Help Your Child Connect to God and His Word—6 Easy Steps

Morgan Farr has four children. She homeschools them and teaches them the Word and ways of God. In this Parenting UPGRADE, she explains how she helps connect her children to God, and how the Lord used a simple question to help her examine her own heart.

"Kids ask the craziest questions," Morgan says. "As a mom, answering these questions can be a challenge."

Yes, I (Dawn) remember those questions so long ago from my two sons. Sometimes they made me dig for answers, and sometimes, their questions were either convicting to me personally, or they made me pondering some aspect of parenting. Morgan's story reminded me of one of those questions.

Morgan continues . . .

Recently my oldest son—who just turned seven—asked me what God was like.

At first, I was confused by his question. I started to say that no one knows what God really looks like.

Clearly not happy with my answer, my son tried again. He asked, when I “do my God time” in the morning, what is God like?

Explaining God to a child is an incredible thing.

When you know Christ as your Savior, it is almost overwhelming to explain what God has done for you. The only way I could explain what God is like was to say that God is pure love.

Sitting and thinking about that had such a profound impact on my heart.

I want to share how to help a child connect to God and His Word—to develop a heart for God—in Six Easy Steps by sharing how I explained God’s character to my seven-year-old. 

1. Set the Stage

If you are raising children with an understanding of Christianity, then they likely know about creation and the serpent.

It is our job to help our kids to connect the Bible to their lives.

I explained that we are broken sinners, separated from God (Isaiah 59:2). I talked about the sins that I struggle with, and explained that each person struggles with sin because of the fall.

2. Tell the Truth

We cannot get back to God on our own.

Telling children the truth about our separation from God helps them understand the significance. 

Romans 3:23 tells us we all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

While we do not want to shame children, helping them understand the magnitude of salvation starts with understanding of how powerless we are without Christ.

3. A Planned Provision

In his incredible mercy, God sent His only Son to die for our sins (John 3:16).

I explained to my son that God loved us enough to provide a way back to Him. This way back was not cheap or easy. In fact, it came at the cost of His Son’s life.

God loved us enough to make that sacrifice on our behalf.

What a miracle that is!

4. Secure in Salvation

Once we have accepted Christ and turned our lives over to Him, sin no longer defines us.

“There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1).

We are forgiven, washed in Christ’s sacrifice.

It is crucial when telling children about salvation that we explain that sin will still happen, because of the fall. The important thing is that Christ washes us clean, allowing us to be with God.

5. Grow for God

When we understand the magnitude of Christ’s death on the cross and the gift that God gives us each day, we cannot help wanting to know more.

2 Peter 3:18 tells us to:

“...grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever!”

This incredible, loving gift is then the catalyst for growth in our faith.

6. Live the Life

Once a person understands sin, the separation, the gift, and the growth, the final step is to live the life God calls us to.

God has different jobs and callings for each one of us. He equips us for these callings uniquely.

Colossians 3:23 says, “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men.”

It is important to take what we have been given by God and turn around and use it for His glory.

Finally, I explained to my son that the way I see God’s love is in the way that He draws us to Him. 

• The choice to get up and spend time in the Word is a way of living the life that God called me to.
• Homeschooling, teaching my children about Jesus, and loving my husband are all ways that I live the life God called me to.

The life God called me to is an example of His incredible love for me. I spend time with God because as I look back through my life I can see God’s incredible love for me.

I want to honor Him with my life and my service.

Adults can easily fall into the drudgery of everyday work. It can be hard to see how we are glorifying God when we are scrubbing toilets or whipping noses.

But, looking back at each of the steps, I realized that God was loving me each and every step of the way.

I want to help my children connect to God—and it is incredible to me that God used a question from my seven-year-old to remind me of the importance of honoring God with my labors. And He reminded me to turn my heart to Him.

What an incredible God we serve!

Which of the six steps speaks most to your heart? Which can you use today to help your child connect to God and His Word?

