This Friday we start reading the Mark Gospel. This is the perfect time to either continue what you have been doing with Matthew or jump in and join us for the first time. If you haven’t picked up our booklets on Easter Sunday, please get your Mark and Mark Family Guide this Sunday at church. We’ll have both available in both the Sanctuary and the Education Building. We will also continue posting daily takeaways and questions here online. Happy reading!
We know reading the Bible with kids every day might seem overwhelming, so here is one family’s experience. A guest post by a Mungarian Kathleen Vaughn.
Full disclosure – 2019, for me, has been a season of faithfulness to daily reading, but it has definitely not always been easy. In fact, when Andrew said “cut your losses and jump back in” in 2018, he was talking directly to me. I certainly struggled to find the time and when I did (early morning seemed to be the only time – if not then, it didn’t happen) I COULDN’T STAY AWAKE?!!
When the Matthew book came out and the reading was “short” and the weekends were “off”…I rediscovered my confidence. It was something I could be successful in! Even then, I needed accountability…and since “I am the parent”…I created accountability by using my kids! Not sure what that says about me, that I can’t seem to find motivation to read scripture daily for myself? But since I know it is good for my kids…I can do it for them. Does it matter the motivation God uses?
I had a good example. I have distinct memories of my parents waking my brother and me up early during middle-school/high school, making us come down to their room and reading the Daily Walk Bible as a family. My mom had hot chocolate for us and we would crawl up in their bed. Idealistic picture painted there, but I remember complaining and being tired and falling asleep most mornings. Even the best laid plans…
Therefore, my goal was not perfection when we started Matthew in January, just intentionality with my kids and faithfulness to read daily and we’d see what happened.
So, this is what it looks like – The Mathew book stays in the boys’ room, there is a chair in there for me to sit, and that albatross-of-an-iPhone with its flashlight is never far from reach – so, clearly, we are set up for success! I wake up the boys at 6:30am by going into their room with the flashlight on my phone, I don’t turn on the lights and I don’t make them sit up. They have to give me some indication of awake-ness and then we begin. My initial intention was to ease them into it. My grand plan was for them to eventually come to the kitchen table with hot chocolate so I could confirm that they were awake, alert and engaged. We never evolved to that because the plan we started with worked. They listen, they ask questions, they answer my questions. There is something sweet about them waking up to scripture as I read to them, over them. I also like the coziness of the dark.
Are they getting great theological truths imprinted on their soul? Are they fully awake and engaging every time? Is there a better way to do it? Maybe, no, yes?
What this season of daily reading has done for the Vaughn family:
- Mom starts her day with scripture.
- Beckett and Scout start their day with scripture
- We have created a habit that the boys can build on and remember when they are out of our nest.
- There is a stake in the ground now – Daily Scripture reading is important. It takes intentionality and dedication. We can be successful.
Scout who is six, typically asks,” What did Andrew say?” which is my prompt to see if Andrew wrote a blog post about the reading. Beckett has looked over at me during BIG church and said,” We read that!” And one morning, Beckett had to get up early to study for a spelling test, so the routine was broken. Scout said, as we were walking out the door for school: “Mom we did not read the heaven book!?”
I am going to call that success.
Munger Kids 