Hi, welcome to our podcast. This is Jessica and I'm so glad that you could be here with me today. I just want to talk a little bit about raising my toddler son, Joshua, to know The Lord at a young age and really setting him up with the basic building blocks that he's gonna need throughout his Christian walk to develop a growing relationship with Jesus Christ that's going to be able to stand the test of time, that will be able to sustain him when he's going through temptations when he's older, and really be able to resist some of the philosophies and some of the theories that come against the Word of The Lord in our society today.

"we also need to take the time when they're toddlers to be able to put these basic, fundamental building blocks inside of them so that they will develop a love for the Word of God"

We take the time to teach our children the basic building blocks for education and for learning in the future. We sing the alphabet song so that they know their letters because we believe that that will help them to learn how to read at an early age. We teach them songs so that they can have memorization and they become better conversators through those songs, and we teach them their body parts, and we just know how to do it naturally so that they will be able to be educated and be better learners in the future. But we also need to take the time when they're toddlers to be able to put these basic, fundamental building blocks inside of them so that they will develop a love for the Word of God and that they, on their own, will one day learn to be able to foster that relationship and that knowledge of god -- that they will want to pray when they wake up in the morning and that on their own they’d be able to bless the meal, thanking god for it without having to be prompted or reminded.

"...the Word of God has to be, number one, demonstrated in our life; but, number two, it has to be practical."

So, we know that we really do a lot of that work up front for them so that it becomes first nature for them in the future and that there's no hesitation. We like to really talk about stories regarding godly characteristics in the New Testament, the life of Jesus, some of the things that He did for the people, and we marvel at God's hand and His willingness to touch the people. The people were without a shepherd and they needed someone to help them; they needed someone to heal them. Some of them were poor and had no money to eat, but then Jesus arrived on the scene and He was so willing to give Himself to the people and offer His body, His hand, His blessing in whatever aspect they need. We also go back to creation a lot because we know that the Word of God has to be, number one, demonstrated in our life; but, number two, it has to be practical.

So, when we look at Genesis and the creation of the world, it's practical because when they go outside and they look all around them, they can see God's hand. They see with their eyes; it's in front of them. They see a sun that makes its circuit across the sky every day. It rises in the East and it sets in the West, and we know that it is part of God's creation and it obeys His command. We see the birds are able to be cared for even during a snowstorm, and God tells them where to go, and they look so feeble, but really they're able to survive in amazing climates because God cares.

"...this is a promise to the believer: that Christ would be inside of your heart so that you would be able to share Him with your family"

We recently went to the beach and I was able to explain to him, “Look at where the waves stop in their place. God commands that they would not go any further, and so they obey the voice of The Lord just as we are to, because we are also part of Creation.” So we can see that, certainly, God is able to show Himself in the nature all around us. The thing that really equips you to be able to teach your children, you know, sometimes we get nervous and we’re thinking, “Oh, they have to go to a vacation Bible school,” or “We need somebody else to teach our children.” But if you have a relationship with Christ, if you know Him as your personal savior, He gives you a promise inside the Bible that He equips you to teach the Word of God. Galatians 1:15 says, “But when God, who set me apart from my mother's womb and called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal His son in me so that I might preach Him.” So we know that this is a promise to the believer: that Christ would be inside of your heart so that you would be able to share Him with your family, that you would be able to teach your children who Jesus Christ is as He lives inside of you, as Christ takes over more of your life that you would leave your children to be able to know Him and to receive Him as well.

We thank You, God, that we have no greater calling in our life than to teach our children who You are, and to teach them the Word of God that will sustain them for all the days of our life. You have allowed Your son, Jesus Christ, to be birthed within our hearts, and we are fully equipped to bring the gospel to our households, to our children, so that they would know you, that they would run into the shelter of the Almighty and that they would be safe! We see Your authorship and Your artistry in the work of creation, God, and we acknowledge all that You have done, Lord; and we pray that our children, Father, would learn who You are, that they would see the godly characteristics coming alive even within us. Lord, that we would give You thanks on a daily basis and that we would be able to teach our children who You are, what You have done, and what You will come to do! You are returning for Your Church, Lord. You will be returning for our families and for our children. Let us be awakened and be prepared for Your return! We thank You, Jesus, this day. In Your name we pray, amen.

So I’d just like to thank all my listeners today, and we will be able to successfully teach our children the building blocks in having a relationship with Jesus Christ. Amen.