ANOTHER SNEAK PEAK! Christ Walk Kids is Coming Soon!

It is getting closer and closer to the moment where Christ Walk Kids will be released.  I am so stinking excited for my next project.  :)

Here is another excerpt from from Day 22 of the book to share with you and your kids!

Day 22: Take Care of Your Friends

Biblical Big Idea: He denounces his friends for gain, and his children’s eyes fail. ––Job 17:5

We are supposed to love our neighbors as ourselves. Our friends are our neighbors. Our friends, especially ones we click with for a lifetime, will be those that hold us up through the storms of life. My friends are my “posse.” They are the people I talk to when I am not sure what my problems are and to see how they have handled similar situations. My friends have my back. We jokingly call this, “We are Groot.” Groot, from Guardians of the Galaxy, takes care of his friends. Groot wraps his friends in his deep roots to protect them from danger. Groot also comes back to life because his roots are strong and his relationships with his friends go deep. Groot has his friends’ backs. Together, the Guardians are far stronger than if they were acting apart. 

To have good friends, you first need to be a good friend. Good friends build you up. They do not tear you down. Similarly, you should build your friends up. Help them make good decisions, just as you are learning to make good decisions. Be each others Groot. Groot is strong because his roots grow deep. Your friendship will grow strong as your roots grow deep with each other. Friends can last a lifetime if they are the right friends. They are the sorts of people that you can pick up a conversation with after ten years, and it is as though the initial conversation never ended. Lifetime friends are those whose love continues to grow no matter how far apart they may be.  Lifetime friends are God's gift to us. Your friends should not lead you down a path of self-destruction. If your “friends” are urging you to do things that do not show love to yourself, the people around you, or your parents, they are not real friends. Friends love one another.

Taking care of our friends shows the covenant of God’s love for us with one another. It shows love to ourselves, to one another, and to the world around us. Having good friends and being a good friend teaches us the discipline of how we should treat other people. Good friends show forgiveness, kindness, support, love, and caring. These are all things we should be cultivating not only for our friends and family but also for everyone around us.

Things to think about:

1.      How am I a good friend?

2.      Do I have a good friend?

3.      What do I think makes my friendships special?

4.      Do I talk with my friends about God? Would I like to?

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SNEAK PEAK: Christ Walk Kids!

It is the season of Lent and I wanted to share with you all a chapter from the "Christ Walk Kids" book coming out from Church Publishing, Inc in Fall of 2016.

In this chapter, we discuss with tweens and teens the meaning of Lent and the implications of the season as a child of God.

Enjoy!

Day 14: What is Lent, Anyway?

Biblical Big Idea: He was in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan. He was among the wild animals, and the angels took care of him. ––Mark 1:13

Lent is a season during the church year that comes before Easter. Lent reminds us of the time in which Jesus went away from his disciples to go into the wilderness to fast (not eat or drink) for forty days and forty nights while focusing on prayer with God. Many people much smarter than me have debated exactly how Jesus survived for forty days and forty nights without food or drink. I do not need that level of specific understanding of what happened back then. I am comfortable with simply having faith.

When I read this passage, my understanding is that Jesus separated himself from the world for a long time, denying his human needs in order to focus on his spiritual needs and his relationship with God. During Lent, Christians (that includes me and you) are called to be more like Jesus during this time. This is one reason that Christ Walk makes a good Lenten discipline.

Different people have focused on becoming more like Jesus in many different ways. Some people give things up during Lent (sweets, bread, soda, arguing, whining, fighting) and other people take on new habits that they feel draw them closer to God (studying the Bible, working in a homeless shelter, doing a good deed each day, praying, walking, running, meditating). All of these habits make ourselves more like Jesus and thus closer to God. All of these are Christ Walk “miles” and activities.

In the Christ Walk program, we choose to walk steps and take on different activities that represent our relationship with God as a part of our journey. You may do this during Lent or during some other time of the year. Anytime is a good time to be more like Jesus. It does not only need to happen during Lent. What does need to happen is that you need to choose habits to focus on and improve that will instill discipline in your life that bring you closer to God.

Things to Think About:

1.      What’s a discipline?

2.      What are some disciplines I can take on that bring me closer to God?

3.      What are some habits that I need to give up in order to get closer to God?

4.      How does it make me feel to give something up for a long period of time?

5.      What do I think was on Jesus’ mind when he was in the wilderness?

A Note to Parents:

Christ Walk Kids  covers many topics related to health and spirituality: physical exercise, nutrition, sex, drinking, drugs, praying, lying, stealing, bullying, and many others.  I did not write the book for kids to read in a vacuum.  I wrote the book as though I were talking to my own children with the hope that it would open up honest dialogue between my child and me.  I hope you will also read the book with your children) and go on a journey with them that helps to build a foundation of healthy choices: mind, body, and spirit.  I think having an open dialogue about any subject with our children is the key to understanding what is going on in their brains and their lives.  This book is how I would talk to my kids.  It may not be how you would talk to yours, so again, include yourself on their journey and share your own thoughts and feelings on the topic.  You may be surprised at the discussion the topics generate.  Be open; listen actively; and no matter what you hear, love your child anyway.

You may not agree with everything I wrote.  That's fine, just talk about those thoughts and feelings with your child and you will be building a spiritually fit relationship with your son or daughter that doesn't shy away for their spiritual and physical and mental development.  It takes a tribe to raise children.  We are all in it together.  #christwalk.


~~Love, Anna