This weekend we are handing out Bibles to all our second graders. I still have my 3rd grade Bible that I received from First United Methodist Church of Red Oak. I hope and pray that our 2nd graders treasure their Bibles like I have treasured mine. I look forward to this weekend every year and the chance to pray a prayer of blessing over our 2nd graders.
Tina Schramme, our Children’s Ministry Director always encourages our 2nd graders to invite parents, grandparents, other family and friends to underline or highlight their favorite stories or verses and then sign it and identify it as their favorite.
Today I want to share five scriptures that I would encourage parents to highlight and share with their 2nd graders in their new Bible.
If you were not present this past weekend and your child would like to receive a Bible, please let me know.
1. Psalm 139
When our daughter was born, we had a friend paint a few words from this Psalm over our daughters bed. Using the New Living Translation, she wrote, “Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex.” Psalm 139 is a simple reminder that our life was created and shaped by the hand and blessing of God. This is a great Psalm for you to read with your kids and then share with them the excitement and anticipation you had leading up to their birth.
2. John 3:16
John 3:16 has been called, “the gospel in miniature.” This simple and short verse speaks to God’s love and affection for all humanity and the steps God has taken to bring us into relationship with God. This is a great verse for you to memorize with your child.
In my bedroom growing up, my mom hung a poster of a young boy who looked like a total mess with the caption, “Don’t worry, God is not finished with me yet.” That picture reminds me of Paul’s words to the church at Philippi. Paul writes, “he who began a good work in you… he is going to complete that good work.” We are all on the journey together!
We share these words each time a child comes to the front to be baptized. It’s part of why we care so much about families and believe we have a great responsibility to love and nurture kids. Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, for to such as these belongs the Kingdom of God.”
Deuteronomy 6:4-5 is known as the Shema, one of the most important prayers of Judaism that Jesus would have said every day of his life. When Jesus is asked by the religious leaders to tell them what was the greatest commandment, Jesus quoted from Deuteronomy 6. These verses are also a great reminder of how God sees the purpose and mission of families. “These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.”
