Go and Tell
How can you help your child learn to share God’s love with others? Rather than encouraging your child to approach strangers, show your child how to focus on friends and relatives in a familiar, safe environment. Following are some ideas.

• Put together a family newspaper or newsletter telling how God has worked in your lives and things for which you are thankful. Encourage family members to draw pictures as well as to write stories. Take the paper to a photocopying service and share copies with relatives and friends.

• Talk about ways people in your area are telling the good news. Talk about local outreach ministries such as soup kitchens, food pantries, used clothing stores, literacy programs, work with people who are homeless, help for people who are abused, and other programs.

• Encourage your family to adopt an unchurched family in your community. Talk about ways that each of you can reach out to that family with acts of kindness and words of encouragement.

• Invite your pastor’s family to come to your house for an evening of fellowship, fun, and snacks.

• Read 1 Thessalonians 5:11. How can we build up other people? How does love help? Make a poster of building blocks (if a member of your family is talented artistically, add some tools used in building). On each block, write one thing your family can do to encourage someone else.

Adapted from "Family Time With God," copyright © Abingdon Press.

                                                            

Lessons in Courage

Since your child is learning about Queen Esther this quarter in Live B.I.G (see the Book of Esther), here are some things you can do at home to help your child see the heroes and heroines that are all around us.

Day 1: Talk with your child about how God works through people. Tell stories you know of people who were in the right place to do the right thing.

Day 2: Select books from your public library that tell about men and women who acted with courage. As you read the stories together, discuss similarities to the story of Esther.

Day 3: Pray together for people who face difficult decisions. Perhaps you or your child will want to name some specific persons who can benefit from your prayers.

Day 4: Plan a family picnic. Visit a monument or marker in your area that celebrates the lives of courageous people.

Day 5: Help your family look through the newspaper to find stories about people who are making a difference in the world by doing what is right. Make a list of the people and what they did. Do you notice extraordinary or ordinary activities?

Day 6: Write a letter to someone in your church or community that your family admires because that person acts with the courage of his or her convictions. Let that person know that he or she is a role model for you and your children.

Day 7: Select an evening and host a “treat your family like royalty” dinner. Have family members fix a special meal, create a centerpiece for the table, and set the table. Choose background music. During the meal talk about what you appreciate about one another.

Adapted from "Family Time With God," copyright © Abingdon Press.

                                                            

Ways for Families to Celebrate Lent

Lent is such an important time in the church and in the life of a Christian. Create family traditions now that your children can carry with them into adulthood.

Look for new life. Spend time outdoors, looking for signs of spring. Can you find new buds on trees, or new shoots pushing up through the ground? Can you spot a bird’s nest with an egg in it? If it’s warm enough, enjoy a picnic.

Create a celebration. Worship services bring out trumpets, lilies, colorful banners, and many other symbols to show the celebratory aspect of Easter. Add symbols of celebration to your Easter holiday, such as having a kazoo march through your backyard.

Make plans to plant an Easter lily outside. Easter lilies will bloom again in September and will come up each spring (even in the coldest of climates) as long as they’re planted after the last freeze and are covered up each winter. Create an Easter lily garden in your backyard, or ask your church if your family can create an Easter lily garden on the church grounds.

Relax together. Simplify your Easter holiday so that it’s an enjoyable, stress-free holiday and your family truly enjoys being together. Even if you do nothing else, just being together in fun ways may be the best Easter gift you can give to each other.

Read aloud the Easter story. Many families read aloud Luke 2 at Christmastime, but few read aloud the Easter story. Start a family tradition of reading aloud different aspects of the Easter story. Have family members take turns reading aloud each night with Matthew 26:17-30 (Maundy Thursday), Matthew 27:27-61 (Good Friday), Matthew 27:62-66 (Holy Saturday), and Matthew 28:1-10 (Easter Sunday).

