"Nathan, what are you doing? It’s
time for bed. Nathan put that game away; it’s time to leave for
school. Put that up Nathan and go brush your teeth." Nathan got a
hand-me-down android phone from his dad. There’s no plan for
texting or actually using the phone, but he can play games, read and
listen to music. Since he got it a couple of months ago, games are
what Nathan has had his eyes and fingers glued to as often as we
would let him. However, when I have asked him the above questions for
the last couple of weeks, he is actually reading the Bible on his
phone. I feel a little guilty and allow him to finish before he
starts his task. He asked me to load the Bible App two weeks ago.
He started two plans, “The Book of Daniel for Kids” and “The
Children’s Guide to Easter” and reads them every day. How
awesome!
Nathan has been saved for nearly two
years now. I have wondered lately when he would begin to “own”
his walk with the Lord and determine to seek God for himself. I
encourage Bible reading, scripture memorization, and we do nighttime
devotions with our children. In my heart, I want them to learn to
seek God without being prompted. I have been so delighted to realize
that at not quite 9 years old, Nathan is beginning to read and study
the Bible own his own. Yeah!
Will he get behind? Maybe. Will he
skip a day? Probably. But he started each plan and is doing them on
his own. One thing about Nathan though, is that his is very
methodical. Since this is a daily reading, he is more likely than I
am to stick with it every day.
So, what have I learned through this?
Regardless of what it looks like or feels like sometimes, every
effort to help them grow spiritually is worth it. My kids are
developing spiritually. Their hearts want to seek God and know more
about him. I couldn’t be more proud of Nathan. I also learned,
once again, to give my kids the benefit of the doubt. Just because
Nathan looked like he was doing something mindless like playing a
video game, didn’t mean he was. He was being a spiritually
disciplined Christian.
