Every now and then I feel an imperative to do more with my students concerning their faith. Here's what I mean. Often times Christian school teachers and Christian parents get so caught up in teaching the "info" of faith that we forget to disciple them in the practical "how's" of their faith. We tell them a bunch of stuff and forget to help them do it themselves. So this week we've been spending our class devotions time (junior high kiddos) in quiet reflection. I've been letting them have a couple of minutes to sit and reflect on a couple of verses of their choosing. I make them only take a couple because I want them to focus on going deeper rather than covering a lot of material. They read and re-read doing one of two things. First, they see if any words stand out to them. They can then take that word and think about it (what it means, synonyms, how it applies to God or to them, etc.). Or, second, they can make a picture in their minds or on paper of what that verse "looks like". They can look for God in the picture or how it pertains to Him or what's going on in their lives.
It's...been...AWESOME!!!
When we've been getting done, their hands fly up!!! They want to share what they read and what it has meant to them. So great!!
What's also cool is that themes start to emerge. All without knowing what any of the others are reading for the day, they'll see that some were lead to verses about how big and in control God is. Others will see a trend where some were lead to verses about not worrying. They start to see how God is speaking to them indivdually and to the whole group through each other.
Yes, there are days where I absolutely love my job! Not only do I get to see them grow...but I get to be personally encouraged and inspired by them! Some would call this a "perk"!!! ;)
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