Have a religious Easter egg hunt. Consider having two Easter egg hunts—one that has eggs with candy and other treats and another egg hunt that has eggs with religious symbols inside. Be clear to children which hunt is which so that their expectations are realistic. Hide eggs containing Easter symbols such as nails, a stone, an angel, and a cross. After the children find all the eggs and open them up, have them guess the significance of each item.

Adapted from “Ways for Families to Celebrate Easter,” by Jolene L. Roehlkepartain. From Exploring Faith With Families: God’s Word for God’s Children, Spring 2001. Copyright 2001 Cokesbury.

                                                                

Ideas for Helping Children Learn to Share Their Faith

Can you picture your child telling a family friend about his or her faith? It can happen, you know. In some ways, a child’s witness can be as appealing as an adult’s. While an adult speaks from experience and knowledge, a child’s words come straight from the heart, spontaneous and unvarnished.

So how can we help our children learn to share their faith? Here are a few suggestions:

• Help your child become comfortable putting feelings into words by talking with your child about his or her faith. Use starter questions, such as “I’m thankful to God for . . .” or I’m glad I’m a Christian because . . .” Encourage your child to think about his or her answers. If it helps, let your child illustrate what he or she is feeling. Those drawings could even become a visual tool that your child could use as a conversation starter.

• Remind your child that often the best way to witness is to treat others as Jesus wants us to treat them. If we are kind to others, showing love and compassion even when it isn’t easy, people will notice. When someone comments, that’s the perfect opportunity for your child to tell that person why your child wants to be like Jesus.

• Encourage your child to practice sharing his or her faith. Pretend to be a family member or a friend, and let your child tell you about Jesus. Praise your child’s efforts.

• Never, ever encourage your child to talk to strangers. In fact, caution your child not to talk to anyone he or she doesn’t know. Instead, remind your child that he or she can talk to family members and friends.

• Make sure that your child has realistic expectations. Not everyone with whom your child shares his or her faith will be receptive. Some people may be disinterested or even rude. Help your child understand that some people aren’t ready to hear what your child has to say. Celebrate with your child when someone he or she talks to is attentive.

Let your child hear you sharing your own faith in everyday conversation, and it will become easier for your child to share too. It’s never too early to tell others about Christ.

Living B.I.G at Home:

The Story's the Thing
Almost every family has a storyteller, an individual who seems to know the important family stories from generations back. These stories are not just family-reunion entertainment; they are used to encourage, motivate, or even correct younger members of the family.

Case in point: For four generations our family has been cautioned against gambling. Great Uncle Louie once sold his cattle the day the carnival came to town, and by the next morning had lost all the profits in the carnival gambling tents. As a child, I was certainly impressed!

Stories of patience, strength, greed, courage, deceit, prejudice, love, and sacrifice can probably be found in most families. These stories, the good and the bad, give substance to our roots and encourage the development of wise family values.

Jesus, the Master Storyteller, often used storytelling to get his point across. The parable of the good Samaritan (February 14’s lesson) teaches us about inclusiveness; after all, it was the outcast Samaritan who rescued the traveler, not the ones in the mainstream of religious life who might have been expected to show compassion. Jesus taught by using the common experiences of life, weaving them into unforgettable stories that we call parables.

My friend Dana used Bible stories as positive reinforcement for her children. You told a bully to leave a little kid alone? You are as courageous as David. You collected sixteen cans of fruit for the homeless shelter? You remind me of Dorcas, who helped others. You are a reading partner with a younger child in your school? I remember that Jesus also loved and welcomed children.

Share your own stories with your children. Most young people enjoy the stories of their parents' lives. Though we are tempted to relate only the triumphs, we must also share some times of questionable judgment and what we learned from those experiences. I once went canoeing at midnight on the Cedar River in Iowa, a treacherous adventure at best. (My sister told on me and maintained for years that the telling was an act of nobility.) To this day we use that story to discourage spontaneous and thoughtless risk-taking, as well as to acknowledge that sometimes "telling" is an act of love.