Morgan Farr is a Texas-loving, succulent-cultivating, book nerd and aspiring author. Stationed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, this Army wife is learning to train dogs, develop her four young children, and tackle homeschool life—all while moving all over the country. Morgan believes in integrity, authenticity, and grit. Although she writes for many different publications, you can almost always find Morgan’s most recent ramblings on her blog, "Musings by Morgan."

Graphic adapted, courtesy of Marina Abrosimova t Pexels.

Rest and Reflection Saturday

In this Easter UPGRADE, Dawn Wilson encourages us to prepare our hearts by thinking about the day before Easter—something she calls "Rest and Reflection Saturday."

I never really thought much about the Saturday before Easter.

Other than to sing the words, “Low in the grave He lay, Jesus, my Savior,” Saturday wasn’t in my religious tradition.

Now I understand an important truth. After Jesus declared His work for sinners "finished" (John 19:30)—on what we call “Good Friday”—He honored the Sabbath, just as He did at the beginning of creation.

In other words, on Saturday in the tomb, our Lord RESTED. Friday was a grueling, torturous day for our Savior. But …

On Saturday, the Lord rested from His work of providing salvation for us.

There was no additional price Jesus had to pay. “Jesus paid it all,” as the hymn says. Our sin was fully atoned for, "once for all."

G. K. Chesterton wrote in "The Everlasting Man" that this particular Sabbath Jesus spent in the tomb was the last Sabbath of the old creation.

The disciples, on Resurrection Sunday morning, celebrated "the first day of a new creation,” Chesterton said—as do WE!

I saw a fine art print of “Jesus in the Tomb,” part of James Jacques Joseph Tissot’s “The Life of Christ” series (1884-96)—for sale at this site.

The print made me think of the deep grief the Lord’s followers must have felt that Saturday as they laid him in the tomb.

We think the disciples had no way of knowing what the next day would bring,

but Jesus had told them what to expect in Mark 9:31.

I like to call the Saturday before Easter “Rest and Reflection Saturday.”

It’s a quiet, meditative bridge between two days—a time of pausing and thinking about:

• what Jesus finished on Friday,
• and what He would start on Sunday.

I’ve been thinking about the tomb of Christ. The body of Jesus remained in the borrowed tomb all of Saturday.

The tomb was a dark place. Tombs are place of darkness, death and sorrow.

On Rest and Reflection Saturday, I think about how dark my soul would be without hope in Jesus.

But the tomb is only part of the story. Sunday would come, and Jesus would rise from the dead.

God’s requirement for our salvation would be satisfied—Jesus is the "propitiation" for our sins—but also, our hope in Jesus would be satisfied.

Salvation and Eternal life with God would be our new reality if we placed our faith in what Jesus accomplished for us in the cross and resurrection—a reason for rejoicing!

Without the resurrection, we would still be in a very dark place.

Condemned in our sins, darkness would pervade every corner of our lives. (John 3:19-20;

But Jesus came to give us His light!

For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord. So live as people of light (Ephesians 5:8-9).

Many say they have faith in God, but without embracing the Gospel message (1 Cor. 15:1-4), our faith is “futile.” We would still be in our sins (1 Corinthians 15:17). But Christ was raised from the dead and we are alive in Him, victorious over sin and death.

The Christ-followers on that sad Saturday weren’t only grieving; they were fearful and in hiding (Mark 14:50; John 20:19). They were afraid of being arrested and killed. They desperately needed peace.

What likely went through the disciples’ minds and tormented their emotions?

• Surely the disciples reflected on their Lord’s crucifixion and the dashing of their hopes for a Messiah to conquer their enemies.
• Maybe they reflected on the betrayal of Judas.
• Perhaps Peter was still weeping over his own betrayal.
• Was John, the “disciple Jesus loved,” especially heartbroken?

How should WE reflect on these days?

• Do we understand our hopes would be dashed to ever deal with sin, our flesh and the devil without the death and resurrection of Jesus?
• How many ways have we betrayed the Lord who loved us enough to die for us?
• Are we heartbroken over our sin?
• Do we understand what Jesus did to transform our lives?
• Are we grateful for our salvation, or do we take it for granted?

