Pushing Pause in the Midst of the Christmas Chaos!

Pushing Pause in the Midst of the Christmas Chaos!

  

Reading Time: 4 min 27 sec

 

I walked into our local craft store on the day of Halloween and had to weave through a maze of boxes because Christmas had arrived at the store in full vengeance. I love Christmas as much (if not more) than the next girl but I started realizing that as a culture we sprint through fall to get to Christmas.

We don’t place value on being present in our current season of life but are always looking ahead to the next big thing-constantly worried that we will miss out. 

You see this theme repeated in our eating patterns, where instead of finding enjoyment and contentment in the produce that season provides, we jump ahead expecting to have access to every type of fruit or vegetable no matter the time of year. If I want cantaloupe in January, then my word, I should get cantaloupe in January.

 

Christmas has been turned into a season filled with a flurry (pun intended) of holiday activity. We want to give our families a Pinterest worthy Christmas season filled with as many Instagram moments as possible. 

We are all about the destination instead of the journey.

 

Advent offers us a counter-cultural way to approach the celebration of Jesus birth. It offers us an opportunity, to walk slowly, press pause, and enjoy a season full of hope, and rich anticipation.

  • Walking Slowly

 

  • Pushing Pause

 

  • Engaging the Senses

So, grab a cup of coffee and a thick blanket and let’s see what God has for us this season.

 

1. Walking Slowly

The Advent season encompasses four Sundays, starting on the Sunday closest to November 30th and ending on December 24th or Christmas Eve. 

Advent is a time full of hope; Jesus the Savior of our souls, has come and will come yet again! A time of rich expectation, both as we prepare to rejoice in the day of Jesus birth, and as we anticipate His second coming.

 

Luke 12:35-38 (MSG) says, Keep your shirts on; keep the lights on! Be like house servants waiting for their master to come back from his honeymoon, awake and ready to open the door when he arrives and knocks. Lucky the servants whom the master finds on watch! He’ll put on an apron, sit them at the table, and serve them a meal, sharing his wedding feast with them. It doesn’t matter what time of the night he arrives; they’re awake—and so blessed!”

 

Advent is a special time, where we not only prepare our hearts to celebrate Christ’s birth but to serve as a reminder, to live with expectation, with excitement, with joy, JESUS IS ON HIS WAY! 

 

It can be hard to live with hope and expectation when our ordinary days are so bombarded with the pain and evil at work in this world.  We know Christ is coming back, but sometimes it can feel like he will be arriving at some future time, never today.

 

 Sybil Macbeth in her book, The Season of the Nativity says it like this, “But what the season of Advent tries to teach us is how to wait and to not lose heart, to live in hopeful patience. We rehearse during Advent the way to wait during the rest of the year, which is really the way to live during the rest of the year!”

 

When you engage in the season of Advent you learn patience and how to wait with hopeful expectation.

 

  1. Pushing Pause

God wants to invite you to press pause and experience the season of advent in a totally new way. He wants to invite you into a place of rest, expectation, anticipation and joy. 

Pushing pause is not sticking a couple of advent activities into an already crazy schedule. If we are not intentional, Advent can be regulated to just another thing to check off the to-do list.

Jesus is inviting you to experience Advent with your heart instead of just your head. You might know a lot about the season but have you truly experienced it?

 

So how do you practically press pause?

 

By choosing to take time each day to refocus your heart on Jesus. Spend some time in silence and reflection just being present with God. Travel through an Advent devotional (they are literally everywhere) or reflect on a passage of scripture. 

Here are some passages to get you started:

  1. Isaiah 40:9-11
  2. Matthew 1
  3. Luke 1
  4. Mark 13:31-37

Reflection Exercise:

  1. Choose a passage and read through it slowly several times.
  2. Ask God to underline a word or a phrase.
  3. Reflect on what that word or phrase says to you.
  4. Pray and tell God your thoughts.
  5. Ask what is the Lord inviting me into?
  6. How can I respond?

 

 3. Engaging the Senses

Spending time with the Father without activity; in prayer, reflection, silence, and study is the foundation to Advent. Advent is not about doing but more about being.  Being present with the One who is ever present with us.

As you are immersing yourself in anticipation of what Jesus has and will do, I would encourage you to choose one or two symbols or practices that will serve as a daily reminder.  

