Bible LEssons in our home

Last week on Instagram I shared different resources that our family uses to learn more about God, Church History, and instituting personal Bible time. In this post I will go into detail how we incorporate all of the resources into a homeschooling week. But before I begin, I want to remind you that it's always wise to start with one thing if this is new in your home. If you haven't been intentional about Bible Lessons, or personal Bible time, or even learning more about Christian History, it's ok to choose one thing to start with, and slowly, maybe every term or semester, adding more. 

What I think is the most important and sometimes can be the most difficult to implement, is a personal, quiet time with the Lord. For you and for your children. I love the verse in Mark that tells us what Jesus did before He met with the world - 
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"And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed." Mark 1:35

Let's start with YOU, and with me. The most important thing of the day is to start your morning with Him, so that He can empower, encourage, uplift, and help you get through your day. Maybe your day will be easy, but maybe your children will challenge you in a way you haven't prepared for yet. If you
start your morning with Him, He will help you through all hard things.

I like to wake up before my children and sit down with my Bible, a notebook, and a devotional. At a minimum, a Bible is all you need. I enjoy reading chronologically, so I'm currently reading through Daniel. I read a chapter and try to record at least 1 verse or thought in my notebook. If you're new to Bible reading, trying read just a section, a few verses, and just stop and allow yourself quiet time to think about what God is telling you. Being quiet and still, and listening to the Holy Spirit, is a very special time for me in the morning, when my thoughts are fresh and my to-do list hasn't been looked at yet.

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I like to end my Bible time with reading from a devotional that follows the Biblical calendar year. The Voice of the Lord, edited by David Rudolph, has really been beautiful in deepening my understanding of the Biblical year, the historical events that happen on each day, and the reminder of God's feasts and cycles of the moon. A devotional isn't necessary, the Bible alone will provide you with a day's meal of spiritual food, but I like to add this to my morning and I have been blessed by it in many ways. Another liturgical year devotional that is based on the Christian calendar is Living the Christian Year: Time to Inhabit the Story of God by Bobby Gross. ​

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I also believe that once a child is able to read independently, they should be encouraged to established their own personal time with the Lord before they start their day. So time to time, because children forget, I have to remind them to start with God, even before breakfast, and when they do forget and start other things, then I just encourage them to stop what they are doing and meet with God before they do anything else.

​Recently, I was introduced to the ESV Scripture Journals, and these individual books of the Bible have been an answer to prayer! Many children, including my own, are easily overwhelmed when they are given the full Bible filled with 66 books! They have a hard time knowing where to start, and are overwhelmed by just how much there is to read. But these scripture journals are beautifully written, with friendly font, and a space to journal, should your child wish to do so. 

I see value in journaling, so I do encourage my children to either record their thoughts, or copy a verse that spoke to their heart that morning. If your child has not started quiet time with God, skip the journaling part until they are in a routine of simply reading. They don't have to read a lot. I encourage mine to either read a section of a chapter, or 1 chapter. Then stop and think what God has spoken to you, and record your thoughts/a verse if they are ready for that. I let them choose which book of the Bible they would like to read, and that becomes their personal book. Eventually, they will each have their own copy of the entire set.

If your student isn't ready for a book of the Bible yet, consider having them read The Child's Story Bible by Catherine F. Vos. This children's Bible is well written and holds true to the Word of God.

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Another layer to learning about God in the home is teaching your children about the Bible. Reading with them, having discussions, and explaining the historical context and events at that time, will deepen your child's understanding of God and how perfect He is, orchestrating each and every event in history. Charlotte Mason recommended J. Paterson Smyth to be used for students in Forms 1+2. We have chosen to use these Bible Commentaries for our entire family, so I do include my Form 3+4 children in these Bible Lessons. You can find these books HERE in my Bible Study List. It is important to read the introduction to these commentaries before you begin because these books are for YOU, not the students. They are meant to help you prepare the lesson, not to directly read from it. Of course there will be a time when I do read an excerpt from the commentary, but it is not to be read from each time. There are 24-27 lessons in each commentary, and this will take us a full school year to complete because there are mornings that we have co-op or we take trips and we do not get to do a Bible Lesson on those days.

