As I was dropping my youngest off at his preschool class I walked into the hallway and overheard the next door teacher reading a Bible story to her kids. I only caught two whole sentences, but those two sentences have caused me to ponder a lot this last week.

To get the idea, say this in your deepest, gruffest, meanest voice…. “When the music plays, everyone must bow down and worship the statue. Those who disobey will be thrown into the fiery furnace.”

As I walked up to my office I questioned, “What kind of God do we serve?” Those who love Him are thrown into fiery furnaces, dens of lions, or have to spend year on a boat, are sold as a slave or persecuted. If you don’t serve our God or temporarily disobey, then you could be struck with 10 plagues, killed by angels, thrown in a belly of a whale or become blind. Interesting dilemma! Which situation would you choose? There isn’t a clear winner, at least on the surface of it.

But with one quick glance into the room I saw children sitting quietly in their seats listening calmly to their teacher as they munched on their morning snack.  The thought of being thrown into the fiery furnace didn’t faze them. They didn’t question God.

Faith Like a Child Continue Reading…

I have been so blessed and encouraged by our children these last couple of weeks! On Wednesday nights we have been discussing listening to God. Each week we practice spending time in prayer and learning how to have a two-way conversation with God. I love how each time the kids just expect God to speak to them, and a lot of the times He does!

But, over the last six weeks each child has experienced a time when they have be unable to hear from the Lord. This can be discouraging and confusing. So we have made it a point to talk with the kids about why this happens and what to do when it does. As parents, it is our job encourage and train our children to speak to God and hear from Him. I know I have grown so much in my understanding of prayer, and I hope you will too as you talk about this with your own children. Continue Reading…

Today we are giving away the April Storytime. This month we talk about the most special time of year for Christians! It’s the time when we remember that Jesus willingly died for us to save us from our sins, and then rose from the dead and beat death at its own game! This gives us hope! This gives us peace! This is what makes us who we are. It is a great time to go over again what your children have been learning at church.

You can find the story and the verses in your Bible, you can get books that tell the story from the library, and you can also go online to www.biblegateway.com to easily look up the verses.

Main Theme Verse:

John 3:16
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Extra Questions and Memory Verses

Pick one to discuss and/or memorize as a family each week of the month!

Does everyone sin?
All have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Romans 3:23

The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 6:23

How can we get right with God?
Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved. Acts 16:31

Does the Lord Jesus ever change?
No. Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today, and forever. Hebrews 13:8

How did Jesus say we could come to the Father?
Jesus said, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father but through me.” John 14:6

“The angels said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen!” Luke 24:5-6

Download the whole Storytime here:  |    Easter Week  |

Why would you do a Storytime?  Stories are a great way for us to remember concepts and principles.  By discussing these timeless stories with your children you can help them learn, and your family will grow closer as you experience the stories together.  This is also a great way to do an outreach to kids in your neighborhood, church, or circle of friends.  Kids enjoy listening to the stories, and in the process you are planting seeds of truth in their lives.  We hope that you are able to use this Storytime to bless your own kids and the kids in your neighborhood.

You May Also Like:

September Storytime: You Have What It Takes!

October Storytime: Work Hard!

November Storytime: Thanksgiving

December Storytime: A Savior Is Born! 

January Storytime:  How God Sees You

Did you know that there are actually seven pieces of the armor of God? If you did, you are one up on me. So far we have covered the belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, shoes of peace, shield of faith, helmet of salvation and the sword of the spirit. Six pieces.  I never realized that there was one more weapon that was important to the soldier.
In Ephesians 6:18 it says, “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit” I have never thought of prayer as being a part of the armor. I knew it was definitely a very powerful weapon that we have against Satan, but I never linked it to the armor. In Rick Renner’s book Dressed to Kill, he shares his belief that the Roman soldier’s lance is a perfect example of how prayer can be an effective and essential weapon in our lives. Continue Reading…

I have loved digging deeper into the Armor of God! I have learned so much as I have studied the purpose of each piece of the armor.  It is amazing how each part protects me and sets me up for success in the battles of life.

Today we will talk about the Sword of the Spirit-the Word of God. Several weeks ago we learned about the belt of truth, the written Word of God and how it is THE foundation for all the rest of the pieces. Today we will learn about how to put the Word of God into action, in a way that will become an offensive weapon that will mortally wound the enemy and defeat him forever.

Deadly Innovation

The Roman army adapted and improved its swords over time. The first one that they developed was called a gladius. It had a very long blade and was very impressive, but also very heavy. So heavy in fact that the soldier had to use two hands to swing it down to smash their opponent. Quickly the soldiers realized that this was not a very effective sword to use in battle. After many tries they ended up with a sword called a machaira. It was nineteen inches long and both sides of the blade were razor sharp. The tip of the sword hooked up, which made the point even sharper.  The soldier could cut into the enemy no matter what direction they swung and with a simple little twist the tip would tear through the insides of the enemy soldier, leaving them fatally wounded on the ground. (Sorry for the graphic description! :-p) Continue Reading…

Can you imagine playing an NFL game without a helmet?  You wouldn’t survive!  What about going off to war?  Imagine how vulnerable you would be!  The helmet is crucial.  The Roman soldier’s helmet was made out of bronze, and was so strong that nothing could penetrate it. It covered their head, face and neck to protect against all forms of attack.

