Rick Boyer Jr. on Memorizing the Proverbs

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Scripture Caterpillar

Earlier this week, Marilyn encouraged you to train your children to daily memorize Scripture, and she guided you through the way she has done this over the years.

I have a fun project that can be used with Scripture Memory in your home. This is something that my mom did with me and my brother when we were younger. We actually did it in relation to how many books we read, as an incentive to get us to read more.

However, you could also use this as an incentive to your children to memorize.
Now, we don't want our kids to always think that they "deserve" a prize or a reward for memorizing God's Word. But, it does help some children to work towards a goal. Also, there is a Scriptural principle to be taught. Hebrews 11: 6 says that God is a Rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
Teach your children that there are great rewards for those who seek God, to know His ways. That is why we learn and memorize His Word, isn't it? To seek Him?
First, talk with them about the ways God rewards those who seek Him. (Proverbs 2 and 3 are a good place to look to see the benefits and "rewards" of those who seek for God's wisdom.)

So, think up a special reward for your child. Maybe it will be a special lunch out with mom, or a night out for ice cream with dad.

Then, set a goal. Perhaps it will be 50 verses, or 100 verses. Or maybe you prefer to learn passages. So, maybe it will be 10 passages of Scripture. Obviously, keep in mind the child's age and ability to memorize. The point is to encourage them, not discourage them with an impossible task. But, at the same time, do set a high standard that will stretch them a little bit.

So, here's the project:
Scripture Caterpillar

You will need:
Assorted colors of construction paper
Scissors.
Something round to trace (maybe a glass or plastic cup, or cookie cutter)

Find a space on your wall or a whiteboard or even around a door frame where you can tape up each circle.

~Cut out circles (if your goal is 50 verses, cut out 50 circles per child)

~With an additional circle- draw on a "face" for the caterpillar- this is the first circle to be added to your wall.

~ Now, whenever your child learns a verse, and knows it well, You add the next part of the caterpillar's body (circle) to the wall. Write on that circle the reference of the verse they have learned. It was always an exciting time to be able to add the next circle!

~ As the number of verses they have memorized, grows, so does your caterpillar! Soon, you will have a long caterpillar filled with the verses they have memorized.

~ Each day, review the verse on each "circle" of the caterpillar. This makes it easy for the child to see what he has learned and it will also be exciting for them to see their caterpillar grow and grow, as they grow and grow in the Word! =)

~ Whenever a child reaches his/her goal, he gets his "reward".

This is a fun project that I remember enjoying when I was little. I'm sure many of you will have more ideas to build upon this one! As I said, my mom used it to help us read more. For each book we read, a circle was added.

This is also a nice project because it is suitable for very young children as well as middle school and even pre-teens.

I hope you will enjoy learning God's word with your children!

~Kari Boyer

Teaching Scripture To Your Children + NEW Video Clips

The most important thing you can teach your children is the Word of God. Time to do so needs to be scheduled in and prepared for.
One of the very best things we did for our kids, looking back, was to record Scripture for them to listen to at nap time and bedtime. Rick made CD's (tapes initially), first, of all the book of Proverbs, the most practical book in the Bible. We often, for family devotions, will read the chapter of Proverbs that corresponds with the day of the month, (for example, on the 14th day of the month, we read Proverbs 14.) It was pretty early on that he began recording Scripture for our children. He stopped to explain difficult words and gave example stories to help the kids understand the principles given in the Word of God. We began to find that the kids learned tons of Scripture, without even trying!! When we would be reading our Proverb at night, one of the kids would pop up and finish the verse Rick had just begun reading. We'd ask how they knew it and they would say it was because of listening to their Bible tapes. Rick then began recording other portions- he did his favorite Psalms and then book of Matthew. Our kids were hiding God's Word in their hearts and we found that the Scripture would come back to them as they needed it!! It was amazing!!
Kids can learn so much faster than us adults. We also found as a side benefit that our kids had very few nightmares, as the last thing they heard before going to sleep at night was God's Word. We found they were even learning to apply what they had memorized as it became a part of their thinking. And best of all, it was so easy! We just popped a CD in before bedtime and nap time!

