Connections
This particular connection has been inspired by worship. We received a Seeds Family Worship CD for a gift this Christmas. If you don’t have one, I would say you should grab one or all of them. You know me and worship. I am always working on ways to expose our kids to great worship. There is nothing more tender, then hearing and seeing your children sing the words to deeply powerful songs to our King. These are all scripture verses set to music so we are all memorizing away as we listen.
They may just like the beat, or are absently saying the words. But, most days, there is a word or two, that they ask me about, like Mom what does sacrifice mean? or Mom why is it saying “fear God”? We are not scared of Him?
Kids put it together if you feed them enough good stuff in order for them to do so. I was telling you yesterday how I am seeing all types of fruit in regards to connections with the kids. Remind me to tell you Chloe’s response to her Dad about government a few days ago. A few months ago, Jackson heard the word sacrifice in a worship song and asked about it. I explained what it was and related it back to some things we had been learning about pagan peoples in world history. Then about a month later we read a story in Trial and Triumph about a “craazeee monk” who went “postal” during the crusades inciting zealous crusaders to start killing Jews in Germany on their way to the Holy land, because they killed Jesus. Jackson stopped the story with a frank statement,”Mom these crusades were not a good idea. You can’t make people follow Jesus?” I agreed and continued on with the story until he stopped me again with an incredulous, exasperated statement, “Mom, this makes no sense. They killed Jews because they killed Jesus? Didn’t they know that Jesus had to die, to be the final sacrifice? If he didn’t die, then none of this would of worked.” I said you are right buddy, people do funny things sometimes, our history is a strange thing. Then a few weeks later, during our advent celebrations and reading he set a small lamb on my desk.
It is a little, wooden lamb I made 4 years ago when he was 3 in order to help him meditate on the Good Shepherd Parable. He had taken a red marker and colored a huge red mark on the lamb. I was just about to “pop off” because he had colored on this work when he said….”Look Mom, the blood of the lamb.” and walked away. I bit my tongue, guess he was thinking about sacrifice and many other things that the Holy Spirit was whispering deeply in him. This was all over several months time, but I could clearly see the thread working away. The connections happening one by one. I am passionate about exposing our kids to great things, not just things they like. How will they know if they like it or I know if they like it, if I don’t expose them to lots and lots of varied things both historically and culturally. Jackson loves Shakespeare and poetry particularly Shel Silverstein, I wouldn’t of known that if I just gave him things to look at and read about having to do with legos and karate. Chloe loves painting and Monet (she loves his flowers), and Hudson is mad for U2 and Handel…who knew.
All of these things, are tools that point right back to God and relate to our life in Jesus. It is amazing for me to go through this with them as an adult. I have a deeper understanding, and connectedness to our whole story through me working through it with them. So after school, I crank the tunes and let them play and clean and work with an environment soaked in worship. Not to mention it keeps me right in tune with the one who called me and the one who is calling them. So go look for a few connections in your home today. They are so fun to find.
Grace and Peace to All~