One of the earliest ways we bond with our children is through cuddling, singing, and telling stories. I carried our children, wrapped in blankets, outside to see the full moon shining on drifts of snow. Stories of our ancestor who walked across the frozen Baltic Sea to reach his island home for the birth of a baby fill us with wonder at his courage, and with thankfulness for the warm house to which, after all, we will soon retire. Thus, as parents, we express our own reliance upon the goodness and wisdom of God. We hand down a rich heritage when we share the stories that nourish our lives and our faith.

Adapted from "The Story's the Thing," by Myrtle E. Felkner, in Exploring Faith With Families; copyright Cokesbury.

Teaching Children to Pray

Chris, a first grader, talked with his teacher about going to his grandmother’s funeral. He spoke of being sad when standing by the grave. “What did you do, Chris?” asked the teacher.

“I said a prayer,” replied Chris softly.

“I’m glad you did. You can talk to God anytime, anywhere, about anything,” said the teacher.

Anna sat at the kitchen table with her grandchildren, Mark and Mandy—fifth grade twins. Another member of the church had just called to tell Anna that a friend of theirs was fired from her job. Anna asked Mark and Mandy to pray with her for the friend.

“You mean you want us to ask God to find her another job?” asked Mark.

“No,” replied Anna. “I want to ask God to help us know how to support her in this difficult time. I want to ask God to provide for her what she needs and to let God know that I am willing to be part of what God provides. What else do you think we might include in our prayer?”

Our children do have a relationship with God. Often what they need from us is help in recognizing God’s presence and words to say in response. Our responsibility and opportunity is not so much to teach our children how to pray, but to join them in praying and to learn from their alertness and spontaneity. To do that well, we must be prayerful ourselves. We must be in a current relationship with God.

About Praying

These questions may be helpful as you think about your own prayer life. When do you pray? What do you pray about? What does God say to you? Do you pray for people you don’t like, not to change them, but to be more loving toward them? When have your children heard you pray? When have you asked your children to pray with you? How have your prayers changed in the past five years?

Times for Prayer

Some times for praying with children are:

Planned worship in a classroom.

At snack and mealtimes.

At nap and bedtime.

On birthdays.

As the seasons change.

Watching a sunset.

In the middle of an argument.

When a new brother or sister is born.

When someone moves away.

When someone new moves in.

When you or they don’t know what to do.

When choosing a gift.

Before going to school.

In the midst of a storm.

When something beautiful happens unexpectedly.

When someone dies.

Washing the dishes.

Putting away toys.

Bandaging a cut.

Deciding how to spend an allowance.

Anytime.

Kinds of Prayers

Some kinds of prayers are:

Giving thanks.

Talking with God about wants or needs.

Sharing feelings with God.

Talking with God about someone else.

Listening to God.

Spontaneously doing something good for someone else.

Prayer Postures

Some prayer postures are:

Head bowed, eyes closed.

Eyes open, looking at one another.

Moving to music.

Holding hands.

Lying down.

Hugging yourself, someone else, or a whole group of persons.

Head up, hands lifted up.

Singing.

Sitting.

Walking or running.

On your knees.

Playing a music instrument.

Adapted from “Teaching Children to Pray,” by Cecile Adams, in O Taste and See That the Lord Is Good. Copyright 2003 Abingdon Press.

Living B.I.G at Home:

Seven Ways to Keep Christ in Christmas
It's so easy to get caught up in the commercial aspect of Christmas. Here are some tips to help you and your family stay focused on the true reason for the season.

• Draw a Christmas tree outline on construction paper and mark it off into six sections. Encourage family members to list the following on the tree (younger children may draw pictures or just decorate the tree):

1. List two gifts—one you received that you especially enjoyed and one special gift you gave to someone else.

2. List three things you are good at—special gifts that God has given you.

3. List two gifts you would like to receive for Christmas. Remember that feelings, talents, and experiences can be gifts.

4. Name a way you will use one of the gifts you have received (or will receive this year) to serve God or other people during the next year.

