All the Marbles Day 31

Do you wake up every morning excited about what God is doing in your family? Or, is getting up not the highlight of your day? Do you start by asking yourself, “what will love require of me today?”* Or, “I hope today is uneventful, and the kids do as they are told? “ Do your choices center around you or around the God who created you?

I’ll admit, I’m about 50/50 when it comes to how I am going to approach a day. When the girls were young, Lee traveled a lot, and we were going 50 million directions, just to survive a day was a success! Vacations were terrific times to refresh and “love more, ” but day in and day out was a struggle!

As you are with your children today (or tomorrow), my prayer is that you start fresh—full of joy and grace, even when nothing goes the way you planned! Look for times to pour into your children and disciple them, teaching them what it means to be a follower of Jesus. Dwell on the opportunity you’ve been given—then sit alone (in the bathroom, probably), pray, ask God for strength, thank Him for another day, and them go out and have “the best day ever!” Living a life for Jesus isn’t always easy; putting other's wants and needs above our own isn’t natural, BUT as a transformed believer, you’ve got help, just ask! Go and love well!

Disciplining your children (investing ”All the Marbles”) is a journey; the questions below are to spur on conversations with your children about being a disciple of Jesus. Adjust to their maturity level, BUT remember they are sponges, you walking and talking about what your belief lays the foundation, their world view, for all they will encounter in the years to come!

(1) Yesterday we talked about the 2 sections in our Bible the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament/Covenant) and the New Testament/Covenant (all about Jesus.) Remember, the Scriptures haven’t always been bound together in the book we call “the Bible.” Do you remember what the Hebrew people (also called Jews and Israelites) called their “Bible”? The TaNakh

(2) Discuss what the TaNaKh is an abbreviation for the three scrolls the Jewish prophets included in their Scriptures, the Torah, the Nevi’im, the Ketuvim.

(3) The Torah scroll contained the Writings of Moses. Look at your Bibles table of contents and show the children the books included in the Torah: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.

These five books are also called:

• The Books of Moses, because Moses is credited with writing/dictating them, except for the last chapter of Deuteronomy when he dies.

The Law, because they spell out the law given to the Israelites, God’s chosen nation for a tome and place (remember they are also called Jews, Hebrews)

• The Pentateuch, Pentateuch means 5, and they are the first 5 books in the Hebrew Scriptures.

Remember, the storyline of the Bible is God’s redemptive plan (how He is going to save us), starting with His creation of us in Genesis (the Torah) and ending with His return for us!

Tomorrow we will talk more about the TaNaKh and God's story being told!

If you are interested in a simple “journey guide” to discipling your children, sign up for a daily email and it will come straight to your inbox, “sign up“ button at the top of this screen.

Discipling is a journey, so don’t forget to start with Day 1. Even if you don’t use anything written here, use your Bible, and disciple your children!!! It is a great honor and our responsibility as parents!

I am praying for you and your family and this journey together!

*Andy Stanley quote