DAYS OF SUMMER a mommy and me devotional

Transcription

1 7 DAYS OF SUMMER a mommy and me devotional NANCY HICKS

2 ABOUT NANCY HICKS Nancy Hicks (M. Theology) is a Bible teacher, speaker, and on-air talent (former on-air spokesperson with QVC). Her passion is to raise up women into their callings in Christ. She and her husband, Cam, live in the Greater Philadelphia Area. They have two grown sons. Don t miss out on other encouraging teaching from Nancy! Sign up for her weekly devotional - nancyhickslive.com/subscribe Like her page on Facebook - /nancyhickslive Follow her on Instagram 7 Days of Summer: a mommy and me devotional 2018 Nancy Hicks Live You are permitted and encouraged to duplicate this resource as many times as you wish and distribute it in as many forms as you wish, as long as you do not alter the content in any way or charge others for a copy without explicit written permission. For permissions, please info@nancyhickslive.com

3 TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction Day 1 - You re Loved Day 2 - Laugh and Play Day 3 - God s Command Day 4 - Give It a Try Day 5 - Work with Me Day 6 - Rest a While Day 7 - Praise Him!

4 INTRODUCTION He gently leads those that have young Isaiah 40:11 DEAR MOM, Summer s here! The flurry of the school year has passed and it s time to slow down a bit. Slow down?, you may be thinking. The kids are home! I ve got stuff for them to do - places to go, people to see, lessons and clubs and camps. I m juggling all this on top of my own work and deadlines. Yes. In this rat-race of a world, you may find yourself feeling, or even being like that. But, you re reading this and that tells me something about you, dear woman: You know that time is precious and that it s here, and quickly gone. You know that it takes time to have a real relationship. You know that you need to pull back a bit and taste the summertime with your child(ren). This seven-day devotion is for you and your young one(s). I offer it as a connecting point - a simple time to build into your relationship with your child(ren) and God. Trust me, you will blink and those little ones will be grown. 4

5 Relationship is central to God. Good for you, dear mom, for seeing the eternal value of investing in the relationship between you, your child, and Him. God s grace, strength and love upon you as you take the time. ~ Nancy HOW TO USE 7 DAYS OF SUMMER: For seven days (in a row or not): 1. First, take a moment to read the short encouragement that s just for you. 2. Then, pull your little one(s) up close and enjoy a little time together. 3. Pray. Ask God to help you all connect with Him. 4. Use the devotional and open your Bible to the passage you ll be reading with them. OR have them open and find it with you. Sure, you can use a Bible app, but show them the scriptures open so they can read or at least see where you get the biblical text. GOAL: Build relationships. Listen when they answer a question honestly. This is great information for you. Take it in. Hear their hearts. Offer your own and remember: God s in it all. 5

6 - DAY 1 - YOU RE LOVED! We love God because He first loved us... 1 John 4:9 FOR MOM: 1 Way to go! You re putting first things first: You re loving God and the precious one(s) He s entrusted to you. Even if you don t feel like it, you are. By sitting down and pulling them up close to read this today, you re loving God and them so well. MOM AND ME: Question #1: How do you know Mommy loves you? (Examples: Does she tell you? Hug you? Make food for you? Explain things to you?) Mommy does love you! She loves you and so do a lot of other people. Question #2: Who else loves you? Jesus loves you! In fact, God loves you so much that He sent Jesus. If you want to know what God is like, you look at Jesus. Look at Jesus: Read Mark 10:13-16 People were bringing little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them, but the disciples rebuked (scolded) them. When Jesus 6

7 saw this, he was indignant (angry). He said to them, Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it. And he took the children in his arms, placed his hands on them and blessed them. Question #3: What do we learn about God s love for us from this Bible reading? Here is what we learn: Everyone can come to God, especially kids! Jesus loves children and wants to bless (give good things to) them. ACTION: Draw a picture with Mom that shows God s amazing love. Be creative! OR act out the scene in Mark. PRAY: Jesus, I love you because you first loved me. You love me more than I know. Thank you. Amen. 7