We now have available the Uncle Rick Complete Audio Bible Series which includes: Uncle Rick Reads the Proverbs, Uncle Rick Reads the Psalms, Uncle Rick Reads the Gospel of Matthew , Uncle Rick Tells Bible Stories Volume 1 and 2. (They are also sold separately).
We've had requests for Uncle Rick to record more and it is in the long term plans, so pray for us that we would have time to accomplish the many projects God has laid on our hearts to help equip parents to train their children to be mighty warriors for Christ. (We use Uncle Rick Bible CD's for our babies, preschool, elementary and junior high. We've had some adults write us saying they use them for devotions as a family each day.)

During the day we also had a focused time of learning God's Word, in which we would teach the children Bible verses according to their character needs. We began teaching our 2 and 3 year olds during their "special time" each day by the use of simple flashcards, verses pertinent to their needs. Initially, I just illustrated them with stick figures (I'm not an artist!) Later, when others begged us to reproduce what we'd done, I had my daughter Kate, then a young teenager, illustrate them for me.

I began with what we now call the Hide it in Their Hearts Collection of flashcards. This is a set of three, Proverbs Flashcards (which deals with practical Scriptures needed by all children) , Character Quality Flashcards which contain verses dealing with Obedience, Kindness and Gratefulness (which we felt were foundational character qualities to begin with), If/When Flashcards which guides children in making right decisions in everyday situations based on direction in God's Word. During what we called their "special time" each day, I would read the child one of these verses, explain it simply, and have them repeat me phrase by phrase. We would work on it a couple of days for very young children until they can comfortably say it, then go on to the next and each day review ones previously learned. To do this, I would hold the child or have them sit next to me and combine the physical contact with time in God's Word. Let them go at their own rate, which will probably be faster than you expect, for most children. Then when you complete one of the sets, review for a while and then start the next pack. There is no pressure to do it quickly. The goal is to learn them well and then the child will be able to internalize them and apply them to their life.

When our children got to about 2nd or 3rd grade level, I began using another set I put together to meet their needs. We call it the Daily Wisdom Flashcards. It consists of 4 sets of verses to learn. They are simple, but chosen to encourage the child to learn how to apply Scripture on a daily basis. (We use these for our preschool through early elementary) For instance, here's a couple of examples:

"Give to a Rival"

Proverbs 21:14

"A gift given in secret pacifieth anger: and a reward in the bosom strong wrath."

Another:

Don't be rash in answering

Proverbs 18:13

"He that answereth a matter before he heareth it, it is folly and shame unto him."

These two samples are from Daily Wisdom from Proverbs Set 1 which contains 82 verses.

Daily Wisdom from Proverbs Set 2 also contains 82 verses.

Daily Wisdom from the New Testament contains 58 verses

Daily Wisdom from Psalms contains 56 verses

We are using these now with Tuck, age 16, Kelley age 12 and Kasey age 10 and have been using them for a couple of years. I just let them go at their own rate, working on them for just a few minutes each day as a part of our school day and continuing in the summer as well. Tuck just recited all 82 verses for me a few weeks ago from one of the Proverbs sets. Scripture is meant to change our thinking and the way we live our life and these help them gain that wisdom. These would be appropriate for early elementary through adults.

Kari recently made up a brand new set called The Words of My Mouth: selected verses from Psalms, Proverbs, and James specifically dealing with the use of our words. What a great need that is!! Our children, like us, just need to be taught what God's Word says on different topics. (Appropriate for early elementary though adult)

I have found that as I spend time teaching God's Word to my children, I learn it to!! As a Mom you don't have lots of time to sit and study the Bible or memorize, but you are doing as you fulfill your role as teacher of your children. We all learn together!!