 

Here are Some Suggestions:

 

  1. Spend some time with your children reading the Bible stories (or the passages listed above) that led up to the birth of Jesus. Children love and need repetition, as it allows them to engage deeply with the experience. Taking the time to engage with a passage and looking at it from different angles gives children the space to experience truth in their own lives.

 

  1. Make or buy an advent wreath. Take time each week to gather everyone together, to light a candle and pray. This will become a meaningful tradition, as your family experiences setting aside time to focus on the meaning of Advent.

 

  1. Find or make one meaningful symbol that will remind you (and your family) to press pause and not focusing on rushing towards Christmas day. To help you in this process, I have included directions to one of my favorite Advent Calendar activities below. This is a great activity to make with your children and needs only a couple of supplies (woohoo!).

 

I hope you join me this season in walking slowly, pressing pause, engaging your senses, and sitting with expectation and longing for what God has done, and will do through Jesus’s birth and second coming!

 

What about you? What are your favorite ways to engage in the season of Advent? 

 

If you try any of these activities, let us know! Leave a comment, and don’t forget to follow Most Important Work on Pinterest.

Want to Go Deeper?

1. The Season of the Nativity – Sybil MacBeth

How to Encourage a Love of Scripture in Your Child

How to Encourage a Love of Scripture in Your Child

              

Reading Time: 4 min 39 sec

 

We know it is very important for the spiritual health of our kids (and US) to spend time with God every day.  We know that the practices established today set the foundation for the rest of their lives.  

 We also know that quality time with Jesus is transformative

and affects every area of your child’s life.

 

But even with all of that knowledge, it can be easy when you have a long list of chores and activities filling up your schedule, or to let time with God slip into a get it done mentality just to cross it off the list.  

 So how do you encourage a love of scripture in your child that is focused on transformation, not information?

 

 Here are five practical steps to experiencing God with your child.

 

  • Set the Tone
  • Read the Bible with Curiousity
  • Use Silence & Questions
  • Play & Recreate
  • Prayer of Thanksgiving

This can take anywhere from 15-30 minutes or more with your child each day depending on their age.

 

  1.  Set the Tone 

     

    It is really hard (for children and parents alike) to really connect with God when you bring the craziness of the day (or hour) into your devotional time.  I don’t know about you but I can’t jump from juggling kids, animals, sports, dinner, and to do lists right into spending time with Jesus. 

At best, I will be giving him 50% of my attention, while trying not to balance my checkbook in my head.   

 

If I struggle as an adult to focus, can you imagine how much more your children struggle?

 

I find that a couple of things help to set the tone for our devotions.

 

 a. We try to meet with Jesus at roughly the same time each day. I have found that my children thrive when they know generally what to expect, and this rhythm seems to have worked really well for us over the last couple of years.  

   

 b. We begin by lighting a candle and praying. We use the candle as a visual reminder that God is with us and within us each day.

 

c. We invite God into our day and ask Him to remove the distractions, and to calm and prepare our hearts for this special time with Him. 

 

d. We then finish the prayer with a couple moments of silence.

* We all take turns lighting the candle and praying each day (helps eliminate fighting, hence distractions and an irritated mom). 

 

I know what it’s like to have preschoolers to middle schoolers making faces, hitting each other, and rolling all over the couch but I would encourage you to slowly, bit by bit, add silence into your time of worship.  This silence (which can be hard won) is very important to teaching your child to be quiet and listen for the still small voice of the Holy Spirit.

 What I find amazing is that after setting the expectations, and doing this for a period of time, the children will typically come to devotions ready to prepare their hearts to spend time with Jesus.* 

 PRO Tip: Let your child play with a fidget, (as long as they are listening and not being disruptive) if they have a hard time sitting still.

 

2. Read the Bible with Curiousity

Reading the Bible was not meant to be a passive, but rather, an interactive experience. A time when you are not just reading the Bible for information, but for a deeper discovery of your Father in Heaven, who is over the top in love with you.

1 John 4:7-8 says, “My beloved friends, let us continue to love each other since love comes from God. Everyone who loves is born of God and experiences a relationship with God. The person who refuses to love doesn’t know the first thing about God, because God is love—so you can’t know him if you don’t love.”

When you and your child come to the Bible with curiosity and expectation, it begins an ongoing dialogue between you and the Holy Spirit.  

When your child stops to wonder “Why? What if? That’s interesting?” you have stopped passively reading or trying to get it done, and have started interacting with the text. 

 

When you take the time to sit and savor the word of God allowing it flow in and through you, it becomes comes transformative.

