Greet each other in Christian love. 1 Peter 5:14 (NLT)
Have you walked past someone on the street or in a store and just went on by as if no one was there? This scripture points out we should greet everyone with love. My Dad thought this was just plain good manners; he would never walk past a person without saying ‘Hello’ or ‘How are you?’ You never know when a simple smile and friendly greeting from you will be the encouragement a troubled person needs at that moment.
I feel we should train our children to greet others with love. Now to a stranger that can be just a ‘hello’ accompanied with a smile. But to friends – children and adults – it could also be a handshake or a hug. However, we have to set the example.
Make an effort to speak to those you come in contact with. In so doing you teach your children that each person is important to God and shouldn’t be ignored by us.
“realize that all human beings are really members of the same family and that being members of the same family they owe each other some measure of warmth and solace.” (Scrooge’s nephew in the 1938 version of A Christmas Carol)
Here’s a song adapted from “Hello” on the album Especially for Children…of all ages by Bill Gaither you might sing with your children to get them in the habit of saying ‘Hello’.
Yesterday we said goodbye to our loving dog, Molly. She has been a stable part of our family for 14 years in our sometimes not-so-stable journey. Just 1 year and 4 months ago we had to say goodbye to another faithful dog, Goldie. (http://www.trainupthechild.org/2009/12/07/when-a-pet-dies/ This is the first time in 29 years the Daws family has not had a dog!
Our friend, Steve, made this comment yesterday, “I think one of the reasons God gave us dogs (I mean besides cleaning up our spills) is to show us how to lay at your Master’s feet, enjoying simply being in His presence and then showing unconditional love (i.e. crazy, uncontrollable tail waggin’) when you hear His voice. Here’s to Molly – role model.”
I love that analogy of our relationship to God. As I grieve the loss of Molly’s unconditional love and tail waggin’ each time we called her name or came into her presence, I hope to be reminded of how God feels when I am not fulfilling the role I was created for - ” to glorify and enjoy Him forever”.
Proverbs 16:4 The Lord has made all things for Himself
1 Tim. 6:17 . . . God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy.
God made Molly for Himself, but He gave her to us for 14 years to enjoy. Thank you, God, for sharing!
Train Up The Child is dedicated to helping you fulfill God’s commands to parents. Deuteronomy 6:7 instructs us to teach our children as we go; Isaiah 28:10 instructs to teach ‘here a little, there a little’.
Begin this lesson by creatively making a poster of Ephesians 4:32 and place it on the fridge all week. Read the suggested passages for Bible stories and tell them in your own words. I have given you suggested things to share about each. Do at least one of the suggested activities each day. I am sure you can come up with better ideas on your own – this is just to get you started.
Bible Verse: Ephesians 4:32 Be kind to one another
Bible Stories:
Luke 10:30-35 A man was walking down a road and some bad men jumped on him and beat him up and hurt him so badly he couldn’t move. Then they left him all alone. A man came by later but he would not help the hurt man. Another man came by, but he wouldn’t help either. Finally a man came by and felt sorry for the hurt man so he stopped and helped him. He bandaged his hurt places and took him to a nice, warm place to stay. Which man was being kind?
Ruth 2 Ruth and her mother-in-law had just moved from another country to Bethlehem. They didn’t have a garden to raise any food, so they were hungry. Ruth went to a man’s field of wheat and asked if she could have the left-overs from his field. The man’s name was Boaz. Boaz told her she didn’t have to get the left-overs, but she could have whatever she needed. Was Boaz kind?
Daniel 1 The bad King Nebuchadnezzar had put Daniel in prison. He was being mean to Daniel and his friends. But one of the king’s men felt sorry for Daniel. Instead of being mean to Daniel like the king wanted him to, he was kind to Daniel and helped him to show the king that God is good.