That is our basic Bible memorization plan, but we have also made use of several resources that have benefited our children in learning God's Word as well. Steve Green has two sets Hide em In Your Heart Volume 1 and 2 which we have thoroughly enjoyed. We have watched our little ones, and now our grandchildren, walking around singing the Word of God. They are very tastefully done. We don't allow much DVD use, but this is one of our favorites!! These are favorites with preschoolers.

Another super resource is Sing the Word. These are CD's very tastefully done by a family in NY who are extremely talented in music. They put verses to song and also each CD has tracts at the end with just the music so your kids can learn the songs and do a presentation for family and friends if you wish. These are appropriate for young children up through junior high.

Another favorite through the years has been the collection by Thy Word Creations. They have put 10 sections of Scripture to music and also provide a coloring book for your child to personalize to help learn the passage. For example, in Psalm 91: where it talks of God watching over you,(No evil shall befall you, nor shall any plaque come near your dwelling... )it encourages you to put a picture of your house on the page .

In another place, you insert a picture of your child praying. They do Psalm 91, Psalm 139, I Corinthians 13, Genesis 1 and other. These are ideal for preschoolers.

Hope this gives you some vision for teaching God's Word to your family. Remember, it's more important than academics and extra curricular activities. It is the key to raising children with passion to serve the Lord and others with their daily lives!!

For a listing of all of our Scripture Memory selections, click Here

Watch this video clip of little Lauren, 2 1/2, reciting Scripture (Ephesians 6:1-3 ) with her mom. Your kids can do this too!

Lauren reciting Romans 12:9
(Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good. )

Helping Scripture To Come Alive Before Their Eyes

Not long ago, God gave me a simple idea about helping my kids learn Scripture. I shared this with you in the article Scripture Memorization throughout the Day , and many of you responded. The idea was simple. Simply choose a verse for different times of the day, such as breakfast, lunch, nap time, dinner, and recite that verse together at those times. My kids caught onto this quickly and enjoyed doing it. Read the article to get the full scoop!
Right now, my family is on vacation at the beach. Is there any place as relaxing as the beach? And how can you look at the vast ocean and not be amazed at God's omnipotence and majesty! I want my little ones to grasp that!
Never miss an opportunity to teach your children God's word. This is something I wish to do better. I think it is very helpful for children to be able to see the relevance of the verses you teach them. For instance, in teaching your children a bed time verse, you can use Psalm 4:8 (In peace I will both lie down and sleep For You alone, O Lord, make me to dwell in safety) By reciting this together at bedtime, it is easy for them to understand this verse, since they are about to sleep and the verse speaks directly about their sleep. So, similarly, while on vacation at the beach, I am teaching my kids a verse about the ocean. Psalm 95:5 "The sea is His for He made it, and His hands formed the dry land."
So, this morning, being the first people up (as usual!) my 3 year old son and I sat on the porch together, enjoying the wonderful morning breezes, sipped coffee together, (yes, he was drinking coffee!) and we talked about that verse and recited it a few times together. We talked about what we would do if all the oceans actually belonged to us. We talked about how kind God was to allow us to enjoy His ocean. We talked about how God only needed to speak in order to create the magnificent sea. It is so much easier for him to understand this verse with the sea right in front of him, then it would be when we are at home. It gives him something tangible to make the verse come alive.
Here are some other ideas:
Psalm 33:6-8 By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, And all the host of them by the breath of His mouth. He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap; He lays up the deep in storehouses. Let all the earth fear the LORD; Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him Psalm 93: 4 The LORD on high is mightier than the noise of many waters, yea, than the mighty waves of the sea.

Maybe you take a trip in the mountains:
Psalm 90:2 Before the mountains were born Or You gave birth to the earth and the world, Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.

Maybe you are taking your family to a zoo!
Genesis 1:24 Then God said, "Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind: cattle and creeping things and beasts of the earth after their kind"; and it was so.