 

We recently transitioned to a different children’s version of the Bible.  Even though we really enjoyed our old Bible (it’s totally dog-eared), this different perspective has inspired in my children (and me) such an expectancy, curiosity, and deep excitement to find out “what happens next”, that it fills us with joy and makes us look forward to tomorrows devotional time.

 It might be helpful, especially in the younger years to try different versions of the Bible to find out what fits your family today. 

 I would encourage you to read each story or passage slowly and thoughtfully. Encourage your children to notice the little things, ask questions, and make connections. 

 

3. Silence & Questions 

5. 

After you finish reading the story, explain to you your child that you are going to have a time of silence to allow the Holy Spirit to speak to them through the story.

 When I am intentional about creating pockets of silence, it gives my child permission to not rush through this experience but to take their time being present with the story.

 

I then ask open-ended questions such as, what was your favorite part of this story? Did anything catch your attention? How did you feel as you listened to the story? How would you feel if you were _______ (the main character)? How is God showing his love to his children in this story?  Is this story similar to anything in your life?

 

The whole goal here is for the child to wrestle with the story allowing the Holy Spirit to take the bits and pieces from the story and apply it to their own life.

 

 

4. Play and Recreate

  When time allows, give your child the opportunity to recreate the story. They can do this through a variety of ways such as: verbally, through song, drama, puppets, dolls, art, and the written word.

 This will not only encourage their creativity, and reinforce the story, but it will also allow them to continue interacting with the text from another perspective. 

It can be hilarious to hear the children reenacting Bible stories, you just never know what is going to come out of their mouths! J.  My kids spent 3 full days looking for a sling shot after reading David and Goliath.  I might save Jael and the tent peg story until they become adults!

55. 

5. Close with a Prayer of Thanksgiving

 

We close each devotional time with a brief prayer that includes thanking God for: His presence, His overwhelming love for us, and by asking Him to cement what He has done today in our hearts and minds.

 Closing with prayer is huge because it refocuses our attention on God and sets the tone for the rest of our day.

Grab your FREE Deeper Life Beginner’s Guide and join our community of moms who are hungry for more of Jesus in their lives and in the lives of their children.

 

What about you? What are your favorite ways to spend time in the Bible with God each day?

If you try any of these activities, let us know! Leave a comment, and don’t forget to follow Most Important Work on Pinterest. about you? What are your favorite ways to increase your child’s awareness of God? 

 If you try any of these activities, let us know! Leave a comment, and don’t forget to follo

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How to Encourage a Strong Identity in Your Child

How to Encourage a Strong Identity in Your Child

              

Reading Time: 5 min 3 sec

 

Our children are growing up in a culture where likes and tweets are dictating their self-worth. We all want our children to grow up having a strong identity, knowing that they are lavishly loved by God and that His love for them is not based on their performance.  Easier said than done, right?

 

Children at this time in their life, are concrete thinkers and learn primarily through experiences. So just telling them, “God loves you”, “You are one of a kind,” “God is with you”, though important, is only one half of the equation. They need to experience it.  The truth needs to go from head knowledge to heart transformation.

I like how Catherine Stonehouse puts it in her book, Listening to Children on the Spiritual Journey:

 “When we focus on transmission approaches we often fail to give children opportunity to reflect on the questions that are important to them, to spend time listening to God and meeting God in the biblical story and in times of quiet.”

 

So how do we do that? How do we encourage an awareness of God’s overwhelming love in our children? I believe that Psalm 139:1-22 is one amazing resource when it comes to understanding who we truly are: beloved by God, a masterpiece, and adored. This excerpt from the chapter really strikes home lavish love of God toward us, His kids.

 “You know me inside and out, you know every bone in my body; You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit, how I was sculpted from nothing into something. Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth; all the stages of my life were spread out before you, The days of my life all prepared before I’d even lived one day.” Psalm 139:14-16

 

 Here are five suggestions of ways that you can interact with the text allowing space for God to speak to your child (and you). *  

 

  • Memorize Psalm 139:1-22
  • Pray through each section 

  • Journal using Pictures and/or Words

  • Pray Blessing Over your Child

  • Create a Song Expressing your Feelings to God
    1. Memorize Psalm 139:1-22

    Estimated Time: 5-10 minutes a day

    We want the truths found in this passage to be cemented into the hearts of our children. So that in moments of crisis, the Holy Spirit can bring these verses to the foreground of our children’s minds.   I have found that this passage has become a part of our family story. It’s a common reference point that pops up in all types of conversations.

