Impressed by God’s Word!

For the word of God is alive and powerful.
It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword,
cutting between soul and spirit,
between joint and marrow.
It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.
-Hebrews 4:12

Welcome to Family Faith and Fun Fridays. As the week winds down and I anticipate more family time over the weekend, I often ask God for one good idea that will enable me to bring the Word to life and bring our family together. Usually, the activity overflows out of something the Lord has been teaching me through His Word during the week. I’d like to invite you to join me and my family in the adventure. Sometimes I’ll post things we’ve tried; other times I’ll post an idea in the works. If you’ve got thoughts to add or suggestions on how to adapt or improve the activity, please don’t hesitate to comment. Enjoy!

Impress It On Their Hearts

Not long ago I read a book called Rock-Solid Kids by Larry Fowler.  It was a convicting and practical look at WHY the Word of God must be the ultimate priority in our homes.  Fowler asks the question, “If you could do something to keep your child from sin, wouldn’t it be worth it?” I can’t think of a single parent I know who would answer that question with anything but a resounding YES. 

The Amplified version commends parents to impress the Word of God upon the hearts of our children.

After reading the Amplified Bible’s version of Deuteronomy 6:2 to my children, I asked them what it meant to “impress” God’s Word on our hearts.

“That means you think God’s really cool,” Hannah declared.

“That’s true if you’re IMPRESSED with God,” I agreed. “But this is a little different.”

“That kind of impress is like letting the Bible STICK to you,” Lizzy corrected.

“Oh, yeah,” Hannah added, suddenly understanding. “And it’s kind of like having God write something on your heart.”

“A heart tattoo!” Luke summarized.

I applauded their wisdom, and then pulled out the Silly Putty. “So, if I want to impress a word on this putty, which we’ll pretend is my heart, then what would I have to do?”

“Stick a word on it,” Hannah urged.

I flipped through the newspaper on the coffee table in front of me and found a bold print headline. I pressed the Silly Putty against the letters and waited. “Like this?”

“Yeah!” The kids all took a turn pounding the putty onto the paper and then we created a drum roll.

I slowly peeled the putty off the newspaper and revealed the squat black letters.

“Wow!”  the little ones cheered. “That’s awesome.”

“That’s what happens to our hearts when we press into God’s Word by reading it, thinking about it, and memorizing it,” I explained, “It becomes impressed on our hearts like these words on the Silly Putty!”

The kids all scrambled for their own duo-toned egg and a piece of the Sunday paper. They laughed at the faces, the words, and the graphics that they magically lifted from the pages of the paper on that elastic gray putty.  They pulled and stretched the images until the impressions looked like reflections one might find in The House of Mirrors. Then they each took a note card on which to write their choice of the Bible verse they planned to  impress upon their own pliable hearts.