5. Name a gift you would like to give to God.

6. Write a special Christmas message to your family and friends.

• Enjoy candy canes while you hear this story: Once there was a candymaker who wanted to give his friends a special Christmas gift. After a while, as he looked at one of his ordinary candy sticks, he had an idea. While the candy was still warm, the candymaker bent the top over until the stick looked like a shepherd's crook. "This is it," he exclaimed. "This candy stick looks like a shepherd's crook. If I make candy like this for my friends, my gift will remind them of the shepherds who were the first ones to hear about Jesus' birth."

• Take a trip to the library to find books on various Christmas customs (or use the Internet). How did your favorite custom originate?

• Cut out hearts. Print the following message on the hearts before decorating them: "God loves you so much that God sent Jesus." Send the hearts to special friends, or take them to a nursing home or homeless shelter.

• Act out the story of the shepherds on the hillside. Encourage family members to show the fear, awe, and excitement the shepherds must have felt.

• Look through Christmas cards. Talk about the meanings of the symbols you see—stars, mangers, shepherds, and doves.

• Talk about Santa Claus. No matter what your child thinks about Santa Claus, help him or her to separate Santa Claus from the celebration of Jesus' birth. However, help your child to understand too that Santa Claus is a reminder of goodwill and the spirit of giving.

Adapted from Family Time With God: Bible Story Activities for Every Day, by Peg Augustine; copyright Abingdon Press.

Ten for the Family: Ways to Celebrate God’s Wonderful Creation Together

1. Every morning as you wake your children, say Psalm 24:1: “The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it, the world, and those who live in it.”

2. Constellations came about by people watching the stars and making up stories and names for groups of stars. Go someplace without much artificial light and watch the stars. Name your own family constellation and develop a family story to go with the constellation. Look for your family constellation each night and when you find it, say a prayer of thanks for the day that has just been.

3. Plan a picnic using no disposable products such as paper napkins, plastic forks, disposable plastic beverage containers, and so forth.

4. Take a tiny nature hike. Mark out an area of three square feet for each person in your family in your yard or a local park. Give each person ten toothpicks to mark interesting things found in the space. Then let each person take the rest of the family on a guided nature “hike.”

5. Find out what items (cans, glass, plastic, newspaper, and so forth) can be recycled in your community. Decorate boxes to store items for regular recycling.

6. Plant a tree in honor of someone who is important to your family. Make a certificate to present to the person that says something like: “You have been a gift from God to the (your name) family. As a symbol of our gratefulness for you, a tree has been planted at (list place). As its branches grow, we will be reminded of the many ways you have spread God’s love”

7. Every time you see a sunset, say aloud Psalm 19:1: “The heavens are telling the glory of God; and the firmament proclaims his handiwork.”

8. When driving in the car with your family, sing hymns that remind you of all that God has created. Possibilities include “All Things Bright and Beautiful,” “This Is My Father’s World,” For the Beauty of the Earth,” “Praise God, From Whom All Blessings Flow,” and “God of the Sparrow God of the Whale.”

9. Collect leaves that have fallen on the ground. Use paper and the side of a crayon to create rubbings of the leaves. On top of the pattern created by the rubbings write a Bible verse that celebrates God’s creation. (Genesis 1 or Psalms 23 are good possibilities.) Frame the picture and hang it in your own home to remind your family of the beauty of creation.

10. Take every opportunity to remind your children that they have been created by God and all that God has created is good.

By Deb Smith, in Exploring Faith With Families, Fall 2000. Copyright © 2000 Cokesbury.

Living B.I.G at Home:

Helping Your Child Understand Baptism
Since one of January's lessons deals with Jesus' baptism (January 17), here are some suggestions that can help you reinforce with your child the concept of baptism.

• If your child was baptized or dedicated as an infant, talk with your child about the promise you made to bring him or her up in a Christian environment. Show your child any pictures or certificates that you may have kept. If your child has not been baptized, talk with him or her about your feelings about baptism. Answer questions about how he or she can make decisions about being baptized.