The possibilities are endless. I'm just trying to get your creative juices flowing! And it doesn't have to be just on vacation. My point is that, as parents, look for ways to bring God's word alive to your children, so that they can always see the connection between God and every aspect of their life.
Vacations are special times where many memories are created. So, attach a corresponding verse or passage from the Bible and learn it over your time together. Learn it as a family. Choose a time when you will say it, or just recall it to their minds at random times throughout the day. As we sit on the beach and gaze at the ocean, what a great time to remind them of our verse for the week...the sea is HIS for He made it! Cool! =)

My hope is that as they recall those special memories, they will also remember the verse or passage and along with it!

~Kari

Character Does Count!

Character does count. Our Founding Fathers certainly thought so. It’s been said, “Character is doing what’s right when nobody’s looking.” This is what we must instill in our children. Scripture is loaded with positive and negative examples of character. Character is basically the attributes of God. Our goal is to be like Jesus, and therefore we want to teach our children what character qualities mean so they can adopt them into their lives. Character Sketches, as I mentioned in the last chapter, has been a mainstay in our home, as have
“A Child’s Book Of Character Building”, vol.1 and 2. This book gives simple definitions that kids can understand, for example: “Attentiveness = listening with ears, eyes and heart”, and then applies it to daily situations as well as giving a Bible character who exemplified the quality. Consider personalizing the character qualities for your children to make it easier for them to apply. For example, see appendix #2 to see character qualities I’ve personalized for myself. It’s so effective to personalize scripture and character qualities to bring about real changes in our lives. Remember that a negative character trait in our lives is just a positive character quality misused. God will often take our biggest weaknesses and make them our biggest strengths. So don’t despair when you see character deficiencies in yourself or your children. God’s at work. Get busy teaching your kids what character is and God will use that to do the changing. Gear scriptures to be learned to specific character needs you see in your child. For instance, if unkindness is a problem, use your concordance and find references to kindness, and assign those verses to your child to learn; or make them into 3x5 cards for your little ones.

We never put our children into AWANA, although our church does have that program. The reason is that we knew our kids would do well. We started early teaching them scripture. But scripture is for the purpose of changing our behavior, and we geared memory work to character needs in order to see scripture change lives. I felt it would instead promote a spirit of competition and pride in my kids if they’d been in AWANA. I didn’t want to create a stumbling block for them in focusing on winning a prize. AWANA is great for kids who aren’t getting scripture at home. Sunday schools were created to be an outreach and that’s fine, but it wasn’t the best choice for our children. God holds parents responsible to train and guide and steer their children in His paths. We have rewarded our children for learning scripture, such as a new tropical fish for learning ten verses, or a book they want, etc. But it’s a goal that’s achievable for them, not competing even with brothers or sisters in achieving it.

If I could emphasize one thing in the training of your children, perhaps the best thing we’ve done, it would be Bible tapes. When our oldest kids were young, Rick began making sets of Bible tapes. He would read through Proverbs, then Psalms, Matthew, etc., stopping occasionally to explain difficult words and giving stories to illustrate different concepts. He’s a good storyteller. We would then play tapes at naptime and bedtime. We found that our children memorized massive portions of scripture without even trying, especially ones who didn’t fall asleep right away. At one point, eight-year-old Josh could finish any verse in Matthew that you began. Recently when Rick was reading the Proverb of the day for family devotions (there are thirty-one proverbs – read the first chapter on the first day of the month, etc.), Tucker, then nine, would finish every verse Rick started to read. Rick asked him how he knew them all and he said he was listening to “Uncle Rick Reads the Proverbs” at naptime. Scripture is something you take with you to heaven and through eternity. It never returns void. It seems to just pop into your head when you need it. We offer the tapes Rick made for our kids, or you can make them for your own kids, or buy the Bible on tape; but please consider using them. As our kids grow beyond “nap” stage, Mom still needs a quiet time each day, and so do they. We allow them to play quietly in their rooms and listen to Bible tapes. We also use them for long trips in the car. You can even let them use their own walkmans for times where they have long waits in the doctor’s office, etc.