While the disciples grieved, the enemies of Christ were busy on that Saturday. They remembered what Jesus had said about rising in three days (Matthew 27:62-66; John 2:19-21). They tried to prevent that by stationing a Roman guard at the tomb.

But miraculously, the next morning the tomb would be empty.

Nothing could stop the plan of God!

The Savior would accomplish the Father’s will (John 6:32-44)—God’s plans cannot not be thwarted. 

So today, Saturday:

Take time to rest. Take time to reflect.

And on Sunday morning, let the Holy Spirit remind you:

“Your Redeemer is Risen … He is risen indeed.”

Dawn Wilson, founder and President of Heart Choices Today, is a speaker and author, and the creator the blog, Upgrade with Dawn. She is a contracted researcher/reviewer for women's teacher and revivalist, Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth, at Revive Our Hearts, a blogger at TrueWoman.com, writes wiki-type posts at  Christianity.com, and is a regular columnist at Crosswalk.com. She and her husband Bob live in sunny Southern California, and Dawn has traveled with Him in Pacesetter Global Outreach. They have two grown, married sons, three granddaughters and a rascally maltipoo, Roscoe.

Graphic adapted, courtesy of Pexels at Pixabay.

Use Your 'Sanitizer' Today?

In this Spiritual Life UPGRADE, Dawn Wilson asks us to consider how God "sanitizes" us, and whether we are willing to come to him for that cleansing process.

With the Coronavirus, fear has gripped many hearts. Doctors urge people to wash their hands for at least 20 seconds with soap and water, and when that's not possible, to use hand sanitizer gels.

As I used my hand sanitizer yesterday while out in public, I had this thought:

"Everyone is so concerned about protecting themselves from the virus. Wouldn't it be wonderful if Christians were as concerned about protecting themselves from sin?"

Our heart, the Bible says, is "desperately sick" (Jeremiah 17:9))—desperately wicked and humanly beyond cure. We are all sin-sick from birth and cannot meet His holy, glorious standard (Romans 3:23),

Our heart before God is the issue.

We need to seek and know Him, and follow His plan for transforming our heart—first, in salvation, and second, in sanctification.

1. We Need to Be Cleansed in the Blood of Jesus.

This is all about our salvation and our position in Christ.

Again, no attempts at self-improvement work when it comes to our "sin problem" (Ephesians 2:8-9). It's not by "works of righteousness" (Titus 3:5-7) that we are cleansed in God's sight.

Our cleansing is all about God's mercy and grace!

It is the blood of Jesus that "cleanses us from sin" (1 Peter 1:19). We need to receive what He accomplished for us on the cross.

Old Testament Jewish saints followed God's strict laws for purity and cleansing (Isaiah 1:16), but they needed cleansing that went far beyond keeping the law.

God wanted His people to understand the state of their hearts.

They needed new hearts!

Their inability to keep all the law reminded them to look forward in faith to the coming Messiah. And the Messiah finally came.

Jesus did what no one else could do. He lived righteously, keeping all the law (Hebrews 4:15; 2 Corinthians 5:21)—allowing Him to be our sinless Savior (Romans 8:3-10; 10:3-4). He established a way to be right with God (Hebrews 9:13-14), and our conscience was cleansed so we can "serve the living God."

When God cleanses us in Christ—when we call on Jesus' name for salvation—we are pronounced ceremonially clean (Titus 2:14; 3:5). We are declared righteous in Him (Colossians 2:14; 2 Corinthians 5:21).

That is what happens at our moment of salvation. We are right with God. Our standing before Him is changed forever, because when He looks at us, He sees our Mediator, Jesus (1 Timothy 2:5; Acts 4:12). We have eternal life with God (John 3:16-18).

