PRESCHOOL & KINDERGARTEN KIDS & FAMILIES date
2.8
My role is to continue being a disciple of Christ in front of my children.
Inspire (for parents) Before I had children, I had a clear and simple idea of who and what I wanted to be for God. I am His disciple, called to follow Him. I am a student and a servant and completely insignificant in comparison to His greatness. After my first daughter was born, I quickly realized that it was no longer just Jesus and me. Discipling her was now my responsibility as well. The idea that another person would be watching and following my example was more than I could grasp. I didn’t know how to plan for this.
At that moment, I understood that I didn’t need to have a plan. My role is to continue being a disciple of Christ in front of my children. As I learn and follow Him, my children will do the same. This kind of follow-the-leader discipleship places me in total dependence on Christ and causes me to love Him all the more. My prayer is that my children will see Christ in me and maybe even someday realize God loves Captain Hook, too. by Faith Clark
One winter morning, as we sat down to breakfast, I opened my one-year Bible, something I did every morning. My daughter looked at me and said, “Mama, I read it.” At 2 ½ years old, she pulled it to her chest and began to pretend Apostles) e 5:1–11 (The to read, “God loves me. Jesus is Scripture: Luk Apostles esus Calls His God’s Son. God helps Tinkerbell and to Main Point: J low your family He loves Peter Pan.” I laughed and designed to al n is re ce ild ur ch so re This fore your cried a little, all at the same time. She s God’s Word be nt in re e pa r tim fo is ve ha God’s plan se au ec B wanted to read God’s Word and share , . ith ch fa children’s attend chur rturers of their nu al n tu re it with me the same way I had with her. iri ild sp ch e to be th iritually, your as you grow sp we know that l. ally as wel will grow spiritu
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Equip (for parents) Jesus’ call of the 12 apostles can almost seem like a trivial part of His journey if we don’t take the time to examine it. Obviously, the four who were fishing that day didn’t account for all of the apostles, but even looking at that particular situation tells us a lot about Jesus. Jesus knew what He was doing. When Jesus first speaks to Simon, he responds by calling Him “Master.” Simon (and presumably, the others) already knew Jesus as a rabbi or teacher. Usually, rabbis would choose their followers (disciples) very carefully. Potential followers would go through years of training and prove themselves to be the best of the best. These fishermen hardly qualified. But Jesus had a plan. He wasn’t looking for the most educated men with social status. He was looking for men with whom He could have a relationship. These men were teachable. They were hard workers who came from humble backgrounds. Jesus sought them out. None of the future apostles came to Jesus to ask to follow Him— He pursued them. He tracked them down to the places they worked. Jesus took the time to seek these men out and get their attention. Jesus had the bigger picture in view. He spent three years in life-on-life relationship with each of these men. He trained them. He exposed them to wonders beyond what they could imagine. He prepared them to be the catalyst for the greatest movement ever seen on earth. As parents, we model for our children what it looks like to be a Christ-follower. And, just like the apostles, we don’t have to do it perfectly to have a big impact. We get the privilege of helping them learn to know and obey the voice of God in the power of the Holy Spirit.
REMEMBER versE
Jesus answered ... “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father.” John 14:9b
Support (for parents & kids) Sometime this week, read through the biblical account of Jesus calling His first disciples in Luke 5:1–11. Think of a question that reflects on what you just read such as, “What were the men doing when Jesus found them?” or “What did the men do after they had caught all the fish?” Just for fun, create a setting for your children that will help them engage with the passage they’re about to hear. This part of The Big God Story takes place in a boat. Try reading this passage to your kids during bath time. If you have any boats or toy fish, let your children play with those before you read the passage. When you’re finished reading, ask your children if they have any questions about what they just heard. Tell them the passage they just heard is a part of The Big God Story, and they’ll hear more about it in church. Remind them that Jesus wants us to follow Him just like the disciples did. Pray together as a family. Ask God to help each of you hear His unique call to follow Him.
© 2010 David C Cook. TruResources are developed in partnership with ROCKHARBOR Church and a national network of family and children’s ministry leaders. All rights reserved.