Beautiful Symbol

The helmet was also a beautiful piece of armor.  Not only a protection for the soldier’s head, oftentimes it was shaped in the form of an animal (like an elephant) or had etchings of fruit or extravagant engravings all over it.  There were usually tall feathers or horse hairs coming out of the top of it to make the soldier even more noticeable. The helmet was a symbol!  People would catch a glimpse of the helmet and immediately know that it was a Roman soldier. When we walk with our helmet of salvation, we should stand out so much that it is obvious that we are children of God. But what is salvation? Is it simply a ticket into heaven? Oh dear, friends it is so much more than that!! Continue Reading…

Unbelief paralyzes us and makes us vulnerable to the attacks of Satan. I was teaching the kids at our church about the boy who was possessed by demons and the boy’s father had brought him to Jesus to be healed. When the father went up to Jesus he asked, “If you are willing, can you make my son well?” Jesus questioned the man’s wording. “If I am willing?” The father went on to explain that He believed Jesus could heal his son and then asked an important question. “I believe, Lord – please help my unbelief.”

Satan is such an evil liar! He wants us to doubt. He wants us to question God’s goodness and His love. Satan wants us to believe that not everything God does is good.  This can be so frustrating!

Shield Me!

Today we are going to talk about our shield of faith. A Roman soldier’s shield was much bigger than I had imagined – it was about the size of a door. This shield was designed to cover the whole body of the soldier, so that not an inch of him was showing. He could be fully protected from the enemy attack by his one shield. But in order for the shield to be effective, he had to care for the shield and hold on to it.  If the soldier did not take proper care of his shield it would become brittle, giving the enemy a crack to break through and wound the soldier.

Let me share with you what I have learned about the proper care of a shield in hopes that both you and I will be encouraged and grow in our faith. Continue Reading…

It is important to have armor covering vulnerable areas.  This week we are covering the shoes – which are very important!

In the movie Miss Congeniality, Gracie Lou explains to the audience how to get away from an attacker. Do you remember her basic tip of self-defense:  “Just remember to SING?” This scene came to mind as I was studying and learning about the next piece of armor because the I in SING is “instep,” which is part of the foot. It is one of four sensitive areas you can use to immediately take an attacker out. This is why it is so important to protect this part of the body completely and securely.

The pieces of armor all fit together well, and I believe that Paul put these pieces in a specific order. As you put on one, it sets you up to successfully put on and use the next. Peace comes from knowing what truth is (Belt), and one aspect of peace is received immediately when you are made righteous (Breastplate). Let me explain.

Peace With God

There are two types of peace. Peace with God and peace of God. Peace with God is given once a person accepts Jesus as Lord of their life.

Romans 5:1 (NLT) Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us.

 When we put on the breastplate of righteousness we are at peace with God. Satan will try to make us doubt our righteousness and get us to live in fear instead of peace. Don’t let him! Be confident of your standing with God. Because of Jesus you are made right, you are a child of God and you can never lose your place in His family. Don’t allow Satan to steal your peace with God. Continue Reading…

Am I good enough? Have I made one too many mistakes? Has God given up on me?  Did I miss my calling? Don’t raise your hand, but have you ever thought one of these thoughts? I am sure that each one of us at some point in our lives has entertained these life sucking questions.

Well, I have exciting news for you. Today’s piece of armor will dispel any doubt and give you the boldness and confidence you need to do all that God has called you to do.

The breastplate of righteousness is an important piece of armor that we need to fully understand and take hold of. The breastplate was the most beautiful piece of armor the Roman soldiers wore. It began at their neck and proceeded down their bodies to their knees. It was made up of small, scale-like pieces of metal. As the soldiers wore the breastplate and moved, the little pieces of metal rubbed together. An amazing thing happened the more they rubbed together: the pieces of metal became shinier and more brilliant. The more the armor was worn, the prettier and brighter it got!  Continue Reading…

Last week we talked about the most important piece of armor we can possess: the Belt of Truth.  We pointed out that our source of that Truth is the Word of God.  It is our job as parents to make sure that this belt is firmly in place for our kids, for life.  Today we thought we would share some Scriptures that can help us do just that.

As I was gathering these scriptures all into one document these two specific ones came to mind.

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. 2 Timothy 3:16-17

“And you must love The Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am  giving you today. Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road; when you are going to bed and when you are getting up.” Deuteronomy 6:5-7

Scripture is a gift given to us to equip us to do everything we need to do and are called to do. What better gift can we give our children, than to devote time frequently to getting the Word into their hearts? It is one thing to memorize scripture, but to explain it and show them how to apply it to their lives is a priceless investment. Continue Reading…