Our sins are "washed away" (Acts 2:21; 22:16)

Have you ever watched the joy of baptism? The person being baptized smiles and sometimes even jumps with joy in the baptistry! Baptism is a outward picture of what has already happened within us. In God's sight, we are now "whiter than snow" (Isaiah 1:18; Psalm 51:7).

2. We Need to Be Cleansed by the Word and Spirit

This is all about our continuing sanctification, or being made holy like Jesus—conformed (Romans 8:29) to His righteousness. If we say we are alive and abiding in Christ, we should be walking like Him, imitating Him (1 John 2:6; Ephesians 5:1; 2 Corinthians 5:17).

There are different kinds of contagious "viruses" that spread too easily among Christians—sins like greed, gossip, grumbling and a graceless spirit, to name a few!

This should not be.

Until we go to live with the Lord in eternity future—where our righteous Judge has already declared us justified (Romans 8:33)—we will still struggle with temptations and the ugly presence of sin in our lives on earth.

We need to be working out the salvation that God has already worked in, in Christ (Philippians 2:12).

Think about it.

A hand sanitizer does nothing for us when it sits in our glove compartment, pocket or purse. We need to take it up and use it.

We need cleansing DAILY!

We need to wash our hearts every day with the "sanitizing" power of the Word of God—reading it, meditating on it, delighting in it and memorizing it (Psalm 51:10; Psalm 119:9-16).

The Holy Spirit—who moved on men to write God's Word (2 Peter 1:20-21)—will continue to use scripture to clean up and protect our thoughts, attitudes, conversations and behavior (1 Corinthians 2:9-16; John 16:12-13).

As we saturate our lives with God's Word, we begin to have the desire to live out in our lives practically what God has already declared positionally (2 Peter 3:18; 1 John 3:3). We learn to walk in "the light" (1 John 1:7), and the power of Jesus' sacrifice continues to cleanse us. We are increasingly transformed in our thinking and conduct (Romans 12:1-2).

God has provided for daily forgiveness as part of that cleansing (1 John 1:9), and the indwelling Holy Spirit teaches us (John 14:26) how to walk in the Word, will and ways of Father God.

Have you used your spiritual "sanitizer" today? If not, why not?

Dawn Wilson, founder and President of Heart Choices Today, is a speaker and author, and the creator the blog, Upgrade with Dawn. She is a contracted researcher/reviewer for women's teacher and revivalist, Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth, at Revive Our Hearts, a blogger at TrueWoman.com, writes wiki-type posts at  Christianity.com, and is a regular columnist at Crosswalk.com. She and her husband Bob live in sunny Southern California, and Dawn has traveled with him in Pacesetter Global Outreach. They have two grown, married sons, three granddaughters and a rascally maltipoo, Roscoe.

The Perfect Wedding

Jeanne Cesena has written an unusual Marriage UPGRADE about weddings. Her goal is to get us to think rightly about our role as the Bride of Christ.

Jeanne begins with a story:

"My wife had an affair, she left me, and is now a prostitute. God told me to go get her, pay to bring her home so she can be the happy mother and wife. My reaction: Okay God where is she?"

I (Dawn) think some of you might recognize that story from the book of Hosea in the Old Testament.

Jeanne continues . . .

This is an example of how God accepts us as His bride. And how we, as the church, take our rightful place as the Bride of Christ for all eternity.

This is an example of The Perfect Wedding.

In Hosea, God gives us an example of our sins and His eternal commitment. No matter how many sins we have committed, He will accept us as we are today.

Let me summarize the verses about Hosea and his wife-to-be.

1. God told Hosea to marry a prostitute.

Her name was Gomer. They married and had three children and God let Hosea know he is not the father of the third child.

Not only did she cheat on him and have someone else’s child, she then left him and went back to being a prostitute!

2. God commanded Hosea to love her.

“... God ordered me, start all over: Love your wife again, your wife who’s in bed with her latest boyfriend, your cheating wife. Love her the way I, God, love the Israelite people, even as they flirt and party with every god that takes their fancy" (Hosea 3:1 MSG)

We see an example of Hosea paying a price for his bride.

