PLAYDOUGH PRAYERS

 

Teaching intercessory prayer using play dough and simple prayer prompts to develop a practice of having a little talk with Jesus.

This is a meaningful way to have whole group prayer/devotion time with children and most everyone loves the smell and texture of play dough. I once led a church staff devotion time with this activity.

Using four different prompts to shape our visual prayer time.

Each person needs one container of play dough. Even adults enjoy choosing their color. I like to use the party size mini tubs.

Prayer Prompt #1 The World

Form a ball. Thank God for creation. Pray for places where people are dealing with natural disasters. Pray for peace for those experiencing times of war and blood shed. Pray for those who live in communities where friends have lost lives to violence. Pray for the world leaders.

Prayer Prompt #2 Christians

Form a cross. Give thanks for the resurrection and the word of God. Pray for all who share the Gospel. 

Pray that people who do not know Jesus will come to know him.

Prayer Prompt #3 Families and Friends

Form a heart. Lift up the needs of family and friends. Pray that God will help you be a blessing to them.

Prayer Prompt #4 Me Myself And I

Pray for yourself. Ask God to help you with hard things. Thank Him for the good things He has blessed you with.

Quietly place your play dough back in the container, place the top on and say, "Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer."

Your play dough prayer time is over for today.

Be The Light!

Be The Light

Teaching and Training. They go together like peanut butter and jelly. 

As Christian parents we teach and train on purpose and for a purpose. God has given you and I the significant vocational passing on of our faith as a heritage to our children; the most important job we will ever have.

 We want our children to have a relationship with Jesus, a friendship. One way we include Jesus in our lives is through prayer. We tell Jesus all of our hopes, dreams and fears just like we would tell a BFF.

Martin Luther tells us that "It is a good thing to let prayer be the first business of the morning and the last of the evening".

In our homes we can model prayer by praying together. Praying for one another and with one another.

This hand prayer prompt works well with children. Each finger represents prayers of praise, confession, thankfulness, friends and family and self. The closing can simply be, Lord in your mercy hear my prayer.

The Lord's Prayer can be spoken out loud each morning before everyone goes their separate ways. Prayers of thanksgiving can be given each evening.

Create a "Ransom" note  Lord's Prayer family poster and hang it in the kitchen or family room.

Jesus said," I am the Light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. " John 8:12

We call the world dark because it is filled with sin. We call Jesus the light because He breaks through the darkness of sin by His death and resurrection. He shows us that through faith in Him as our Savior.

We light the candles in church to remind us that Jesus is present as the Light of the world.

These little tea light houses can serve as a reminder to bring Jesus into our homes .

To get this paper tea light house template use the link at the bottom of the post.

For the sake of time I chose to cover the windows up with paper before printing. Card stock works  well. I knew that I could not spend the required time that it would take to cut out all of those sweet windows. I used a heart  paper punch to make some small windows  and a scalloped circle to make the large front window. I added a window pane with card stock and used yellow tissue paper to the back of the large front window to give it a finished look.

Insert a tea light. Welcome Jesus! He is the Light!

As you can see with the reference of the pen , the little paper tea light house is...little.

Under 4 inches in height.

A perfect fit for my desktop shelving. A visual reminder to invite Jesus into my space and into my heart each day with bold prayers of praise, confession and thanksgiving ; prayers for others and prayers for myself.

 

 Growing our faith. Putting our faith in action. How can we as a family respond to God's Grace? 

Do an act of love to someone who is in a hurting, sad, or sick..in a dark place. Share Christ's light .

Tea Light House Template

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It's Just a Phase...Don't Miss It Week #2

It's Just A Phase...Don't Miss It Week #2

You can not rewind your kids life! You can't "Fall" back and get an extra hour. Truth!! However, you can pause at significant moments and celebrate what is happening while it is still happening. Let's take a look at the day in the life of a child and discover some new ways to connect in positive ways. Remember the basic principal of this series: if you don't miss out on your kid's life, then maybe your kid won't miss out on some important things about life.

Morning Time

Let's face it , most mornings are not always sunshine, lollipops and rainbows. Sometimes showing up and being part of the morning does not have to be in the physical or verbal forms. Truth be known, sometimes the less physical/verbal interaction the better.... I'm referring to middle and high school sweeties.

When you connect positively in the Morning Time, you can instill purpose and give fuel for their day.

Leaving written messages for all to see is a great way to be part of the morning madness. If you have multiple bathrooms then leave multiple messages. Here is one BIG OLE RULE !!! Do not write, please remember to flush!!!  

Drive Time

If you kept a record of how much time you spend with your kids each day in the car, it would become very clear that drive time is an excellent opportunity for sharing, discovery and investigation. If you car pool, kiddos are more likely to "spill the beans" as they discuss the days events. Take a drive time check up. How quickly do the earbuds go in the ears? How much of their day are they sharing? How much of your day do you share with them? Every now and again throw in an element of surprise. Pick a day when you can take a quick detour to get some ice cream or whatever the favorite treat is. Have a strategy of being part of the "ride." When you leverage Drive Time, you can interpret life during informal conversations as you travel.

Meal Time

Elementary kiddos love, love for visitors to show up at lunch time in the cafeteria. Lunch time with a table of First graders can be very enlightening. Observing your child in social situations with their peers can be an eye opener.

