Devotions With Daddy ( Part III)

As you undertake the task of leading your child (pre-readers) in their quiet time, the first and most important thing you can do is bathe this in prayer. Ask God to show you key passages in His Word so that you might feed your child spiritually. He is faithful!

Here are some of the types of devotionals I have put together for our children, I hope these can encourage you along the way.

1. Key verses to address specific character traits or issue your child faces. Isn’t it great how God’s Word is able to speak directly to the issues we face? You can show your child this truth during their quiet time. Here are a few examples:

• Speech, thoughts – Ps. 19:14 “Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight,…” Teach, and model, that our speech and thoughts are to be pleasing to the Lord. 
• Obedience – Eph. 6:1 “Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right.” Your children may never struggle with obedience (), we’ve had our kids learn this verse… just in case! 
• Gratefulness – Heb. 13:15 – “…the fruit of our lips giving thanks to His name.” It’s important to sow seeds of gratefulness in the lives of our children. We must, of course, model it ourselves!  

2. Key Bible stories. What are some of the well-known stories you learned as a child? Are you making sure your kids learn them?

•  Creation – They will constantly be bombarded by Darwinian teachings, they better know the truth first!
•  David & Goliath – Every one of us faces “giants”, but God is faithful to see us through.

3. Psalms – I recorded several of the Psalms, to help fill my children’s hearts with praise. One day, for example, I read Psalm 23:1 and talked about shepherds. I gave a few details about how they care for their sheep, providing for their needs, protecting them from predators, etc. Then, I explained (briefly) how Jesus is our shepherd.

There are just a few ideas related to content. Here are some other thoughts that may prove helpful:

• Brevity is important – A 3-5 year old child will not stay focused very long. This is not the time for an expository sermon! I try to keep these devotional recordings to a maximum of 3-4 minutes.
• Application – Perhaps the most significant element to be modeled here is that God’s Word can and must be applied to our lives. We don’t need to introduce this as a story book. Our kids need to see how the Bible is relevant every day.
• Vocabulary – remember the limitations of your child. Do your best to avoid the church vocabulary or big theological terms.
• Prayer – be sure to include prayer in the time (whether live and in-person, or recorded). Our children are blessed to hear us pray for them. When I am physically present, I ask my child to pray first, and then I pray for them.
• Praise – On several of the recordings, I sang through a children’s song and invited them to sing along with me. Then, I would encourage them to continue singing that song throughout the day. If you choose the right songs, they will help communicate the truth of God’s Word.

How-To: With technology as it is today, there are numerous ways to create dynamic quiet time recordings. With the availability of digital recorders, MP3 players, computer microphones, smart phones…the possibilities are endless.

Let me leave you with a closing thought: be creative! Help your child see that God’s Word is alive! Your excitement for learning and studying the Bible will be contagious. I love hearing my children say it is time for their quiet time. We pray that these efforts in the lives of each of our children will bear fruit for eternity. - Eric

Mothers, you may be thinking: “Great! I want my husband to lead in this area but he seems uninterested – what do I do?"  Don’t lose heart! Come back for “Devotions with Daddy” (part IV) and we will cover this important issue.