Teaching the Bible, or biblical principles for that matter, to babies is definitely not my forte. It's so great to do, they need to hear those seeds this early - but there is only so much they can understand - so I have to break it down seriously simple. Last weekend I went berry-picking with Elias and realized that the idea of God planting seeds in them is a great place to start.... hence, the fruits of the spirit. They haven't yet understood their need for a Savior but they can slowly begin to understand the things growing in them
and the desires God is giving them. (i pray)
So, the fruits of the spirit.
Here is my plan for slowly at least getting these words into their heads.
We may do little projects or it may just be incorporating the fruit
words into my teaching/correction time... or praying for them one at at time.
Love: to learn about love we're focusing on...
physical touch (something they don't need help to do),
spending time together,
& obeying/honoring (of course).
Joy: besides praying for joy we're doing...
good old-fashioned dancing and singing
and praying for joy right after naps when the blood sugar is usually a little low
(funny side note: during our joy dance to nelly furtado yesterday, Elias got carried away and ran to the other side of the house to grab a marker to color the wall. It was so sweet because he was really just feeling expressive and delighted,
but I kind of freaked and of course, had to stop him!)
Peace: I'm mostly trying to use peace when there is whining going on or
when the babes want to make a demand like "movies! milk! movies! milk!"
Patience: Well, they're one a half and two and a half with a small baby brother.
If I try and tell you all the ways we work on patience, I'd still be writing in twelve hours.
Kindness: good words & gifts for others
good deeds (going & grabbing Benj's passy when he needs it)
Goodness: SHARING and premeditated sharing are our big focuses here.
Faithfulness: I'm trying to use this word in relation to obedience & trusting Mommy
when she asks for obedience. That's certainly how the Lord tests my faithfulness:).
Gentleness: If you've met Glory, you're laughing right now.
Self Control: Pretty self explanatory but some ways I'm directly applying this principle
(or trying) are things like Elias laying quietly while he takes naps in a big boy bed now & Glory not splashing Mommy during bathtime.
Ok, I'd love any suggestions for our little study!
It is definitely going to take some time to start applying all these fruits
(probably the rest of their lives)
but we have to start somewhere!
4 comments:
When I hold Silas during a "whiny fit" and say 'self-control'...I know I'm saying it to us both! I love your list.
My main thing is, when I notice him doing one of these fruits, I cheer and high five him- overdoing encouragement a little, but it's the best medicine for crazy si!
Jessi - I LOVE this!! How practical!
You are such a great mom!
Brooke (Ruby's friend) :)
Oh Jess, love love love. As a sit at work 1 day after finding out I will soon have my own little one in my house and craving to be home nesting and reading parenting books this did my heart good! You have no idea how much I have learned from watching you parent your sweet babes, even if it is from a distance most of the time.
so neat! please keep us updated on what you are doing/what is working and not working. i have a 3 y/o and need to be more deliberate in teaching him. this idea has stayed on my mind since reading it.
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