These Bible Lessons usually take 20min and are always the first lesson, the CHIEF lesson, of the morning. I prepare the lesson usually on the weekend. I have a journal that I write out notable parts from the commentary, and that helps me to talk to the children, and not read directly from the commentary. I don't share everything from the commentary. There might be some theological differences that were written by this author 100 years ago, but the depth and richness of these commentaries are simply too wonderful to skip out on. We start our lesson with the scheduled reading from the Bible, as indicated in the commentary, followed up by narration from one or two children. Most readings/narrations will usually take the entire 20 minutes, so we will stop there for the day and continue with the lesson the following day.

Next comes discussion. Each lesson in the commentary is broken up into 3-5 subtopics. It usually takes us a full week to complete one lesson, as my children LOVE questions and I allow time for family discussions, not just me talking at them. Sometimes we pull up Bible maps to see where the events took place. We end each lesson with follow up questions that are at the end of each chapter. Finally, we end our morning time with our monthly hymn, following AO's hymn schedule, and family prayer. ​That usually takes us 30 minutes, and now we are ready to take on other school lessons.

Next, I also see the importance of adding books on Christian Theology and devotional readings. One or two books a term is sufficient for your Form 3 and up student, (7th grade+). This year we are adding Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis, Ourselves by Charlotte Mason, and the Saviour of the World by Charlotte Mason. Mere Christianity they will read in 1 term, independently. We will have a discussion  once a week, as I will be reading this book with them on my own time. Ourselves they will also read assigned pages and have discussions in co-op once a month. Saviour of the World is a collection of meditations on the Gospels, written in verse. They will read 1 poem each day for their devotional reading.

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A few other books that you might consider on Christian Theology: 
The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer
The Pursuit of Holiness by Jerry Bridges
Desiring God by John Piper
The Case for Christ by Lee Strobel
Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God by Francis Chan

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Last, but oh so important, is teaching your children about Church History. There are several wonderful books to choose from, but two that we have come to love are Trial and Triumph: Stories from Church History by Richard M. Hannula and History Lives Series by Brandon and Mindy Withrow. We usually read 1 story a week, but this summer, with school lessons on hold, we have been reading one chapter every day during morning time. I believe it is important to teach children about how Christianity changed over the years, how through all the changes and the centuries, the Bible has remained the Living Word of God, and also teaching them about the trials and triumphs Christians have faced throughout history. We read about the martyrs, the exiled, the faithful, the fearless, the brave, and the courageous. Filling our children's minds with stories of people staying loyal to God, even to the point of death, is so important in faith building, as we do not know the days that lay ahead for our children, or even ourselves.

If you've finished reading through Church History, missionary books are also a wonderful way to teach your children about our purpose here on earth and how important it is to teach others about Jesus. We have really loved the Christian Heroes Then and Now and Little Lights for younger children which you can find HERE. One must read biography about a Christian man and his prayer life that changed the course of history is Rees Howells: Intercessor by Norman Grubb. This book is life changing!

I also don't want to forget to mention the value of committing scripture to memory and spending time reciting God's Word. I've talked at length in other posts, workshop, and podcast about recitation and it's significance, but here I want to mention that if you need a guiding hand to help you choose which passages to start reciting, I have put together selections from Psalms and Hymns and Old and New Testament in my store for you to use in your home. We recite passages from scripture 3 times each week and I love hearing the children come to grow and gain a deeper understanding of Bible passages because they are reflecting on the same passage, weekly, for 12 weeks.

​Just remember, it has taken us 4 years to get to the point of doing all of these in a weeks time. If you are new to homeschooling, or new to teaching your children the Bible, choose a place to start and give it at least 6-12 weeks before you introduce another layer. God sees your heart and intentions. He will bless you know matter how much or little you do, because peace in your home is the utmost important thing to keep. God Bless you on your journey!