• Give your young child items such as cups, spoons, and sponges to play with in the tub. Recall stories about water that you have used in the past months. Remind your child of how important water is to all of God's creation. If your children are older, talk with them what it means for your child to make his or her commitment.

• Enjoy making and eating blue gelatin with your family. Point out that you are using water to make the gelatin. When the gelatin is ready to eat, talk about how the gelatin looks and tastes. Talk about how gelatin feels wet when you eat it.

• Talk with your child about the Christian responsibility to serve others. Choose a project you can work on together.

• Help your child remember how he or she learned to talk, to count, to ride a bike, to play the piano, and so forth. Then suggest that the way we learn to live as Jesus taught is the same. We learn by practicing. If you have a photo of one of these "first times," take it to a photocopying store and make an enlargement. Think of a clever caption that will remind family members that we grow through practice.

• Mix together 1/4 cup liquid detergent, 1/2 cup water, and 1 tsp. sugar in a plastic tub or shallow bowl. Tear the bottoms off paper cups. Dip the rims of the cups into the bubble solution and blow through the bottoms. Enjoy watching the bubbles.

• Let family members trace around their hands and then add an eye and a beak to the thumb to make a handprint dove. Write a favorite Bible verse on the doves.

Adapted from Family Time With God: Bible Story Activities for Every Day, by Peg Augustine; copyright Abingdon Press.

Fostering Friendships

As a parent, have you ever been concerned because your preschool child is playing alone? Did he or she have a disagreement with “Susie” yet again? Is there a child in the classroom who just bounds in with “personality plus,” and you wish your child had that confidence? Well, take heart. Help is here, and it is within the power of a parent to make a difference. Let’s see what you as a parent can do:

Be positive. The phrase “Little pitchers have big ears” is true. Although your little one does not appear to be listening to you, he or she may hear you when you tell your mom or another parent “He is just so shy” or “She just has such a hard time making friends.” These comments can be heard and can be harmful. You want to foster their feelings of security rather than fueling their insecurities. If you feel you must talk to another adult about your concerns, do so when your child is not around. Keep your comments to your child on the positive side, like “I am so glad you got to be with your friends at church (or school) today.” “I saw you playing with Jason when I came to pick you up. What did you two do together?”

Be playful. Preschool children often play side by side and even imitate one another, rather than interacting with one another. Having some difficulty making friends at this age is normal. But your child can learn if he or she has opportunity to learn. This does not mean you have to fill your calendar with play dates. Simply listen to your child. Who does he or she mention repeatedly from church or school? Invite that child over to play for a while. Keep it short and keep it small. You want this to be a positive thing and not too overwhelming for your child. Your child may even be invited to that friend’s house in return. Let him or her go and play without you there. Try doing this on a regular basis and alternate the friends and personalities involved. This can help your child learn how to make a friend, be a friend, and keep a friend.

Be prepared. Dumping the children in a playroom and excusing yourself immediately is asking for trouble. Be prepared when your child has a play date. Be available to help the children ease into this playtime together. Be a bridge between the two new friends. As they get more comfortable with one another and the friend feels welcome at your home, then you can make yourself a little more scarce. The children may have a disagreement and tears may be shed when you have friends over. If there is no physical harm taking place, try to let the children handle the situation. If it is needed, you can simply suggest that they change to a new activity. Be prepared and be available, but remember to let your child “step up to the plate.” In this way you are fostering a friendship without forcing it.

Most children will learn to get along with others pretty well. In time, they will develop more and deeper friendships. Much of this will be learned even from their own peers. Your goal as a parent is to foster these friendships—nurture them and help them grow. Given these opportunities, your child will then be able to make a friend, be a friend, and keep a friend. What a gift he or she has been given.

Anita Edlund is a former preschool teacher and has worked with children for over 25 years. Currently, she is a freelance writer and preschool consultant. She has written for Exploring Faith, VBS, Live BIG, The Children's Teacher, and BibleZone Live. Anita is also the author of several curriculum books, including her latest, Stepping Stones of Faith for Preschoolers.


