I *heart* You!


Ahh February ... the month all about love. Cue all of the red hearts, baked goods, candy, and picking out valentines with your children for their classroom party. Can’t forget the conversation hearts, am I right? Even though they are STILL super “chalky” tasting, it’s just not a true Valentine’s Day without them. The word LOVE is everywhere I look and I can’t help but wonder what kids think when they hear the word “love”. We often say phrases like, “I LOVE this song!” or “I love this meal!” or “I love you!” as they leave a room or come in to ask you for one more snack.

But when it comes to the love of our God, do our children really know how to receive and recognize that in tangible ways? What does it look like to tell our kids about a God who loves them? God’s ultimate showing of love for us was when He sent His son, Jesus to die for our sins, be buried and rise again so we could be in relationship with Him! The Bible tells us in John, chapter 3 verse 16 that, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” If that doesn’t emulate love, I don’t know what does!

Our hopetown staff wants you to have some really great resources to share some ways you can show love to your kids. These are simple, fun and a great way to end the day with an “I love you!” to those little eyes looking at you.

  • Be encouraging and identify something you love about your child or ways in which you are thankful for them. Each day in February, tape a heart with a quality that you love about your child on their door! Check out the link here: https://balancingmotherhood.com/valentines-day-inspirational-heart-project/

  • While you are filling out valentines for your child’s classmates, friends, family members, etc. pray for each one receiving a valentine; that they might know that God loves them too!

  • Make valentines for those around you (teachers, life group leaders, garbage collectors, postal workers, etc.) as a way to say thank you! You can show God’s love by recognizing how hard they work with the talents they have and how much you appreciate them.

  • While on the way to school, around the dinner table, during errands, etc. have your family brainstorm ways to show God’s love to others. Encourage the children to pick one each week to carry out! Showing God’s love can go a long way and is great practice for children to look outward in a world where most people look inward.

So as you open one more chocolate bar or wrapped Valentine candy, take a minute and tell those around you that you love them and most importantly, Jesus loves them!

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Back 2 School...On 2 Success

Image
Ahhh the joys of summer! Late nights of family fun, rhythms change, routines are more laid back, and all the great memories are made - your social media can prove it! Bedtime? Who needs it! Extra cookies? Of course! And then as quickly as summer started - it’s over! All of the sudden beach balls, beach towels, swimsuits and grills are replaced with #2 pencils, glue sticks, notebooks and the tall tower of school supply lists from every school in the district! Don’t panic! We’ve gathered a few tips and tricks to help you take a deep breath and swing into a successful start to school: The week before school - move bedtime back 15-30 minutes so bodies can get back into a rhythm of getting a good night’s rest INSTEAD of being up with the owls. The same can be said for waking up early. So you don’t have to LITERALLY pull your kid out of bed, slowly begin to get up 15 minutes earlier, then 20 minutes, etc. to the desired time. That way w
Read more

Does your 2020 need a reboot?

2020 has been off to an interesting start. While scrolling through social media the other day, I saw this post:  "Have we tried unplugging 2020 waiting ten seconds and plugging it back in? While I laughed, I also agreed. 2020 has been one for the books...and it's only March! We are seeing anxiousness everywhere. Viruses, frantic news articles   about elections, videos   of   worldwide events, conversations,   and   social media.   All of these avenues are bombarding our thoughts, actions and conversations. It can be extremely overwhelming to parents and caretakers as we navigate these waters because the conversations are happening in our schools, kid's friend circles - everywhere. Then I remembered, I am the one who shapes my children's reality.  Are there scary things going on in our world? Yes. Can it feel overwhelming? Absolutely. But when I turn to the one who MADE the world, I can direct my focus and even more importantly my children's focus to th
Read more

My Granite is in Heaven.

Image
If you’ve watched the HGTV channel at all you’ll see couples looking for houses either stateside or overseas. I don’t know about you, but when they state their budget and their occupation, something just doesn’t add up. Like this: Stop. Is this for real? Anyone else curious as to how in the world they make that happen? What memo did I miss? Now don’t get me wrong, the Lord has allowed my family and I to live in a nice house, in a nice neighborhood, but nothing even remotely close to $900,000. It made me stop and think: What’s my treasure in? What do I desire? The Bible tells us in Matthew, chapter 6 verse 21, that where our treasure is directly links to where our heart is. Gut check. Am I putting stock in shiplap, distressed furniture, quartz or granite countertops (because ALL the shows say they are the most durable and easy to clean), the 6 beds with 4.5 baths and a bonus room? OR am I completely sold out to raise these little hum
Read more