1 Samuel 18 through 2 Samuel 5 King Saul had been chasing David everywhere. He wanted to kill David because David was so good. David hid in a cave. King Saul came into the cave and didn’t see David. This was David’s chance to get Saul back for being so mean to him. He could have hurt him but would that have been kind? No, David let Saul go unharmed. When Saul found out, he told David, “You have been kind, but I have been evil.”
John 4:6-29 Jesus was sitting at a well where people came to get their water. A lady came to get water while he sat there. She was a Samaritan lady and Jesus was a Jewish man. The Js did not like the Samaritans and not talk to them or have anything to do with them at all. In fact they were sometimes very mean to them. But Jesus wasn’t mean to the lady. He began to talk to her and tell her about God and how she could be saved. Jesus was kind to the lady.
Prayer: Help us to show kindness by hugging, helping, sharing, and saying kind words to one another
Activities for younger preschoolers:
Act out the story of the Good Samaritan with bandages and bandaides
Feed birds or ducks or pet animals and share the verse
Share the verse while changing diaper and point out the kindness you are showing by
caring for him.
Teach him to hug and kiss – share the verse.
Play with ball and talk about playing kindly and sharing
Activities for older preschoolers:
Act out the story of the Good Samaritan with bandages and bandaides
Make a bird feeder out of a pine cone covered in peanut butter and rolled in bird seed.
hang outside in a tree. Watch for birds and share the verse.
Have him draw a picture and send it to someone just to show kindness.
Bake cookies and take to someone – share the verse as you work
Make or buy playdough and tell them you did it just to show kindness to him.
Describe situations or show pictures of different situations and ask if it is showing
kindness or unkindness –ex. Pushing, sharing, listening to parents, helping someone
who falls down, telling someone, ‘I love you’, kicking someone
This is one of my favorite verses and my constant prayer has been that my children would walk in truth. There truly is no greater joy in my life than seeing all my children growing in the Lord. I am so thankful!!!
I had no idea there was a song based on this verse or that Johnny Cash had written and performed it. Thanks to http://ministry-to-children.com for making me aware of it. Even if you aren’t a fan of Johnny Cash, it is nice to know he loved the verse enough to write a song based on it.
Christmas carols are an important aspect of Christmas celebrations all over the world. They evoke in us the festive spirit with their simple lyrics and melody. Christmas Carols, whether “O Holy Night”, “Silver Bells”, or “Here Comes Santa Claus”, help to bring people together in harmony like no other music does. It has been said that Christmas songs wrap themselves about you like a shawl. But they warm more than your body. They warm your heart and fill it with a melody that makes you wish it would last forever.
Carols were first sung in Europe thousands of years ago, but these were not Christmas Carols. They were pagan songs, sung at the Winter Solstice celebrations as people danced round stone circles. The Winter Solstice is the shortest day of the year, usually taking place around the 22nd December. The word Carol actually means dance or a song of praise and joy! Carols used to be written and sung during all four seasons, but only the tradition of singing them at Christmas has really survived!
Early Christians took over the pagan solstice celebrations for Christmas and gave people Christian songs to sing instead of pagan ones. This began in AD 129 when a Roman Bishop said that a song called “Angel’s Hymn” should be sung at a Christmas service in Rome. Soon after this, many composers all over Europe started to write carols. However, not many people liked them as they were all written and sung in Latin, a language that the normal people couldn’t understand.
This was changed by St. Francis of Assisi when, in 1223, he started his Nativity plays in Italy. The people in the plays sang songs that told the story of Christ’s birth. Normally they were all in a language that the people watching the play could understand and join in! The new carols spread to France, Spain, Germany and other European countries.
The earliest carol like this was written in 1410. The carol was about Mary and Jesus meeting different people in Bethlehem. Most Carols from this time were very loosely based on the Christmas story and were seen as entertaining rather than religious songs. They were usually sung in homes rather than in churches! In Europe, a tradition began of groups of people going from door to door in the community and singing outside their houses.