     I split the passage into four sections using the natural text breaks as a guide.  I would encourage you to take your time memorizing this passage. 

     

    An Optional Idea– before you start to memorize each section:

    1. Read the whole passage           (Understand the big picture)
    2. Replace the word “I” with your child’s name       (Ask how does that make you feel?)
    3. Be curious                                      (I wonder_____?)
    4. Ask questions                               (What does that look like?)

    2. Pray through Each Section

    Estimated Time: 10-20 minutes (depending on age)

    This activity forces us to slow down and spend intentional time soaking in God’s word. I have used this tool with both elementary through high school students and have seen God use it in a powerful way in their lives.

     

    Take one of the four sections of scripture and use these tips to reflect on God’s word.

    1. ReadThe passage slowly 2x- Ask God to underline a word or phrase

    2. AskWhat do the word (s) say to me?

    3. Pray and tell God your thoughts

    4. Ponderwhat is the Lord asking of me? How can I respond?

    3. Journal Using Pictures and/or Words 

    Estimated Time: 10-15 minutes 

    Supplies: a. White Paper with no lines  b. Markers or crayons  (whatever you have on hand)

     

    I love that even though you might not be an artist, anyone can pick up a pencil or markers and doodle. There are no rules. No expectations. Just spending time with Jesus.

     I typically will read aloud the tips below to prepare the child for this activity. I will also let the child know that this art is between them and God. They can, but do not have to, show me the completed piece.

     I will typically put on soft worship music in the background. I would also highly encourage you to participate with your child during this activity. You are modeling for your child that spending time with God is a high priority because God speaks to you, and it will help your child not to feel rushed.

    Here are some Ideas: 

    • Pray and invite God’s presence into this time. Ask him to speak to you through the passage.

    • Slowly read a section, or the entire passage aloud

    • Just sit in God’s presence. There is no rush. (This might feel weird at first, but just like anything else, it gets easier with time and practice.)

    • When you feel ready, draw or write whatever God has put on your heart. 

    • When everyone is done, ask-

    1.How did you feel about this activity?  

    2. Was it easy or hard for you?  Why? 

     

     

    If they feel comfortable sharing their artwork:

    1. Ask them to share with you what God spoke to them.

    2. Ask them how that made them feel?

    Finish by praying and thanking God for spending time with you today.

     

    5. Pray Blessing over Your Child

    Estimated Time: 2-5 minutes 

    Take each section and use that passage to pray a blessing over your child each day.

    I would actually suggest praying the same blessing over your child for an extended period of time, only moving on to the next section when the Holy Spirit directs you.   That repetition will allow your child to internalize the blessing, and for the Holy Spirit to cement it in their hearts.

     

    Example:

    “Thank You, God that you are never out of our sight. Thank You for lavishly loving ______, (insert your child’s name) that you know him/her so well that You know what he/she is going to say before he/she speaks one word. I pray a blessing over _________, that he/she will always know that he/she are seen, beloved, and never alone. We love You!  Amen.”  

     

    6. Create a song expressing your feelings to God 

    Estimated Time: 15-20 minutes Supplies:  White paper & a pen or crayons (or whatever you have on hand)

    We couldn’t talk about Psalms without adding music to the list!   I have done this exercise with students individually, and in groups up to high school with great success. I love how we get to cultivate the creative side of our brains in worship to God.

    Read over a section or the entire passage as inspiration for your own song to God. I use the word create because with littles, instead of writing down a song, they could just sing it out spontaneously. 

     

    I love focusing specifically on verses 13-16 and watching children really light up as they read about how special, unique and loved they are by God.  The songs that come out of it are so amazing.

     

     I would encourage you to set aside your own expectations of what a “successful” activity looks like, and just dive in allowing the Holy Spirit to take control. 

    Even if you only get through half of the activity, you are modeling a life filled with Jesus. 

     *We read Psalm 139 in Message version because I found it easier for my children to grasp the language.

    Grab your FREE Deeper Life Beginners Guide and join our community of moms who are hungry for more of Jesus in their lives and in the lives of their children.

    What about you? What are your favorite ways to use scripture to build a strong identity for your child? 

     

    If you try any of these activities, let us know! Leave a comment, and don’t forget to follow Most Important Work on Pinterest. bout you? What are your favorite ways to increase your child’s awareness of God? 

     If you try any of these activities, let us know! Leave a comment, and don’t forget to follo

    What is the Most Important Work?