                                                                    

Thankful Traditions

Giving thanks to God in all ways and at all times is always appropriate. It is very difficult to do so in times of a crisis (personal or national) or in times of mourning, but that is what we are called upon to do—give thanks for our Creator and for all we have.

How do we make this “thankfulness” so much a part of our children’s spiritual lives that it becomes natural for them? It can be done through tradition, practice, and example.

One sixth-grader told me that his family has steak for Thanksgiving dinner. I asked why, and he explained that his immediate family always made Thanksgiving Day dinner for people who are homeless and sat down to eat with them. He said his parents knew that steak was something these people didn’t get to eat, so they always fixed steak for Thanksgiving dinner! To this sixth-grader, eating a steak dinner with people who are homeless was as natural as traveling a hundred miles to sit down to a turkey dinner with family. This is truly a thankful tradition.

Remember that giving thanks to God should not be a tradition limited to one day a year, nor should it center exclusively on thankfulness for food. To produce a thankful child, you must first be truly thankful for your own relationship with God all year, through good times and bad.

Here are some ways to foster thankfulness in a child:

• Say a prayer of thanks over every meal.

• As a family, give of your time in service to others in thankfulness for your relationship with God.

• Sing happy, thankful songs when doing things with your children—as you travel, as you work together, even as you do the dishes!

• Do not complain continually about what is “wrong with the world” or about what you don’t have. Continual complaining is often done not because something is wrong, but because it’s a habit. If you try it, speaking thankfully can become a habit.

Keep in mind that children model the behavior of their parents. Model being thankful by being truly thankful yourself.

By Marcia Stoner, from Exploring Faith With Families, Fall 2002. Copyright © 2002 Cokesbury.

In a world that sometimes seems utterly confusing, we wonder how we can possibly teach our children to care about one another. Is caring taught or caught?

A nine-year-old jumps into the pool at a birthday party and pulls out a younger boy who is struggling in deep water. He holds the boy's head above water until a parent comes to help.

Two children are injured in a car accident. As the mother lies helpless, the five-year-old extracts her younger brother from the child car seat and takes her to safety in a nearby cabin.

A four-year-old runs joyfully through the meadow. She stops, returns to her grandmother, and takes her hand. "Let me help you, Grandma," she says. "It might be hard to walk here."

Whether children show caring and kindness in the everyday business of life or in the emergencies, most of them react according to their own experience. The best way parents teach their children to be caring individuals is to show caring for each other and for their family.

In August, your children will be learning how to live as Christians. Caring for others was high on Jesus' list, and with your guidance and the things they are learning in Live B.I.G., it can be high on your children's list too.

Respond and React

Take time to respond to a child's concern, even though it does not seem so dire to you. A little girl called her grandmother in tears. "I took my new birthday dolly to the baby sitter's, and the dog chewed her arm off."

"Oh, dear," said her grandmother. "You had better bring her to the hospital at my house."

When the little girl arrived, Grandmother had already assembled cushions and shoeboxes—a veritable hospital ward. She had a make-believe stethoscope and a multitude of bandages. The little girl put on a nurse's cap, and together she and Doctor Grandma attended to the doll, as well as to an interesting array of stuffed animals.

At last the little girl retired to her rocking chair, holding the injured but recovering doll. "I think," she said, "that when you take your dolly to the GrandmaHospital, it is the best day in the whole world."

We cannot always respond through actual deeds; even parents cannot work miracles! But we must respond appropriately to every need, every question, every circumstance. No child should be ignored, even if the response is that you need some quiet time right now but will deal with it later. Such responses show respect for the individual and teach the child to show respect to others and to care for them as well.

Model and Mentor

It is not easy to be a role model! Yet we can expect to be nothing less for our children. I am thankful to have had a mother who always treated others with thoughtful concern. She was a teacher in a one-room country school, and one year her school board bought ice cream for the end-of-school picnic. Now, these are Depression days, and ice cream was a rare treat. Miracle of miracles, there was some left over, and the school board generously told Mom to take it home to her family.