Bed Time

Bed time can be just as challenging as morning time. No matter if your child is three or thirteen, both need to end the day knowing they are valued and loved. Too many kids grow up and miss experiencing God's unconditional love and forgiveness. For that teenager that slams the bedroom door behind them, perhaps a note of affirmation slid under the door reminding them of their worth. For that toddler that simply refuses to end the day, perhaps a few minutes of relaxing music together in a comfy chair embracing when the child is yearning to know if they are safe and loved. Engage the imagination of the seven year old. Stories under the sheets with a flashlight is always popular.

When you pause at Bed Time, you strengthen your relationship through heart conversations.

The average educator will spend over 5,000 hours studying child development before they try to teach a class . That's a lot of homework.

A typical pediatrician will spend ten years and nearly half a million dollars so they can practice medicine with children. That's a big investment. 

The manufacturer of the top selling toy, Barbie, will spend an estimated $6000,000,000 a year to win the heart of a typical eight-year-old girl. That's a lot of ads.

The point is sometimes it takes a lot of time, effort and investment if you want to have influence with kids.

No one has the potential to influence your son or daughter like you. Do you feel the pressure?And it can be confusing. You are a mix of teacher, coach, counselor and friend. So here are some items to add to your job description:

1. EMBRACE the physical needs of your child developing security and confidence.

2. ENGAGE in their interests.

3. AFFIRM their personal journey, showing up consistently to give stability.

4. MOBILIZE the potential of your child, guiding and setting examples as they develop values and passions.

A peek at next week...Don't miss Sunday! Connect your kids to other caring adults who will treat them like they are made in the image of God. A church has the potential to connect your son or daughter to a caring leader who believes in their future like you do.

www.ThinkOrange.com

www.JustAPhase.com

It's Just A Phase...Don't Miss It Week #1

There is a clock that started ticking the day your child was born. In fact, there are less than a thousand weeks from the time a child is born until they graduate from High School.

As you count down the weeks you have remaining with your child, here are some general numbers to get started.

1 yr old > 884 weeks, 2 yr old > 832 weeks, 3 yr old >780 weeks, 4 yr old 728 weeks, 

5 yr old > 676 weeks, 6 yr old> 624 weeks, 7 yr old > 572 weeks, 8 yr old > 520 weeks

9 yr old > 468 weeks, 10 yr old >416 weeks, 11 yr old > 364 weeks, 12 yr old > 312 weeks

13 yr old > 260 weeks, 14 yr old > 208 weeks, 15 yr old > 156 weeks

16 yr old > 104 weeks, 17 yr old > 52 weeks 18 yr old > several weeks

EVERY WEEK MATTERS!

 Consider this: The amount of hours of each day a parent has to invest in their kids relationally, reduces drastically with every passing stage. 

You will spend at least 12 hours a day with a preschooler. 6 hours a day with elementary age kids. 4 hours a day with a middle schooler. 2 hours a day with a high schooler.

As you can see, the window of opportunity closes fast.

Let's take a look at parental influence opportunities each day and at each stage.

Preschoolers > 12 Hours > Morning Time, Drive Time, Meal Time, Bath Time, Cuddle Time.

Elementary > 6 Hours > Morning Time, Drive Time, Meal Time, Bed Time

Middle School > 4 Hours> Morning Time, Drive Time, Meal Time

High School > 2 Hours> Morning Time, Meal Time

At some time, each week the opportunity is there to show up and do life with your child.

The best way to shape a child's character + faith is through small consistent deposits. There is no such thing as instant return on faith or character. We keep so busy and never engage in "the parent work" that has lasting impact. We get so preoccupied with what we can measure that we don't give attention to what we can't measure. 

Truth is..you can't monitor emotional growth because it is gradual. That's why showing up each week matters. Keep investing in what you can't see. Being present for what you are not sure is happening, trusting that your investment will ultimately see a return.

If you want your child to grow up with a healthy sense of worth, direction, perspective, belonging, significance and connection, you need to be intentional about what you do over time.

Visualizing time can help you emotionally, mentally and practically, helping to prioritize what really matters. A countdown jar can make a difference. Consider this project.

Using 2 clear vessels fill one up with pennies, marbles or popcorn seeds representing the actual number of weeks you have left with your child. You will need a vessel for each child. Refer to the week chart at the top of this post . Then start a simple ritual: removing one object each week and depositing it into the second vessel. Over time, the practice of taking from one vessel and making deposits to another will remind you to value your time. It will reinforce a simple principle that when you see how much time you have left you tend to do more with the time you have.

Perhaps at the end of the week, a prayer of thanksgiving for the gift of family could happen as you move your objects and make deposits.

When the second vessel is full from the weekly deposits, share the process with your child in the form of a letter mentioning that the jar represents weekly morning times, meal times, drive times, bath times, cuddle times and attach it to the vessel. On the child's "leaving" day to wherever it may be, send it with them.

OR......take your CUE every week to stop, look and listen, making your time together with your kids count. Does this mean you have to make each second count? Or turn every minute into a teaching opportunity? NO! However, if you want to build a meaningful history with your kids, you have to be part of what happens during their week.

A peek at next week. >>>> We will explore how to create a weekly rhythm for your family to be intentional about shaping their future. When you connect positively in the Morning time, you can instill purpose and give fuel for their day. 

For digging deeper take a look at www.JustAPhase.com