Psalm 33:11

 Psalm 33:11 - 

The plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of His heart through all generations.

Psalm 23:1-6

Psalm 23:1-6

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures,  He leads me beside quiet waters.
He restores my soul, He guides me in paths of righteousness for His name's sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I should fear no evil,
For you are with me;
Your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life,
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.



AMEN!

1 John 3:1

Meredith's and Shane's latest memory verse for church...1 John 3:1 

Meredith - See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God.

Shane (shortened version) - See what great love the Father has lavished on us.

A Few Videos

 Norah Girl playing...

Caleb reciting Psalm 23:1-3 (remember verses for church)...

Meredith reciting Philippians 3:10 (also a remember verse for church)...

Ephesians 6:10

The kids' current memory verse for church is Ephesians 6:10 - Be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.  I just love hearing Shane recite it!

Sparks Verses

Caleb is in his first year of Sparks at AWANA.  Sparks is for Kindergartners, 1st graders and 2nd graders.  And, it is a lot different than Cubbies!  One of the big differences is that they can recite as many memorized verses each week as they can, as opposed to just 1 verse per week in Cubbies.  There is no required amount of recitation each week, though we were encouraged to do at least 1 verse per week, to keep on track.  

I went in to the year a little overwhelmed, I have to say.  Between his school work, Sparks work, work for Sunday church, and just life, I didn't know how it would all fit in! 

Thankfully, though, we've managed to establish a pretty decent routine, and I have been pleasantly surprised with Caleb's motivation in many areas - his Sparks memory verses being one of those areas!  

Granted, a lot of his motivation comes from getting his "jewels"...but whatever works.  The kid has memorized so many verses this year so far, I am amazed!

For this week, Caleb was determined to memorize 6 verses.  To be honest, I didn't think he could do it (shame on Mom!)...it just seemed like a lot.  But he was determined, so we have been practicing a lot.  At the beginning of the year, I had purchased a CD with all of the verses in his book set to music...and that helps a ton.  We listen to it a lot in the car, and he often sings a verse to remember how it goes.  I'm so glad my friend Jill told me about this CD, as I know that having them to music will help them "stick" for longer!

Anyway, here is a quick video of the 6 verses that Caleb has memorized in 1 short week.  It's so great to see him set his mind to something, and then accomplish it!

Genesis 1:1 - In the beginning, God created the Heavens and the Earth.
Genesis 1:31 - And God saw everything that he had made, and indeed it was very good.
Romans 3:23 - All have sinned, and fall short of the Glory of God.
John 17:17 - Sanctify them by your truth; your Word is truth.
1 Peter 1:25 - But the Word of the Lord endures forever.
John 14:6 - Jesus said to him, I am the Way and the Truth and the Life, and no one comes to the Father except through me.

A Few Quick Clips from Today

 A few moments from school this morning:  

The first 2 videos are of the kiddos saying our theme verse for this current "All About Me" unit.  The 3rd is Meredith singing the Months of the Year song.  Please excuse my own (not good) voice - I didn't realize how loudly my voice would be picked up....I really thought I was singing quietly!

 Psalm 139:14 - I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

  (not sure what the deal is with him holding the card over his mouth!?)

Did you notice the kids' capes?  Yet another perk of homeschool - no reason not to wear costumes. =)

Luke 10:27

Monthly Memory Verse for March:

Luke 10:27

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and love your neighbor as yourself.

Colossians 5:2

The monthly memory verse for January:

Colossians 5:2

"Set your mind on things that are above, not on things that are on earth."

As we were practicing this today, Caleb said..."This means that we need to think about God.  And Heaven."   Couldn't have said it better myself...

Gotta love Meredith's excitement.   And her pronunciation of things ("fings") and earth ("irf")! 

1 John 4:14(b)

The monthly memory verse for December:

1 John 4:14(b)

"The Father (God) has sent His Son to be the Savior of the world."

It's a little hard to hear Meredith, but if you listen closely, you'll hear that she got most of it all by herself!

Caleb likes to make up songs, and his creations oftentimes incorporate truths he's learned from the Bible.  His latest "song" goes something like this....

Christmas is oooooover,

But Jesus is still with us.....

I hope that our little ones never forget the truth of John 4:14, that God sent His Son to be our Savior.  

And that even when Christmas is over (or, oooooover), He is still with us.

Acts 16:31

The monthly memory verse for November:

Acts 16:31

"Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved."

Their Latest Memory Verses

First, their monthly memory verse for October:

Mark 5:36

"Jesus said 'do not fear, only believe'."

And, the verses that Caleb has memorized thus far for AWANA Cubbies...

1 John 4:10 - God loved us, and sent His Son.

Romans 3:23 - All have sinned.

Romans 5:8 - While we were sinners, Christ died for us.

1 John 4:8 - God is love.

Genesis 1:1 - In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.  

(This was actually the very first verse that Caleb memorized, a year ago!  Click here to see that video.)
 

And, a couple pictures of our own little Cubbie... 

He loves his vest.

Tonight is "silly glasses" night.  

 

We don't have any silly glasses, so we figured that if he wore his regular sunglasses upside-down, they would be silly enough.  It works.

AWANA Cubbies Week 1 Verses

The 3 verses that Caleb has had to memorize this past week for AWANA (which he loves, by the way!)....

1 John 4:10 - God loved us and sent His Son.

Romans 3:23 - All have sinned.

Romans 5:8 - While we were sinners, Christ died for us.

I probably won't manage to videotape every week's verses, but I wanted to at least document these very first ones.  

As you heard on the video, tonight was indeed "Pajama Night" and Caleb was very excited to wear his Lightning McQueen jammies that Nana & Papa got him for his birthday.  He is also very excited about the Cubbies vest that he will get to wear soon (they haven't come in yet).

John 20:29b

Caleb's memory verse for September...

John 20:29b
"Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." 

 

Caleb starts AWANA this week, and we are really excited! So...in addition to his monthly verses (from Sunday church), he'll have different ones to work on memorizing for AWANA as well.  It's great to see God's Word being stored up in his heart (Psalm 119:11) at this early age.

Psalm 56:3

Caleb's memory verse for August...

Psalm 56:3
"When I am afraid, I will put my trust in you."

1 Samuel 16:7(b)

Caleb's Memory verse for July...

1 Samuel 16:7(b)

"Man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart."

We've been talking a lot about what this verse means, and how God is concerned with what is in our hearts. To help him further understand this concept, I taught him about the fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22). I explained to him that there are certain things that God wants to "grow" in our hearts...love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. And, while some of these concepts are difficult for an almost-4-year-old to fully comprehend, he seems to understand enough about each word to know what that might look like in his life. For example: peace is trusting that God will always take care of us and we don't ever need to be afraid and self-control means thinking before making choices.

I wanted to have Caleb make something that could serve as a visual reminder of these fruits. So, this hangs on our fridge, and is referred to frequently.


2 Sundays ago, when Kris went to pick Caleb up from his Sunday School classroom, the teacher asked Kris if we practice Caleb's monthly verse at home, because he is always able to recite it during class. I'm more than thankful to know that God's Word is becoming familiar to Caleb, and not just at home.

Ephesians 6:1

Memory verse for June...

Ephesians 6:1

"Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right."

Joshua 24:24

Caleb's memory verse for May...

Joshua 24:24b
"The Lord our God we will serve, and His voice we will obey."

And, some effort/silliness/cuteness from M...

Isaiah 45:22

Caleb's memory verse for April...

Isaiah 45:22
Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth. For I am God and there is no other.

Proverbs 3:5

Caleb's memory verse for March...

Proverbs 3:5

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding."