Monday, May 10, 2010

Family Worship from Guest Blogger....Bro. Scott Grisham

Scott and Anna Katherine Grisham have been a blessing to Trinity Baptist Church in their faithful service and their love for the people here! While we are certainly not looking forward to losing them, we are excited to see the way God is going to use them in their ministry in Vancouver, Canada as they help Bro. Jeff Phillips there. I am so excited that we, as a church, get to support their ministry and be a part of what is going on in Vancouver. I am thankful that Bro. Scott would be willing to share with us how he leads Family Worship in the Grisham household.....and keep their sweet family in prayer as they prepare to serve...

Now, Family Worship from Bro. Scott Grisham

“Be Careful, Jesus!”

Every night before we tuck our son in bed, we gather as a family in his room and pile on the bed to read a story from our Read and Learn Bible put out by the American Bible Society (thank you Wal-Mart-$14.99). Although we have a two and a half year old son and a 6 month old baby girl, we try to be consistent in our routine.

It’s all about the storyline of the Bible for us right now. Repetition. Repetition. Repetition. We are now on our 3rd trip through this children’s Bible (so thankful that nothing EVER gets old to a 2 year old) and we are trying to explain more to him each time through. We are teaching him basic truths: God created everything, Jesus is God’s son, Jesus had to die on the cross. Occasionally, we will read to him from one of our Bibles (he gets a kick out of this and usually listens better). So much of what we do is to show him the importance that we place on reading the Bible and praying. It’s not always easy and we would sometimes like to skip out, but we know that God will honor our efforts.

The following is an example of a typical night . It is one of our son's favorite stories that gets read almost weekly, per his request.

1.) Daddy reads Bible Story: Jesus Walks on Water
*Bible Verses: Matthew 14:22-23; Mark 6:45-52; John 6:16-21
Even though the passages are usually short, I get him to repeat some of the words that I read to keep his attention.

2.) Daddy and Mommy reinforce Truth
Example 1:
Text: “The men were terrified and started screaming.”
Daddy: “See, we don’t have to be afraid because God protects us.”

Example 2:
Text: “He looked like he was walking on the waves!”
Mommy: “God made the wind and the waves. Look at Jesus ! He is walking on the water!”
Our Son: “Be careful, Jesus!” (Because we got a good laugh out of that one the first time he did it, now he says that every time we read the passage.)

3.) Prayer Time
Daddy begins the prayer praising God, thanking God, and incorporating the night‘s passage in some form. We make it very simple so that they will know it’s something they can do too. Anyone who wants to pray during this time is welcome (never know what he will be thankful for or how long he will pray). Most of the time, he doesn’t want to pray, and we don’t make him. Sometimes he repeats my words, which is awesome.

4.) Song/Worship
This is the last step in the process because it also helps wind down. We usually let him choose the song - so we’re typically singing Christmas songs such as: “Silent Night”, “Away in a Manger“, or “Joy to the World”. We all sing together most of the time, except for the occasional request that only mommy sing. Can a 2 year old recognize a singer who is tone deaf?

After we put him down, we each spend a few minutes praying over both of them. Most nights we use the books, Praying God’s Will for My Son and Praying God’s Will for My Daughter, to pray specific scripture passages over them. This has been so rewarding already and is a great way to end the day.