There is a legend that says the term ‘Christmas Carol’ originated because a young girl named Carol went missing in London, one cold winter night. As her friends went from door to door searching for her, in a manner similar to the Christmas singers, the name Christmas Carol began to be used.
Popular songs such as “Jingle Bells” or “White Christmas” are also considered as Christmas carols and are now sung with great gusto around Christmas time. Just hearing the famous Christmas carol “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” makes us feel happier. New Christmas songs continue to be written that try to put into words the special feeling that we have for family and friends at Christmas time.
So how do we transform this to make it a reminder of the birth of Jesus Christ?
As you listen to all types of Christmas music this year, remember that the Angels may have been the first to sing a Christmas carol, as one star-lit night, they began to declare the message that baby Jesus had been born. Luke 2:10-12 Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”
Our favorite Christmas song is “Mary’s Boy Child”. We first heard it the Christmas that my dad died. Christmas is a sad time to lose someone you love (we have lost 3 of parents at Christmas time), but this song reminded us that year that ‘man can live forevermore because of Christmas Day’ and one day we will again see all those in Christ who have gone on to heaven!
Here are two of my favorite recordings of Mary’s Boy Child:
Psalm 100 says to enter God’s presence with thanksgiving and singing. Here are some easy songs for children to to do just that:
Click on this linkSoMuch to hear a fun, thankful song that the children love. I couldn’t remember exactly how it went so I called our good friend and minister of music, Scott Eaton, and got him to sing it over the phone. Start with your hands together and as you sing the song pull them further and further apart until your arms are wide open. Bring your hands back together in a big clap before the last phrase.
You can sing this next song to the tune of :”Frere Jacques” also known as “Are You Sleeping?” Sing it with hands folded in prayer and head bowed:
We are thankful
We are thankful
Yes we are
Yes we are
Thankful for our food
Thankful for our family
Give God thanks
Give God thanks
(This is another lesson from Here a Little, There a Little, a compilation of Bible activities I created years ago to use with my preschool children. It was designed to spend a week memorizing the verse and reinforcing it through 5 Bible lessons and 5 activities.)
Self-Worth
(a sense of your personal worth and value to God and others)
Bible Verse:I will praise God for I am wonderfully made. Psalm 139:14
Bible Stories:
Psalm 139:14 Did you know that God made you? He made you when you were in Mommy’s tummy. He made your arms and legs, your eyes, nose, ears, hands, feet. He made your inner parts too- your heart, your stomach, your lungs that help you breathe. God did such a wonderful work when he took all these parts and knit them together into you. I’m glad God made you. I praise God that you are wonderfully made.
Proverbs 16:4 God has made everything for His own purposes. He made you for His purpose. He made Mom and Dad and brother for his purpose. We must ask God what he wants us to do. God will show us why He made us and what He wants us to do with our lives. Let’s ask God to help us know why He made us. We need to remember that God has a special plan for us.
Psalm 150 The Bible says we were made to praise God. We should praise Him for His wonderful works. We should praise Him for being so great. We should praise Him with music. Everything alive should praise God. Let’s praise Him right now with words and singing.
Genesis 1:26-28 In the very beginning God made the world. He made plants and animals to live in His world but He wanted someone to take care of His world. So God made man and woman. He made them like Himself. He told them to take care of the plants and animals. He also told them to have children. That is how we all began. God made Adam and Eve and they had children. Then their children had children and on and on until your Mom and Dad had you.
Job 33:4-6 The Bible says that God has made me. God has breathed life into me. Because of God I live – I run – I eat – I sleep – I play – I grow. The Bible also says I belong to God. Since God made me, I belong to Him. We should always remember we belong to God and try to act like we are His children. God wouldn’t like one of His to act unkind. That would make Him unhappy. God made us wonderful. Let’s make God happy that He made us.
Prayer: Thank you God for making me wonderful. Help me to act like I am your wonderful creation.