    What is the Most Important Work?

    Reading Time: 2 min 26 sec

     

     

     

    Welcome to the Most Important Work blog. I am excited to kick off what I hope is a very fruitful friendship.

     

     

     

    I started Most Important Work because after spending twelve years as a children’s and youth pastor and becoming a parent myself, I realized that:

     

    1. Parenting is HARD work

     

    2. Every parent is afraid they are going to blow it

     

    3. We all wonder if we are doing enough

    I found after talking to numerous parents that we are all so busy trying to keep our children clothed, fed, and ALIVE that we struggle to find a consistent time to incorporate God in everyday life.  If we do find the time, we are at a loss of how to (besides reading the Bible, prayer and memorizing scripture) weave the things of God throughout our day. 

     

    I was also tired of children’s curriculum that was so focused on transferring facts about Jesus that they missed the whole “heart” part of a relationship with Jesus.

     

    I believe Catherine Stonehouse and Scottie May say it best in their book, Listening to Children on the Spiritual Journey,

    Often adults have assumed that we could give children their understanding of God by just telling them what God is like…  As they are ready, children construct or form their understandings for themselves, with the gracious presence, encouragement, and guidance of God’s Spirit.” 

    We can’t just fill our children’s heads with facts about God and assume our kids will grow up having a thriving relationship with Jesus.

    It is our charge as parents to pass on our active faith to our kids. Meaning, our children come to experience a deeper relationship with God through the power of the Holy Spirit AND by watching US live life.

     

    Stonehouse and May continue by saying, “The lives we (parents) live, how we love and discipline children, the stories we tell, the comments we make, and the lessons we teach are raw materials for God and the children to use as they actively construct their understanding of God and God’s ways.”  I want to give my children the best of both worlds; a balance of both experience and knowledge of God. 

     

    What would it look like, for your child to “know” from their own experience (not just hearing it from you) that they are uniquely and lavishly loved by God?

     

    That the Creator of the universe wants to be an important part of all the ordinary things that make up your child’s day?  If that was at the core of who they were; how would that change how they saw and moved in life? Their very identity?

     

    It would change the trajectory of

    your child’s life. 

    It would chIt ItIt the trajectory of your child’s life. 

    I have been on a quest, pouring through books, praying, leading simple activities at home and at church, brainstorming, and talking with parents all on a mission to find ways that real parents, with real lives, can intentionally provide simple ways for their children to meet with Jesus at home.

     

    My desire is that Most Important Work would act as a catalyst; providing encouragement, inspiration, resources, and motivation for Moms as we travel together on this parenting journey.

    If you want to know how to get started in living a deep life with God; grab our Deeper Life Beginners Guide (below). And join our community of moms who are hungry for more Jesus in their lives and in the lives of their families.


     

    What about you? What topic are you most interested in hearing more about on this blog?    We would love to hear from you!  

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    10 Simple Ways to Invite God Into Your Child’s Day

    10 Simple Ways to Invite God Into Your Child’s Day

                  

    Reading Time: 4 min 22 sec

    I don’t know about you but I want my children to grow up in an environment where they instinctively invite God into every aspect of their day. I want to give them a leg up in this thing called…life.

     I want to do the heavy lifting so my kids can

    reap the benefits. 

    Don’t we all want that for our kids? In order to foster such a God-centered environment, we have to be intentional as parents. 

     Intentionality, an intimidating word that can evoke the same fear as the word “budget”. The word that screams, “This parenting gig is just too overwhelming, I can’t add or even think about one more thing. We are failing miserably. We aren’t enough. They are going to need therapy.” 

     Before we all run screaming from the room, take a deep breath, and realize that it while it does take some effort,  we have the benefit of working in tandem with the Holy Spirit.  

     

    Here is a quick overview of ten ways that you can encourage a God-centered environment at home.  These tips are deceptively simple and yet when practiced consistently (not all at once) the impact can be HUGE!

    • Start the Day with Prayer
    • Memorize a Passage of Scripture

    • Light a Candle

    • Read a story

    • Take a walk

    • Pray over booboos

    • Pray for the needs of others

    • The Power of Silence

    • Reflect back over the day

    • Pray blessing over your child

    Each activity is only 2-15 minutes long. *BTW, all of these activities have the perk of being effective in your life as well.