All the way home I thought about that ice cream. Wow, ice cream for supper! However, as Mom began to muse about the children on the next farm, who probably had not had ice cream for weeks, I began to see the handwriting on the wall. This was not to be our ice cream. My sister and I put that ice cream freezer in our little red wagon and dragged it down the road to the neighbors. Never will I forget the delight of those children, nor the flush of pleasure on their mother's face as she scooped big bowls of ice cream for all of us.

We don't need to preach caring and sharing; we just need to do it.

Although parents are not usually thought of as mentors, we share some of the characteristics of mentors. The character of Mentor in Greek mythology gave wise advice and shared knowledge with his friend's son. As parents, we intend that our advice will be wise, and that our children will follow it. Although there are family rules, there are also moments when advice is given and choices are possible. A mentor does not force; a mentor offers friendship and loving support; a mentor teaches and guides. Mentors personify caring attitudes and fair judgment. In the heat of the moment, I have known parents to forget this!

Compare and Create

Consequences are a great teacher. Point out positive consequences much more often than the negative, although sometimes that is certainly necessary too.

Consider these examples:

"It was a good idea for you to shovel Mrs. Brown's walk. How bad we would have felt if she had fallen on the ice!"

"I didn't realize the dog's water dish needed to be scoured out. We wouldn't want him to drink dirty water and get sick. Thank you."

"How nice that you cleaned the kitchen for me! When I feel better, it will be a real pleasure to fix our meals."

"I am glad you told your teacher that you missed her while she was gone. Everyone likes to know he or she is doing a good job."

It's not so hard, it it? Children do so many little things that we can appreciate and encourage.

Perhaps most important of all, we try to create an environment where caring for others is the norm. Jesus "went about doing good" (Acts 10:38b), teaching and showing us ways to be more caring. We encourage those instincts in our children as we create opportunities for them to share, when we lead in intercessory prayer, when we rejoice over the achievements and blessings of others, when we respect and respond to their needs, when we model kind behavior as we mentor, and when we create places of quiet peace and security in our homes.

Adapted from "Will Our Children Care?" by Myrtle E. Felkner, Exploring Faith With Families; copyright © Cokesbury.

Family Summertime Fun

What do you remember about summertime when you were growing up? What do you remember about being a child? What were the fun parts?

Today's world is filled with all kinds of activities through which we can achieve many worthwhile goals: a good education, a better job, more money, and athletic skills. We encourage our children in many of these activities because we want them to achieve great things and have a good, secure life.

But what about fun? What about the family and the foundation for our lives? An activity cannot provide this for your children—only you can.

Summer is a great time to enjoy your children and for your children to enjoy you. It's also a time that can provide them with a firm spiritual foundation for the future.

How do you get started?

Begin a family tradition of worshiping together. During the school year parents and children are often scattered about. Start your summer Sundays by attending Sunday school. Then go to worship—and sit together as a family! Maybe you could opt out of the choir for just those summer months. After worship, go out to lunch, go on a picnic, or use the microwave to zap previously cooked food and eat together on your patio or deck. Get Mom (or Dad) out of the kitchen. Eat, talk, laugh, and make the Sunday meal an occasion! Your children will soon be looking forward to the whole Sunday morning experience.

Remember, the soul, like the body, requires nourishment all year long.

Do something off the wall! Summer's a great time to do something that you wouldn't do during the cold winter months—or just to do something differently than usual.

Take the whole family outside at night to sit around a lantern and tell ghost stories. If it's hot, get out the hose, turn it on full blast, and let the children run through the water. Then let them turn the spray on you! Or wash the family car together. That's an excellent way to get a little carried away and make sure everyone gets wet—a great way to loosen up. Remember that God knows that laughter is good for the soul as well as a very good family bonding tool.

Participate in a family mission project. No matter what our income, we can always work together for the good of others. Remember that not one of the miracles Jesus did required money or social status.