Joshua 1:8 promises that we will be successful in everything we do if we meditate on God’s Word. That’s what I want for my children. An added benefit is that our children have had very little problem with nightmares. They go to sleep listening to God’s Word, and it acts as a purifier and fills their minds with truth as they drift off to sleep. So crank up those CD players and let God’s Word make your little ones into mighty soldiers for the King!

~Marilyn

excerpted from Parenting from the Heart

Giving Your Children a Heart For God

I want to share with you a great article I came across titled "Giving Your Children a heart for God" from the Revive our Hearts Ministry. It stresses the importance of cultivating this heart in your children, and also guides you in ways to accomplish this! Even if you think you know this already, it's a New Year- the perfect time to be re-inspired to begin or re-start, or continue toward the goal!

The article mentions Scripture Memory for your children, Family devotions, Listening to the Word,etc. The Learning Parent offers many products that are right on target with this, and will serve to help you cultivate a Heart for God in your children, So I have provided links below for your convenience! May 2009 be a year of Spiritual Growth and love for the Word in you and your family.

~Kari Boyer

Does Your Home Reflect God?

When visiting or living in your home, is it "impossible to keep from thinking of God"? This is a question that is asked in Caorlyn Mahaney's book, Feminine Appeal, which discusses the 7 virtues of a Godly wife and mother, taken from Titus 2. (It is a great book!)
What a stirring, convicting, and inspiring question! Our homes should reflect Christ-likeness! This will benefit you, your husband, children and all who enter the doors of your home. In thinking of some practical ways this could be accomplished, an idea I had already been pondering, settled in my mind. My in-laws (Rick and Marilyn) speak often about "saturating" your home with Scripture. One neat way to do this is to 'display' Scripture verses in the rooms of your home. Consider a "theme" verse for each room of the house.
(Marilyn actually had this idea years ago for her own home, although, I did not even remember that at first! You can read about her take on this idea in a portion of Parenting from the Heart: click here to read)
For instance, here are some verses I am considering for my home:
Cassidy's Room: " Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised" Proverbs 31:30
Adam's Room: "The Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and the knowledge of the holy one is understanding" Proverbs 9:10
Bathroom: "I will thank you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; wonderful are your works and my soul knows it very well" Psalm 139: 14
Kitchen: 1 Cor. 10:31. "Whether then you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God"
Living Room: "But As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord" Joshua 24:15

Other great verses for your home:
Psalm 19:14- Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in they sight,O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer
Phil. 4:8- "Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about these things"

Buy photo coasters and insert verses instead of photos, frame verses you've typed on the computer- print them out on pretty paper, there are many options- as cheap or as pricey as you wish. Just be creative!
(you can read "Hands on Character Building by Rick and Marilyn for more ideas they have used to incorporate Scripture in their home)

Allow your children to be involved in adding the verses to your rooms. Explain to them why you chose those specific verses for those specific rooms. Then, as you go to bed or as you sit in your living room, or as you give them their baths, read them, recite them, talk about them. If your children can read, they will see them throughout the day and will be constantly reminded of the truths the verses proclaim. Perhaps you could make this a project throughout your school year. Each month, make a different room of the house the project. By the end of the school year, your house will be well on it's way to being decorated with Scripture.

So, what are more ways we can create an atmosphere in our home where it is "impossible to keep from thinking of God"?

Here is another idea that was already on my heart, and then cemented into it when I read that question:

Memorize Scripture as a family. Choose a passage that you, your husband, and your children will memorize together. Work on it in your own quiet times with God, go over it with your children, write it on note cards and place them where you will see them frequently (for me it is the back-splash in my kitchen). Then, when you are all together as a family again (which hopefully is each day), maybe in the evenings after supper before you clear the dishes from the table, or whatever is best for you, recite the passage together. Be sure to explain the hard to understand words so that your memorizing is effective. Choose verses that will be helpful to your family, specifically- perhaps a passage about the tongue, if words are a problem, or maybe about forgiveness, if hard feelings are dominant. How exciting it will be to hear your whole family reciting passages of Scripture together!

