Think for a moment about all of the books that you have consumed in your lifetime up until now, either partially or from cover to cover. Now, in your mind, categorize them in only two columns, edifying or a distraction.
This article is intended to be food for thought for those parents, homeschooling or otherwise, who have found that their child has been exposed to fantasy books and pressure now exists to bring them into the home.
I have found through the years that most of the pressure we encountered w/r to reading material and the various types, came from other Christian children and their parents who did not have any particular standard set in place. They were most often just happy their kids were reading ANYTHING. It didn’t matter the content.
Here are a few key points and questions to ponder while seeking to choose the “best” of literature;
- It’s easier to form a good pattern of behavior than it is to break a bad one.
- Seek to understand what excites your child.
- What are their interests or delights?
- Gently guide them to material that will uphold and under gird them in the faith while feeding their delights.
- Always err on the side of caution when evil is presented as good in fiction books.
Keep this in mind, when we partake of an author’s work we are fellowshipping with them and getting to know their hearts. This material can impact the core of our being in either one of two ways. It will cause us to think upon Christ, or it won’t. It will draw us closer to the Lord or lead us astray.
“And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.” -Ephesians 5:11
There have been many times I’ve witnessed conversations as the topic of these fantasy books would be brought up, NOT by myself or my children but by those who consumed them. We’d been asked if we read them, and after hearing our response, which was “NO”, we were then put on the defensive and usually found ourselves BATTLING and DEFENDING our position, WHY WE didn’t want to read them. I found in order to end the discussion, I would reply, “If you want to read the material, or if you want to allow your children to read it, then that is between you and God. Please don’t try to sway us to your way of thinking on the matter.”
You see our answer of “NO” convicted them. It was evident by their (close to hostile), continued questioning of us. Asking them what kind of books THEY read was the furthest thing from our minds!
“If this were your last day on earth or the last book you could read to or with your children, what book would you chose?” (Cindy Rushton)
16 Be careful, or you will be enticed to turn away and worship other gods and bow down to them. 17 Then the LORD’s anger will burn against you, and he will shut the heavens so that it will not rain and the ground will yield no produce, and you will soon perish from the good land the LORD is giving you.18Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 19 Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 20 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates, 21 so that your days and the days of your children may be many in the land that the LORD swore to give your forefathers, as many as the days that the heavens are above the earth. Deuteronomy 11:16-21
These are strong admonitions from the Lord and for our own good.
We have to guard our hearts because there are so many little crevices where wrong thinking and corrupt ideas can creep in and spoil the fruit that we want to see brought forth in our AND our childrens’ lives. It may seem small, maybe an “iffy” book here and there, but that’s all it takes to begin acquiring a taste for that sort of thing.
We only have so much time on this earth to lead and guide our children on the right path. How many good years do you have left to train them to choose the best material for their hearts and minds? After they’ve grown and moved out, you’ll want that peace in your heart knowing they desire to spend their time reading material that will bring them closer to the Lord and further their education, helping to develop their gifts.
There are SO MANY wonderful books to read. Even at my age I have a longing to read them all, but there is only so much time. Reading a book to better understand a particular culture or system of beliefs from a non-fiction perspective is different from reading what is pushed on our children as fantasy. Fantasy fiction books at best, only provide allegories and at worst, introduce children to the works of darkness.
“There shall not be found among you anyone who …practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. For all who do these things are an abomination to the LORD, and because of these abominations the LORD your God drives them out from before you. You shall be blameless before the LORD your God. For these nations which you will dispossess listened to soothsayers and diviners; but as for you, the LORD your God has not appointed such for you.” Deut. 18:10-14
Romans 12:9, “Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good.”
Here’s an excellent statement made by Charlotte Mason that I believe fits very well with the topic of what we and our children should be reading.
Education is a life;
that life is sustained on ideas; ideas are of spiritual origin; and, ’God has made us so’ that we get them chiefly as we convey them to one another. The duty of parents is to sustain a child’s inner life with ideas as they sustain his body with food.
- The child is an eclectic; he may choose this or that; therefore, in the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thy hand, for thou knowest not which shall prosper, whether this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.
- The child has affinities with evil as well as with good; therefore, hedge him about from any chance lodgment of evil ideas.
- The initial idea begets subsequent ideas; therefore, take care that children get right primary ideas on the great relations and duties of life.
- Every study, every line of thought, has its ‘guiding idea’; therefore, the study of a child makes for living education in proportion as it is quickened by the guiding idea ‘which stands at the head.’
Corinthians 10:4-5
“For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds, casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ….” 2
Our Lord Himself chose the medium of a book to convey the Gospel to us. Feed your mind nutritious and wholesome ideas. Encourage your children to make wise choices as well. Don’t just tell them no, explain why it is so vitally important. In doing so, this is another way to keep our eyes focused on the “best” ……… on “Jesus.”
© 2008 Heart Notes From Home
All Rights Reserved
As my doggie and I embarked on our early evening walk, my eyes were drawn toward the heavens.
I noticed the Big Dipper. It hasn’t changed since childhood, had I expected that it would?
My first thought was of “Living Water” and all who thirst can come to Jesus and drink of the water that He provides and never thirst again.
It’s no accident that these and various other stars are displayed in a recognizable pattern in the sky for us to see. The Big Dipper is one of the most popular and easy to find of the constellations among students of astronomy.