Activities for baby:
Let him look in a mirror as you repeat the verse
Listen to music and say, “Thank you God for ears”
Let him smell a flower and say, “Thank you God for my nose”
While feeding say, “Thank you God for my mouth”
Clap hands and sing, “Thank you God for hands”
Activities for older preschoolers:
Look at baby pictures and foot print when he was a baby
Trace his hands and sing, “Thank you God for hands”
Let him smell different spices and say, “Thank you God for my nose”
Let him look in a mirror and thank God for making him so wonderful as he points out his eyes, ears, nose,
mouth, hair, chin, etc.
If you haven’t already, hang a growth chart on the wall and measure his height.
Have him color, run, jump, help in some way. Talk about how God made him so wonderful that he can do all these things.
Look at pictures of the inside of our bodies and repeat the Bible verse.
Video
This is a great video for teaching your little one how special God made them.
Songs:
You Are Special cd with several self-esteem building songs by Mister Rogers
Because He Lives mp3 download (second verse is a favorite I have always sung to babies.)
(This is another lesson from Here a Little, There a Little, a compilation of Bible activities I created years ago to use with my preschool children. It was designed to spend a week memorizing the verse and reinforcing it through 5 Bible lessons and 5 activities.)
Begin by cutting out the shape of a Bible and paste on it one of the following verses. Then place it on the fridge all week. Read the suggested passages for Bible stories or thoughts and tell them in your own words. I have given you suggested things to share about each. Do at least one of the suggested activities each day. I am sure you can come up with better ideas on your own – this is just to get you started.
The Bible – God’s Word
Bible Verse:
Psalm 119:97 O How I Love Your Word Psalm 119:6 I will not forget God’s Word
Bible Stories:
1 Samuel 1 & 2 A long time ago Hannah and Elkanah prayed for God to give them a little boy. God answered their prayer and sentthem Samuel. Hannah wanted Samuel to belong to God and do all God wanted him to. So Hannah spent about 5 years with Samuel teaching him God’s Word. Because Samuel learned God’s Word, he knew how to love God, and do all that God wanted him to do. Do you want to be good and do all God wants you to do? Then learn God’s word, the Bible.
II Timothy 1:5 and 3:15 When Timothy was a little boy, his grandmother Lois and his mother Eunice would teach him the Bible. Timothy’s grandmother and mother loved the Bible and wanted Timothy to love it too. When Timothy grew up he did love the Bible like his mother and grandmother because he had known about it since he was a little child.
Acts 8:27-35 Philip was one of Jesus’ helpers. He went to different cities teaching about God’s Word. One time he was walking to another city to preach and he saw a man from Ethiopia reading his Bible. Philip went to the man and helped him to know more about God’s Word. The man began to love God because Philip had taught him the Bible.
Psalm 119 David loved God’s Word the Bible. He knew the Bible was a special book that God had written so we would know how to be good. One night as David took care of God”
Job 1, 23 Job was a man that loved God and did what was right. God was very pleased with Job. Do you know why Job was so good and pleased God so much? Because he read the Bible. He said that he loved to the read the Bible more than he loved to eat. That’s a lot, isn’t it. Do you love to eat? Do you love the Bible?
Prayer: May we never forget Your Word and always love and obey it.
Activities for baby:
Put Bible or picture of Bible in crib for baby to look at.
Read Bible while feeding
Quote verses while rocking to sleep
Show verses on wall or fridge
Show the Bible while you sing about it
Activities for older preschoolers:
Look at the Bible together while singing about it and treating it special.
Make a scroll (what books looked like before there was binding) and paste Bible verses or pictures on it.
Paste a Bible verse on a favorite toy (ex – You could put Psalm 100:1 “Make a joyful noise” on a musical instrument
Make a picture with a Bible verse on it. Hang it on the wall. Share Deuteronomy 11:20 “Write God’s Word on your doors & gates”
)
cd with several self-esteem building songs by Mister Rogers
mp3 download (second verse is a favorite I have always sung to babies.)
I highly recommend this whole cd