Ask God to give you more ideas about how you can strive to make it "impossible to keep from thinking of God" in your home.

Kari

Scripture Memorization Throughout the Day!

Deuteronomy 6:6-7 These words, which I am commanding to you today, shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your sons and you shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up"

We are to be teaching our children the Word of God, and it should be a part of our daily lives- our daily routine! We have begun a new practice at our house just recently to help us learn Scripture and to make it a part of our daily lives. I have chosen a verse to say to my children when they wake up in the morning, when we eat lunch in the afternoon, and when we go to bed at night. After a few days, they begin to fill in words of the verses with me, and soon, they know the verse by heart. My daughter, Cassidy, actually asked me today "What's the verse for my 'quiet time'"? I was pleased that she was thinking that way, so I added nap/quiet time as another opportunity to recite God's Word. It's so easy this way! Keep the same verses for however long it takes for everyone to learn it perfectly- and be sure to include the reference! You could begin this when your youngest child is still a baby. By the time he could talk, he would have these verses ingrained in his heart and mind! Below, are the verses we are working on right now.

Wake up: This is the Day which the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it Psalm 118: 24
Lunch: Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. 1Corinthians 10:31
Nap/Quiet Time: Be Still and know that I am God- Psalm 46:10
Dinner Time: In everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus- 1 Thess. 5:18
Bedtime: I will both lie down in peace and sleep; For You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety- Psalm 4:8

"Your word I have hidden in my heart, That I might not sin against you" Psalm 119:11

Kari

Be Diligent- Stir them up!

I was reading in my Bible a few mornings ago, and I came to a passage that encouraged me to recommit myself to grounding my children in the Truth. I was reading 2 Peter 1:12-15. This is Peter writing to believers. He was concerned with the growing presence of false teachers. (and don't you think we can relate to that in this day and age!) As I read, it dawned on me that I need to be just as Peter was in this passage. He was referring to the relationship between other believers and himself. I am reading it in terms of my children and myself. Think about the parent/child relationship as you read these few verses:

"12Therefore, I will always be ready to remind you of these things, even though you already know them, and have been established in the truth which is present with you. 13I consider it right, as long as I am in this earthly dwelling, to stir you up by way of reminder, 14 knowing that the laying aside of my earthly dwelling is imminent, as also our Lord Jesus has made clear to me. 15And I will also be diligent that at any time after my departure you will be able to call these things to mind"

Peter said he would always be ready to remind these believers of the truth/ I should always make myself available to my children to teach them the truth when I see an opportunity

"even though you already know them"- These people already knew the truth- but that didn't give Peter a reason to stop./ Just because we have taught them once, doesn't mean it is firmly grounded in their lives.

As long as Peter was on this earth, he was determined to always be stirring up the believers to remind them the truths they had already learned. Knowing that one day he would die, he wanted to be diligent in teaching them God's ways for life so that when he did leave this earth, the believers (your children) would still be able to call them to mind.

I want to do this! I want to be diligent in constantly reminding my family (stirring them up) about the Truth and the right way to live (check out 2 Peter 1:5 for a recipe on the right way to live.) So that when I die, they can stand firmly on their own in this world we live in, as a light shining in the darkness, glorifying Christ with their lives! Now, that is leaving a legacy!

Kari

I think one wonderful way to "stir them up" is to give them real life examples of how Christ would want them to act. I think a wonderful tool for this is the If and When Flashcards that the Boyers have used with their own children. One side of the card presents a temptation or a question your child might face, and the other side of the card gives the solution- an applicable verse from God's word! It wouldn't be a bad idea for us parents to memorize these cards ourselves!