Talk to your pastor or someone in your church about mission possibilities in your area. Then take a field trip to the organization of your choice to find out what their needs are and how your family can fit into them. For example, I know a single mother and her daughter who decided that they would volunteer to help in the local BethlehemCenter's clothing store on Saturdays. Children learn through example, and what a great example this was—as well as a meaningful shared experience.

Start a Sunday afternoon family rest time. At our house, after a huge Sunday midday meal, the Sunday paper was brought out, the Sunday ballgame was turned on, and we all eventually ended up in a chair, on the couch, or on the den floor sound asleep. Sometimes we played board games. (We didn't have computer games back in the dark ages!) Nothing was allowed to intrude upon this family time until it was time for a light supper—the one time Mom didn't have to cook. Then we went out refreshed into the world again to youth groups or meetings or socializing. This is not an "old-fashioned" idea—it can easily be done today.

God gave us the sabbath for a reason. In today's world we need a sabbath rest more than ever. No strict rules are necessary except that the time is "family time" and therefore a time when other things are not allowed to intrude. (Like all rules, however, it may need to be bent on rare occasions.)

A summer variation of this family time could involve going for a picnic and a swim at the local lake. A rowdy, fun time followed by time to sit around and talk or doze by the lake or pool is restful and refreshing.

Pray together. This needs to be done all year, but in the rush for summer fun this can often be forgotten. Take time to pray together as a family.

As a parent, pray for help to let go of all those "goals" you've set for yourself and your children and to reconnect in a family way—a God-centered, fun-filled way. Have fun!

Adapted from "Family Summertime Fun" by Marcia Stoner, Exploring Faith With Families; copyright © Cokesbury.

The antique dresser in our guest bedroom holds a number of heirlooms: a photograph of my father at age two, my husband's baptismal gown, eight spoons from the 1933 Chicago World's Fair, and a packet of handwritten letters. We cherish these items, and especially the letters, for they resonate with family history. The collection includes courtship letters written by my father-in-law during World War II and a postcard from our son, begging to come home from camp. There's a note from Aunt Alice, containing her signature recipe for apricot jam, and a twelve-page epistle from our daughter's semester in Europe, complete with thumbnail sketches of castles and pressed flowers from the countryside.

Today our family conversations typically utilize "quick" means of communication. But when we want to send a special message—one that will be savored and leisurely reread—we reach for paper and pen.

When we teach our children to write letters, we offer a way to build relationships. In this world of emails and text messages, a letter says, "I care about you and took the time to share my thoughts with you." In letters we can voice words of affirmation and exchange glimpses of our daily lives. We can express our personal opinions and discuss mutually interesting things. When we teach our children to write letters, we are passing on a most valuable treasure.

My mother involved me in letter writing even before I could print. Whenever she wrote to my grandparents, she enclosed pictures I'd drawn. As I grew older, I added captions, and finally full pages, about my adventures. My grandparents always responded promptly with recollections of their youth and mention of a favorite Bible verse. Sometimes their letters said, "I will always remember when you . . ." or "You blessed me when . . ." I saved their letters in a special box, decorated with ribbon and antique lace. "Someday I'll show these letters to my grandchildren," I said.

If your child can't think of things to write about, provide him or her with suggestions such as:

What books are you reading?

How do you celebrate birthdays?

Have you taken any trips?

Tell me about your pets, your best friends, and your family.

What is your favorite subject in school? Your least favorite?

What does your home look like?

What interesting things are happening in your community?

What do you want to be when you grow up?

We are not suggesting that your child reach out to a stranger. Instead, encourage him or her to use letter-writing as a way to build stronger friendships with friends or family members. Has a friend or neighbor moved away recently? Use letters to stay close. Do grandparents or cousins live far away? Stay in touch with frequent notes. Unlike emails and text messages, the written notes can linger and remind your child of special people in his or her life.

Adapted from "Writing Letters With Children" by Rhoda Preston, Exploring Faith With Families; copyright © Cokesbury.