In Heaven, we "hear" a similar conversation between God the Father and Jesus Christ. Jesus had to pay the ultimate price of dying on the cross for our sins.

3. Hosea obeyed God.

“I did it. I paid good money to get her back. It cost me the price of a slave. Then I told her, “From now on you’re living with me. No more being a harlot, no more sleeping around. Your living with me and I am living with you" (Hosea 3:2-3 MSG).

Hosea recommitted himself to their marriage. He renewed his wedding vows.

But his wife Gomer was in a whole different place.

Gomer must have felt shame and hurt over what she had done to her husband and children. Maybe she felt she was not a good wife and mother.

She felt she could not stay in a home environment, and she went back to what she knew—prostitution and sleeping around on her husband.

She must have felt more comfortable with the chaos in her life as a prostitute than trying to be a loving wife and mother. So she left. 

When Hosea found Gomer, she was standing in a place of sexual slavery and about to be sold. She had no life of her own. Hosea paid to get her back, as God told him to do. She was his wife.

We are Jesus’ bride. We already belong to our Creator. But He paid a price for our salvation.

Just as Gomer had to accept Hosea’s forgiveness, we must do the same. We must accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior, because He died and paid the price for the forgiveness of our sins.

There's nothing that should keep us from living a life as the "kids" of our Lord and King. We were created with a purpose for our lives. But sometimes we pretend to be the harlot. 

Be who you were created to be.

Take action—take your first steps to a godly, purposeful life. Work out your salvation and take steps to find and live your life with purpose.

Get ready to celebrate as The Bride of Christ at the Perfect Wedding!

What sin is god speaking to you about that is causing pain in His heart? How or what can you change to recommit your life to Him? What are your "wedding vows"—your commitment to the Lord?

Jeanne Cesena is a strong woman, her strength built through many trials and a growing reliance on the Lord she loves. Enduring threats, abuse, abandonment and psychological struggles, she has come to see the Lord as her hope and healing. She is married, has three children—including a "bonus baby" at age 40—and a powerful message to women about God's redeeming power.

Graphic adapted, courtesy of Pixabay.

Declare Your Allegiance

In America, the most common time we hear the word "allegiance" is when we say "The Pledge of Allegiance" to our flag. In this Spiritual Life UPGRADE, Dawn Wilson reminds us Christians have another—even more crucial—Pledge of Allegiance.

I recently read through the Apostle's Creed. Dating to about 400 AD, the creed was ascribed to Jesus' apostles. It's not something my particular church regularly reads or recites. But I wanted to read it and think about what it says.

Matt Chandler once said of the early church reciting this creed, "it was simultaneously their greatest act of rebellion and their greatest act of allegiance."

When the early church spoke those words, they knew they might face persecution or worse. While Rome declared Caesar lord (and dared anyone to deny it), Christians bravely stood against their culture and said, "No, Rome. JESUS is Lord."

There is much in our present-day culture—many voices—calling out for our loyalty and time. We need clear discernment to know our responsibilities toward our government and our Lord (Matthew 22:15-22).

We need to determine what matters for Christian life and growth, and more importantly, for the Kingdom of God.

We need to learn to spot unhealthy, unholy distractions, and then pursue biblical, right choices with purpose and passion—to "walk in wisdom" (Ephesians 5:15-17).

To declare or pledge allegiance is to give our loyalty or commitment to a cause or a person. For instance, one who wants to become an American citizen must swear allegiance to the republic.

Here are some truths I've learned about ALLEGIANCE to JESUS.

1. Allegiance to Jesus is more than mouthing loyalty.

Allegiance speaks of heart-felt loyalty, faithfulness, devotion and obedience. Perhaps this is why we put our hands over our hearts when we recite America's pledge.

I remember saying two pledges, the "Pledge to the Christian Flag" and the "Pledge to the Bible," as a little girl in a a group called Pioneer Girls. The idea of loyalty to God, His Kingdom, His people and His Word stuck with me over the years—even before I became a true Christian.