     

    Here are 10 very simple ways to invite God into Your Child’s Day

     

    1. Start the day with a Quick Prayer inviting God into your child’s day.

     Before the morning chaos starts, grab thirty seconds and your ragtag brood and invite God into your day. It makes such a difference! It makes all the sibling fights, the race against the clock, the spilled syrup and dog vomit all over the ground so… much..easier (I said easier not great).

     

    1. Take Time to work on Memorizing a passage of Scripture

     Write down a short passage of scripture to practice memorizing each day for a couple of minutes.  You can also turn your verses into songs with or without hand motions (not that I know from personal experience or anything). 

     

    1. Light a Candle to remind your child that God is present with us all day.

     Something about that flickering flame is fascinating to young and old alike. It helps remind us to slow down and remember that we are not alone, that the God of the universe is present today with us.

     

    1. Read a Story or section from your child’s Bible. Discuss.

    When you get to the end of the story, don’t be quick to fill the silence, with a clarification. Allow your child to sit in silence whether for 5 seconds or a minute. The Holy Spirit is at work and your child will internalize exactly as much or as little as they are ready for. You might be surprised by their insights.

    5. Take a Walk outside. Stop and look at whatever draws their attention.

     Yes, you might be staring at a dead cicada for fifteen minutes, but take off the productive hat (and put your cell phone in your back pocket) and give them the gift your undivided attention.  Join them in marveling at God’s creation. Enjoy the slower pace. 

    1. Pray over boo-boos every..single..time.

    I don’t know about you but my children, big and small, get hurt like a thousand times a day. From scraped knees to hurt pinkies, stopping to pray for healing is such an easy way to include God in the ordinary parts of our day.  It is amazing to see how such a simple five-second prayer brings comfort, peace, and calm to my children.

    It really enforces the truth that God cares about every part of our                            lives even the small splinters in our thumbs. 

     

    It is beautiful to see the kids instinctively gather together and pray over each other when they get hurt (they get a lot of practice throughout the day). 

     

    1. Take Five minutes and as a Family Pray for the needs of 1-2 other people.

    This is a great activity because it can literally be done anywhere at any time (no craft supplies needed, Hurray!).  You could focus on using this tool ongoing or for a season as it really fosters a heart of service and love towards others. 

     

    1. Spend 2 minutes of Silence in the car. Just being with Jesus. No demands.

     WORD of Warning: This.. can.. be.. so.. powerful. 

    However, you can’t just shout, “Kids, we are going to be silent for the next two minutes. You WILL SPEND this time with Jesus!”  It doesn’t work, trust me.

     I would suggest starting off with a quick explanation, “Kids we are going to spend some time just hanging out with Jesus in silence, enjoying his presence.” 

    And a quick two sentence prayer, “God we love you, and we love spending time with you. Be with us during this time.”  

    I would encourage you to set realistic expectations for this activity. If your children have never practiced silence before don’t feel frustrated when little Johnny makes faces at his sister, and weird sounds start erupting from the back seat (it will happen).  This can be a meaningful activity but as with anything it takes practices.  Stick with it! 

    And to end say something really profound like, “Thank you, God. Amen.”

    9. Bedtime- Spend 5 minutes looking back over your day. Ask God to highlight anything that you need to reflect on.

    For a season, we ended every day by praying and asking God to lead us back over our day, both the happy and the sad, and highlight anything we needed to pay attention to.

      I would ask questions like, “What brought you joy today? What made you sad today?” paying attention to their emotions, and giving those feelings and that situation over to God. We would then pray for God’s blessing over tomorrow.

     Allowing your child space to reflect over their day without jumping in with suggestions is necessary for this practice. Some of the most special times that I have had with my child have been during this bedtime prayer.

     

    1. Finish the Day by Praying a Blessing over your Child.

    Keep it simple. My personal preference is to pray using words that my child understands with zero explanation required.

     Though my blessing seems to vary at times the main heart of it stays the same.  I pray that God would watch over my children all of the days of their lives, that their heart would be soft to things of God, and that their ears would hear his voice.

     It has been a beautiful, simple part of our everyday life. My kids now won’t go to sleep without “praying the prayer”.

    Grab your FREE Deeper Life Beginners Guide and join our community of moms who are hungry for more of Jesus in their lives and in the lives of their children.

     

     

     

    If you try any of these activities, let us know! Leave a comment, and don’t forget to follow Most Important Work on Pinterest. about you? What are your favorite ways to increase your child’s awareness of God? 

     If you try any of these activities, let us know! Leave a comment, and don’t forget to follo

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