Riverside Parents (and other adult types!)
I think we should call ourselves Boat Captains, or the Coast Guard, or Navigators or just plain Awesome.
We are two weeks into our new curriculum and things are going great. Not perfect. But pretty amazing. We are so blessed to have an amazing team of teachers dedicated to helping your child grow in God’s Word.
Amazing teachers who are coming along side you as you endeavor to raise your kids to love and follow Jesus. You guys are the real heroes! Let’s work together.
Every week your kids are spending an hour focused on learning true Bible Stories and important qualities of God’s character through super fun and engaging activities.
Your job (among others) is to take those seeds we planted and water them. Reinforce them through conversations and real-life application.
One resource to help you do this is the Take Home Sheet. Now let’s just be real here for a moment. I know that sometimes those take home sheets leave with the greatest intentions but somehow manage to get buried in the bottom of the “Bible Bag” or mom’s purse or fall into the abyss known as the floor of the car. How do I know this? Because I am walking right alongside you. Who could count the number of Sunday mornings I pulled the last three weeks of papers out of my son’s backpack as we headed to church. This is great news! It means, I have strategies.
Strategy 1: Don’t wait until the end of the service to get the paper. They are posted in pockets near the door, grab one after you drop off your kiddos and read it on your way up to the Sanctuary where you are free from monkeys swinging from your arms or pulling on your clothes. Or on your way back down.
Strategy 2: Challenge yourself to discuss the paper with your kids on the way home from church. Use it as a springboard for conversation. Skip the “ whatdidyoutalkaboutinRiverKids ?, Idunno.Ican’tremember.Ouch!He’ skickingme!” conversation. That’s it. Just talk with them on the 10 minute drive home or over lunch. Just that one conversation can reinforce what they’ve just learned, and open the doorway for them to come to you later with more questions or thoughts
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And Freedom: Some of your kids will carry their treasured paper safely home, then spend the next several hours doing every activity and begging you to join them. Awesome! Some of your kids will never again lay eyes on that paper and despite your attempt to bribe (I mean engage) them in some of the family activities will refuse to do them. That’s ok too! This is a tool not something to feel guilty about. Use it however works best for you. Just know that you can always find the main point of the lesson on that paper!
I have so many things I want to tell all of you, but I don’t want to overload you with information so I’ll say goodbye for now. Remember this week we’ll be at the Fort. We are in the process of revising our check-in system so be on the lookout for more information about that.
in closing, I’ll leave you with the knowledge that I am praying this verse for your kids.
Psalm 1:2-3But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law he meditates day and night. He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season, and whose leaf does not wither—whatever they do prospers.
Please pray for me, as I pray for you
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