crissycates.com

Living life on purpose.

Easy Verse Memorization: An Essential Tool for You and Your Kids

As a kid raised in an old Baptist church (we were there every time the doors were open), I’m pretty sure I was born knowing John 3:16 by heart. I remember being shocked when dating my husband and he told me he didn’t have that verse memorized. (What a heathen he is.) Having said that, I can’t say I continued on the path of scripture memorization as I grew older. I never grasped the value it holds until I became an adult and realized the impact of having those verses inscribed on my heart to guide me.

The Bible relays to us that memorizing scripture is kind of a big deal.

These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. Deuteronomy 6:4-9

I should not only be memorizing scripture myself, but also (and especially) be teaching my children to memorize scripture. If they don’t learn it while they’re young, they will miss out on the many blessings and comfort it provides. If it’s a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path (Psalm 119:105), we certainly should not rob ourselves and our children of such a tool.VIEW POST

Parenting On Purpose and For a Purpose

Are you projecting a bright future for your children?

Having the opportunity to project a positive future for our children is incredible. Knowing that I have the power to influence my kids’ beliefs about themselves that will shape the rest of their lives is great…and maybe a little weighty.

You see, the words we speak to our children become their inner voice. They will inevitably believe about themselves what we believe about them. They learn what we believe about them by both the words we say and how we treat them. There are some foundational truths that must be instilled in our children in order for them to have the best chance in life. Sure – they’ll likely survive without them, but we want so much more for our kids than simple survival, right?

They need to know they are loved no matter what.

Kids usually know they are loved, but so often they will test the boundaries of that love to see if it has limits. When they find consistent rules, loving and appropriate discipline, and genuine shepherding of their hearts (not just demands of outward obedience), children learn 1) that your love is not conditional, and 2) you are a trustworthy and unwavering support system. Whether or not these truths are established will determine the framework for your lifelong relationship with your children (and even their relationships with others). No pressure!VIEW POST

Seasons of Life: Finding Satisfaction in This Season

4 Ways to Discover Joy in All Seasons of Lifeseasons of life

Oh, how the seasons of life ebb and flow. Want or plenty, defeat or victory, restlessness or contentment, pain or joy…we’ve all been there and back again! Even the Bible acknowledges this truth: “There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under the heavens,” Ecclesiastes 3:1. I have often found myself looking forward to seasons to come or reflecting longingly on seasons past. I bet you already know this is a very dangerous place to be! Discontentment, anyone?

I am currently in a very busy season (can I get an AMEN?)! Three young kids (each in their own unique seasons), a very busy husband, and myself working in the home and from home, all create a wide range of responsibilities, joys, and stressors. There are many days of exhaustion in which I’m left desperately wishing for more or less of one thing or another. It’s imperative that we learn to find satisfaction in each and every season because this life waits for no one. The clock is ticking and the days are passing. There is joy to be found in the busiest, most boring, best, worst, happiest, and even saddest of seasons. Don’t miss it. VIEW POST

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