerina still lives in la-la land a lot of the time so she’s kind of hit or miss on comprehension as well. I find that it’s always beneficial to make sure they understand the meaning of the words they are reading and then wrap the whole concept up for them after we’ve read it through a couple of times.
Lessons for Adults and Kids Alike
This verse really blessed me when we read it. If you want a conversation starter just read this verse with your kiddos and let the questions fly. It was such a gentle reminder to me as I explained to my children that this world is not our home. The world may be against us but we count ourselves as blessed! After reading through Matthew 16:19-21 (another excellent opportunity to explore our worldly tendencies against our heavenly purpose) we got ourselves psyched up to get chilly!
My little Princess Ballerina struggled a bit with the discomfort of this activity. She did get some marbles but not nearly as many as her brother. That’s to be expected as she’s just 5! Iron Man is 7 and really took this challenge seriously. I guarantee you they won’t forget what delayed gratification is after this frigid lesson!
Are you looking for exciting faith training lessons for the whole family? I encourage you to check out Family Time Training and all the awesome stuff on their website. I hope it blesses your family as it has mine!
Be sure to click on over to Family Time Training and check out the free activity for the month! Each month they offer a free, downloadable lesson, or you can browse the many options available for purchase. There are options for all different age levels!
Connect with them on Facebook as well.
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