Psalm 19: 1-4 The heavens declare the glory of God; The skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; Night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. Their voice goes out into all the earth, Their words to the ends of the world.
There is an account recorded in the Bible of woman who met Jesus at the well. I’m sure that after her conversation with the Messiah, she never saw the Big Dipper the same way again! She was no stranger to sin. She was also a Samaritan.
We read in John 4: 1 – 42 about this conversation. Jesus was tired and sat down to rest at the well. As she came to the well to draw water, she had a conversation with Jesus.
9 The woman was surprised, for Jews refuse to have anything to do with Samaritans. She said to Jesus, “You are a Jew, and I am a Samaritan woman. Why are you asking me for a drink?”
10 Jesus replied, “If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you living water.”
11 “But sir, you don’t have a rope or a bucket,” she said, “and this well is very deep. Where would you get this living water?
12 And besides, do you think you’re greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us this well? How can you offer better water than he and his sons and his animals enjoyed?”
13 Jesus replied, “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again.
14 But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.”
15 “Please, sir,” the woman said, “give me this water! Then I’ll never be thirsty again, and I won’t have to come here to get water.” John 4: 9 – 15
Jesus then asked her to go get her husband and He then proceeded to tell her about all the husbands that she had in the past! She perceived Him to be a prophet.
It’s interesting to note that this woman then ran leaving her bucket behind to go and tell the others about this conversation she had with the Messiah. Many came to believe upon Him that day.
His message is still the same for you and I today. As we drink water that Jesus provides, it becomes a spring of water welling up to eternal life.
I pray that you will spend some quiet evening time in the last days of summer to look at the stars and really take a closer look at the Big Dipper. It’s a mighty big cup!
© 2008 Heart Notes From Home
© John Sanford—Photo Network/PictureQuest
Jacob’s well, Nablaus-Shechem, c. 1900-1920
http://dqhall59.com/mt_ebal.html
Here is a picture of Jacob’s Well as it looks today.
My Heart is on overflow right now. Complacency is observable these days within the Body of Christ. As I noted this in others, I was even more aware of it in my own life. I’m hungry for God’s Word. Take a good look around you, we find ourselves living in fast moving and changing times. We face upcoming elections in America, gas and other consumer goods continue to soar in price. Our pace is also so swift we can barely find the time to dig into the Bible! Now more than ever MUST make that time!
The darkness that surrounds us will begin to get a foothold in our lives if we neglect to study the Bible for ourselves. In Luke 12:48 we read a parable about a faithful servant and this is also where we find the heavily quoted phrase, “
For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.”
For the most part, Bibles are plentiful in the USA. Most families have several different versions within the home. There is no excuse for not making time for the most important study of our lives. The more we study scriptures the more of His Word we will crave. This is a lifesaving cycle that we need to ground DEEPLY in our life pattern!
We must renew our minds DAILY. As we live our lives and meet with various encounters and people who don’t know the love of the Savior, the scriptures will remain in our hearts. The Holy Spirit will bring to our remembrance verses of scripture that we ingest during our study time. He will keep the light of truth shining brightly before us all day long when we do this.
Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. Psalm 119:105 KJV
Not only will we present a more solid witness, we will be better equipped to defend the faith. Like it or not, we are in a battle!
For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places, Ephesians 6:12.
We have a fierce enemy who hates us with a passion. He is the devil. Satan is a deceiver and a liar.
He will scheme and plot against the Christian. This wrestle with the devil and his demons will be experienced throughout our whole lives. At times the battle will be very intense. As every Christian will encounter this combat, every Christian MUST under gird his or her life with the truth of God’s Word, the Bible. Satan comes to us as an angel of light pretending to be something THAT HE IS NOT in order to deceive us. Don’t forget, the STAKES are HIGH! Our relationship with him must be ENMITY. The American Heritage dictionary defines enmity as follows; deep-seated, often mutual hatred. If we become too complacent the enemy can very easily begin to muddle our thoughts. Complacency is a feeling of contentment or self-satisfaction, especially when coupled with an unawareness of danger, trouble, or controversy. In these times it is essential for us to Guard our Hearts!
Guard your heart more than anything else, because the source of your life flows from it. Proverbs 4:23.
When we reach the end of our earthy lives and yes, we all will someday, nothing will matter more than this, NOTHING. Where is your heart focus? Keep it on Jesus.
Man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, Hebrews 9:27
We can all too easily lose track and become satisfied with ourselves and our lives. We forget to judge ourselves and our own hearts and motives. We have to keep running that race, even though we may get tired at times. If we are yoked with Jesus Christ, He promises to give us rest and strength to endure to the end of the race.
Get back into your Bible and be refreshed and renewed. In my sidebars you will find some tools to get you up and running if you need some help digging into the Word. I’m also in the habit of listening to the Bible in a year on my Ipod device. Listening to the Word in this format may appeal to you for starters. Rick Meyers has created software to assist Bible students, it called E-Sword and it is 100% free! Here’s a short description from his website;
e-Sword is a fast and effective way to study the Bible. e-Sword is feature rich and user friendly with more capabilities than you would expect in a free software package. The fact that e-Sword is free is just one of the blessings and does not speak of the quality of the software.
It’s hard to see when the lights are dim. Keep the oil in your lamp and keep it burning BRIGHTLY!
Stay Close to the Heart of the Savior,
© 2008 Heart Notes From Home
Tags: Bible Study, Building up Church, Edification
