Encourage your children to pray an informal prayer before they start reading the Bible, asking God to teach them and help them understand and apply what they read. Also, and this goes against everything in our high speed culture, encourage them to slow down and think about what they're reading, and even to talk with God about things that strike them or that they don't understand.
Teach them that reading our Bibles should be like a treasure hunt. We're looking for the golden nuggets of truth that are the keys to making our lives all that our loving Father created them to be. Racing through the Bible is merely reading a great book; learning from it and from God takes a little time and concentration.
You can help your children learn the skill of slowing down and reflecting on what the stories mean while they're young, when you're reading to them from a Bible storybook. Allow your young children to interrupt with questions, and take the time to answer them. When you see an important application in the story, briefly mention it before going on. In addition, discuss the story when you're finished; don't just close the book and rush on to something else. This will ehlp your children focus on the purpose of the activity, which is to allow our Father in heaven to teach us his principles for life and help us to be all that we can be. (Remember not to force a lesson. Sometimes talking about what you've read means just talking about the story.)
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment