Fasting: Habits of a Child's Heart

Another habit:  Fasting from  Habits of a Child's Heart:  Raising your kids with the Spiritual Disciplines by Valerie Hess and Marti Watson Garlett.

I have fasted for brief times in my life.  I have seen a peace in it and how it is a way to humble ourselves before God in worship.  I would like to try to do this with more intention.  Fasting is typically done by giving up food for a period of time.  Of course we can fast in other ways.  Fasting from Facebook is one that I see people doing today or maybe it's giving up caffeine.  The interesting thing about fasting from food is that so many of us do use food as a replacement for something lacking in our lives or a way to deal with stress.  By fasting from food (for a short period) - something that we do need (we don't need Facebook) we have to look to God when we would normally just eat.  If we are stressed, instead of eating  ice cream we can pray - a much better response to stress anyway. 

Now I love tea, but I don't need tea.  It is my little "sereni-tea" during the day among family chaos.  I could fast from tea, and I have at times.  But I also like the idea of having my cup of tea in a quiet time with my prayer journal.  I usually pray and ask God if he is asking me to fast before I do.

Anyway, there were several ideas in this chapter of how to share this discipline with your children. 

Maybe you can give up sweets or snacks for a day or two or more.  I like the idea of putting some Bible verses in a cookie jar in your kitchen and when you are feeling like you need a little sweet treat, pull out a card from the cookie jar of Bible verses and see what sweet truth God may have for you.

I like the idea of fasting (if you can call it that) from complaining.  Every time we feel like we want to complain we give it to God and replace it with a blessing.

Have you fasted with your family?

Prayer: Habits of a Child's Heart

 

For February we read chapter two on Prayer from  Habits of a Child's Heart:  Raising your kids with the Spiritual Disciplines by Valerie Hess and Marti Watson Garlett.  It has been a great way to move into the Lenten season.  Prayer has been so central to my faith and relationship with God.  I have kept a prayer journal since I was a teenager.  It is my "Ebenezer" of sorts - a marking of God in my life.  I have been able to see how God has been working in my life and answering ALL my prayers.  I am in awe and amazement any time I think of it all.  Seeing His faithfulness in my life in the past gets me through the times when it is hard to see what is going on.  It has built my trust when I am in a wilderness or when I cannot see ahead of me or understand my circumstances.

 

Anyway, I only want the same prayer life or even better for my children.  I try to pray with them regularly and spontaneously.  I encourage them to record in some way God in their lives.  This chapter has many suggestions of encouraging and sharing the prayer habit in your and your children's lives.  Some ideas include:  a prayer "rule" (a regular time of prayer whether we feel like it or have anything to say or not), a prayer journal, memorizing prayers, and more.

 

How do you pray as a family?  How do you encourage your child's prayer life?

 

I feel prayer is so central to our faith.   I am hoping to share more prayer resources and books over the next couple of weeks that have really shaped our prayer life in our family.  Do you have any recommendations?

Habits: Trying to be Soft Noodles

We were talking about Meditation - our spiritual disciple that we are focusing on this month.  The kids really liked the example about how meditating on the things of God softens our hearts like pasta in boiling water.

We are memorizing:  May me meditation be pleasing to him, as I rejoice in the Lord.  Psalm 104:34.

Would you like to join us this year as we focus on Habits of a Child's Heart?  Each month we will focus on a different spiritual discipline using the book Habits of a Child's Heart:  Raising your kids with the Spiritual Disciplines by Valerie Hess and Marti Watson Garlett.

Habits of a Child's Heart

I'm reposting this because I am trying this again this year.  We just got too distracted last year ...

I wanted to share a book, Habits of a Child's Heart:  Raising your kids with the Spiritual Disciplines.   I've used it years ago with my older kids, and I am planning on using it again this year.  It has twelve chapters which makes it perfect to focus on one habit a month as a family.  The book also has practice and teaching suggestions for different ages of children.

Chapters include:  Meditation, Prayer, Fasting, Study, Simplicity, Solitude, Submission, Service, Confession, Worship, Guidance, and Celebration.

So, this month we will focus on Meditation.  I will meditate on your precepts and consider your ways.  I will delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word.  Psalm 119:15-16.

An example to share about meditating in God's Word is using tea.  Brew tea with your children and talk about "how we are the hot water and the Word of God is the tea bag.  The longer the tea soaks in us, the more we become stained with the likeness of God."  Then use a tea bag as a book mark in your Bible for the rest of the month.  Of course, I love tea and my kids know this, so this is a perfect way to share this discipline with my children.

This seems like a great way to start the new year!