8 - DAY 2 - LAUGH & PLAY When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing... Luke 15:25 FOR MOM: 2 Sometimes we forget to laugh and play. We re so busy being busy. Once a counselor my husband and I went to for a time told us, You guys are way too serious. Go climb a tree and have some fun. We took his advice. Literally. We moms can get so busy planning and parenting. Put the phone away and take pleasure in those kids! Kick back and be silly for a time. It ll feel so good and they ll love it! MOM AND ME: Question: What s one fun thing you want to do this summer? Having fun is God s idea! He loves us and wants to celebrate with us. Look at Jesus: Read Luke 15:23-25 Bring the fattened calf and kill it.*let s have a feast and celebrate! So they began to celebrate. Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. 8

9 This is a story Jesus told about a dad who celebrated and had great fun at a wonderful party he threw! Why? Because the father had been separated from his child, then got to be with him again. Jesus told this story (parable) to explain what God is like. God loves to dance! God loves to laugh and celebrate when He s with us - His kids! ACTION: Help your kids get their summer-fun ideas down on paper. Then do these things this summer. Idea: If they re a bit older, have them write down their ideas on BIG pieces of paper in BIG chubby markers. PRAY: God, I love that you laugh and have fun with me. Thank you so much! Amen. * If killing animals or eating meat is a problem for your family, explain: I know this sounds mean, but having and eating meat is a luxury and means party-time in most cultures. 9

10 - DAY 3 - GOD S COMMAND You are my friends if you do what I command... John 15:14 FOR MOM: 3 Following God s commands is a way of life. It provides protective boundaries and says, You re in charge. I m not. As moms with kids, we get to model the command/obey lifestyle they ll need their whole life with God. You Mom and/or Dad are in charge. The child is not. Any child who s in charge has a load too heavy for them to carry. Obedience is a loving, protective, joyful way of life. MOM AND ME: Question: When Mom/Dad asks you to do something, do you do it? Why? Why not? Obeying our parents helps us learn to obey God. When Jesus was spending some special time with His apostles (his original twelve followers) just before going back to heaven, he wanted to make sure the most important things were said just before he left. So, at dinner (the Last Supper) Jesus taught them an important lesson. Look at Jesus: Read John 15:

11 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love. My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Here is what we learn: Obeying God s commands means we stay (remain) in Jesus love. His love is like a protective covering. The main command is to love each other. In fact, loving God and loving other people are THE biggest commands God gave us. We want to obey them. ACTION: Think of someone who needs extra love today (Dad, brother/sister, new neighbor, friend, enemy). Show love to them in some way. (Visit, call, make a card, etc.) PRAY: God, I don t always want to obey Mom/Dad. Please give me an obedient, loving heart. Amen. 11

12 - DAY 4 - GIVE IT A TRY! Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus... Matthew 14:29 FOR MOM: 4 It takes guts and courage to follow Jesus. Cam and I had a son that melted down when he made mistakes. The action today is how we helped him overcome this issue. Making mistakes is part of life. If avoiding error and playing it safe is your chief goal, ask God to help you build your own courage, dear Mom. In the meantime, today, help your little one(s) take some God-ordained, courage-building steps. Today we start with sharing stories. MOM AND ME: Share stories of when you were afraid to do something, but you did it anyway. You just knew it was the right and courageous thing to do. God is always building our confidence and courage in Him. Look at Jesus: Read Matthew 14:25-29 Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified But Jesus immediately said to them: Take courage! It is I. Don t be afraid. 12

13 Lord, if it s you, Peter replied, tell me to come to you on the water. Come, he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. Can you imagine what it must have felt like for Peter to actually walk on water with Jesus? That s crazy! Peter is the only person who has ever done that. Here s what we learn: Jesus came to Peter. Jesus also comes to us today. Jesus tells us not to be afraid. By His power, we can do what he asks. ACTION: If you make a mistake today because you tried something new, celebrate the mistake with your family. You tried! PRAY: Jesus, thank you for helping me hear your voice to give it a try. Thank you for giving me courage. Amen. 13