I had a growing sense of the cost of complete loyalty to God.

Later, I would learn Jesus said, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and then looks back is fit for the kingdom of God" (Luke 9:62); and Paul wrote about a man named Demas who forsook Paul and the ministry because of his greater love for the world (2 Timothy 4:10).

I knew there could be no sitting on the fence or wavering. Wavering would not please God. I needed to follow the Lord by faith (James 1:6; Romans 4:20).

2. Allegiance to Jesus is a decision.

In Sunday school, I sang, "I have decided to follow Jesus; no turning back, no turning back." Yet I didn't know the Lord in a personal way. I only knew a lot about Him.

In 1971, an evangelist confronted me with the terrible truth. I had acted the part of the Christian for many years, but I did not genuinely know Him. I felt deep grief with that realization and the heavy weight of my guilt.

I had mouthed my loyalty to Christ, but I lived like I belonged to the devil. The only "fruit" in my life was self-planted and generated.

I could hear Jesus saying, "Depart from me... I never knew you" (Matthew 7:21-23).

I was saying one thing and living another, and that dissonance led to spiritual chaos in my heart and life.

But once I trusted Jesus to save me from my sin and transform my life, all of those words and songs about allegiance came rushing back.

And then some time later, I heard the lyrics to a song that reminded me of the great cost that might be required if I pledged my loyalty to Jesus. (View a powerful video with the song—it made me weep—here.)

"I pledge allegiance to the Lamb with all my strength, with all I am. I will seek to honor His commands; I pledge allegiance to the Lamb."

3. Allegiance to Jesus is a lifestyle.

I decided I didn't want to be double-minded (James 4:8), toying with the enemy. I wanted to be clean before God. I knew I had to stop listening to Satan's suggestions. I had to stop believing the culture's lies. I had to live in light of eternity.

Allegiance—loyalty to Jesus—isn't just a concept; it's meant to be a lifestyle.

• It means taking up the cross of Christ, no matter the cost (Mark 8:34-35).
• It means boldness to declare the Gospel (Romans 1:16).
• It means obedience to the Lord in the power of the Holy Spirit (1 John 3:24).

Simply knowing who is in charge, the Sovereign Lord, has uncomplicated many of my choices.

I am to obey Him (Luke 6:46):

• immediately,
• joyfully,
• and without reservation.

Once a Christian declares allegiance to Christ, every day is a continuing surrender process of saying “Yes, Lord”—even if it is sometimes challenging. And that surrender gives us direction and peace.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve said, “You are Lord and I am not;” and each time I sighed, sensing the release of complete trust.

4. Allegiance to Jesus Means No More Rivals.

As I've become more like Jesus, bit by bit through the work of the Spirit of God, I've found  allegiance means no more rivals.

It's been disconcerting to discover big and little idols that compete for my loyalty to Christ.

• My food idol—Gluttony
• My money idol—being a Shopoholic
• My pride idol—"It's all about me."

Shall I go on? The enemy wants to sidetrack me with all sorts of idols.

But the Spirit keeps whispering, "Is Jesus Lord ... or not?"

We all have idols—our own private and public expressions: unhealthy pursuits, success without God, leisure, money and power, sexual appetites.

But when we declare our allegiance to Jesus as the Lord of all life—the Lord of OUR life—He desires to expose and conquer the power of every idol that claims HIS rightful place to rule us, bless us and delight our hearts.

Have you declared your allegiance to Jesus? Do you know Him, love Him, and desire to serve and obey Him as Lord?

What are some of your "rivals" for His rightful place in your heart?

Dawn Wilson, founder and President of Heart Choices Today, is a speaker and author, and the creator of three blogs: Heart Choices Today, LOL with God and Upgrade with Dawn. She is a contracted researcher/reviewer for Revive Our Heartsand a writer at Crosswalk.com. She and her husband Bob live in Southern California and have two grown, married sons, three granddaughters and a rascally maltipoo, Roscoe.

Graphic adapted, courtesy of Robin Higgins at Pixabay.