14 - DAY 5 - WORK WITH ME Jesus said to them, My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working.... John 5:17 FOR MOM: 5 Get those little ones working! Small jobs for small ones, bigger jobs for bigger ones. You re not hurting them. You re nurturing a need that God gave to us before sin entered the world. We were made for meaningful work. MOM AND ME: Work is a good thing. It makes us strong. It helps us learn to cooperate and be patient with each other. It allows us to create and build. We get to strengthen our muscles and our brains. It feels really good to work sometimes. And sometimes it doesn t, but we do it anyway! Question: What work do you like to do around the house? What work do you NOT like to do? Work is a gift God has given to all of us. Even if you re so rich you don t have to work, God put a need and wish to work inside everyone. Look at Jesus: Read John 5:17 14

15 Jesus said to them, My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working. Jesus was talking to a bunch of people who were mad at him for working when they thought he should be resting. But he told them they were wrong in this case. (Someone was really sick and needed to get well right away.) What can we learn about work from Jesus? God works. Since we are created by God, and God made us like Him, we have been created to work. ACTION: Make a job jar together (a jar with Job Jar written on it.) On small pieces of paper, write down all the jobs around the house that happen on a regular basis (fold laundry, scrub toilets, sweep floor, clear dishes, etc.). Fold the small papers and put them in the Job Jar. Every day, pull one (or two) out and do the work. Mom will help if you need it. PRAY: God, please help me do my best work all the time. Amen. 15

16 - DAY 6 - REST A WHILE Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest... Mark 6:32 FOR MOM: 6 Rest is built into all creation (Genesis 2: 1-3). You work hard, so you re tired. You may not yet realize how important it is to model and instill rest in your kids. It is vital for their overall health: spiritual, emotional, physical, and for your own good health. Now pull them up close and help them learn the life-long gift of rest. MOM AND ME: Question #1: What happens when a car runs out of gas? Rest is just like that. It shows you re out of gas (or will be soon). Rest is a time for you to fill up your own imaginary gas tank! God actually created everything to need rest. Think about it: Every night we all need to sleep. Sunday (or maybe another day of the week) is a weekly break. Winter is a rest for trees, grass and flowers, even animals, like bears! Vacation is a time to rest with people we love. 16

17 Look at Jesus: Mark 6:30-32 The apostles (Jesus twelve original followers) gathered around Jesus and reported to him all they had done and taught. Then, because so many people were coming and going they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest. Wow! Jesus followers sometimes didn t even have a chance to eat! We can be busy like that sometimes, can t we? Question #2: What do we learn about rest from this Bible reading? Everyone needs to rest, especially busy people! Jesus cares for us so much, He wants us to rest with Him. ACTION: Close your eyes and take a deep breath in through your nose. Then let it out of your mouth slowly. That s called a cleansing air breath. It helps you rest. Do this whenever you need to calm down. It really helps. PRAY: Jesus, thank you for leading us to safe places to rest with you. Amen. 17

18 - DAY 7 - PRAISE HIM! I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth! Matthew 11:25 FOR MOM: We praise God for who He is. He is faithful. He is good. He is powerful. He is life. All of this - and a thousand other reasons - is why we praise Him. He is worth it! That s why no matter what happens in life (or how well things are going for you today), we can praise God it s about who He is. MOM AND ME: Today I praise God for: (List all the things about God that are terrific!) The Bible is full of praise for God! So is all creation. Everything about people was made to praise God - our hearts, our minds, our voices, even our arms and hands (clap, clap, clap!) and our legs that bend and jump. Praise is a full-body experience! Look at Jesus: Matthew 11:25 At that time Jesus said, I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. 18

19 Question: Why did Jesus praise God, His Father, in this verse? He revealed things to children but hid them from older smarter people. Jesus modeled praise! We want to follow Jesus in our praise. In fact, all summer long, no matter what happens: I make a mistake: I can still praise God. I get sick: I can still praise God. I feel lonely or afraid: I can still praise God. I feel happy and strong and adventurous: I can still praise God. God is always good and always praise-worthy. ACTION: Praising God is good for everyone. Pump up the music and praise Him! Some YouTube suggestions: from Kids Praise and Worship. (Steven Samuel Devassy) cbeeqqu9pzy6i3onzhfefsvr_w My Number One by Hillsong Kids A modern twist on The B-I-B-L-E 19

20 DEAR MOM, Way to go! Your love of God and those kids is more powerful than you know. Thank you for allowing me to share this time with you. ~ Nancy 20