Lent Week 1

Here we are! Ash Wednesday

You can find all of the prep you need and links discussed HERE!

This week, we'll be focusing on John 6:35 "I am the bread of life."

The way we structure our time is what works for us. Our kids are 9 and 5 and have a pretty decent attention span. They also have tasks assigned during our family Lenten time. You also can meet together as a family as many days a week as you want to/can/remember/can get everyone on the same page. Lee will be gone several evenings this week, so I will do the Lent devotion with the kids and he'll join in with us when he gets back! Whatever works for you!

Here is a basic formula of what we will do this week. These concepts are fun for the kids (And adults) to remember and recall. Words in italics are things I may say to help guide conversation!

• Light a candle and pull out the toy piece of bread.

For our first week of Lent, we are going to be looking at a verse in the book of John. Chapter 6 verse 35. If your kids have their own Bibles, this is a great way for them to navigate that massive book with your help. Help them turn to the scripture.

"Then Jesus declared, I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty."

Have you ever been hungry? How about thirsty? 

We all have. But the type of hunger Jesus is talking about here isn't when our stomachs are empty. Jesus is telling people that he is going to be the only one who can make us not want anything else. He loves us so much that he gives us everything we need. Maybe that thing that we need is our food! He makes sure we have it. But maybe it's something else. Jesus gives us something that no one else can give us. He gives us love, and peace, and joy, and hope. But Jesus also gave us LIFE!! He made each of us and because of Jesus, we get to always be in a relationship with Him if we believe in Him! 

For us, at this point, we will read the Lenten devotion by Erin Moon and do The Divine Hour. Nina and I take turns reading and Brooks leads the Lord's prayer. We do The Gloria together.

Other options to elaborate on the story throughout the week:
- Memorize John 6:35 together as a family this week.
- Discuss Jesus feeding the multitudes in the Gospels
- Discuss manna in the Old Testament
- Talk about Jesus being born in Bethlehem which was called "The House of Bread"
- Make a loaf of bread and take it to a friend

Please comment if you make any changes so others can see and share what you're doing!

Happy Ash Wednesday everyone! (That sounds like a contradiction...)

"To everything there is a season and a time for every purpose under the heavens." - Ecclesiastes 3:1

Family Lent

In recent years, Lee and I have been very convicted by the amount of time we spend investing in Advent that we don't spend in Lent. Both are seasons of preparation and both are so important to our faith. However, Advent means nothing if not for the Cross. And, it's up to us as parents to make sure our children feel the same way.

I will attempt to make a post a few days before the "new week" of Lent begins. However, today, I'm going to help you gather the supplies you will need for the entire Lenten season

Food!
Let's be honest: food is our favorite part, right?!

Many people chose different food option as a penance for Lent. If this is you, adjust accordingly.

Ash Wednesday and Fridays are no meat except for fish. On Ash Wednesday, we will be having Pesto Pizza on Ash Wednesday and Fish Almondine on Friday (the recipe isn't posted online yet to link to.... It's in the newest Pioneer Woman cookbook)

On Fat Tuesday, we will be having New Orleans fare: Red Beans and Rice for dinner and I will be making this recipe for a King Cake!

Adults
Lee and I will be doing this incredible Lent guide. Erin Moon is a Bible scholar and one of the funniest people I've "known". (I mean, I follow her on Instagram.... so we're basically besties, yes?) We will be reading this guide in conjunction with our one year Bibles and The Bible Recap (Basically, what I'm telling you, is that everything you need is on the interwebs...)

Kids
Our kids are 5 and 9 and most of our Lenten activities are geared toward that demographic. Also, our kids are used to liturgy. Lee and I both really enjoy The Divine Hours by Phyllis Tickle . Lee was a rockstar and revised The Divine Hours and made it with more kid friendly language. You can download that here, if it's something you want to do. It helps to learn how to pray through Scripture and to learn the Lord's Prayer. It's beautiful to hear our children recite The Gloria and the Lord's Prayer in your living room at night. Learning the phrases and the words that have been recited by Christians for centuries brings tears to my eyes.

We went to the Dollar Tree and got little votives and candles. We shaped them into a cross with 8 candles. (We actually place ours on a wooden cross made from materials from the old dining hall at the camp where we met and both love to serve.) On each week (And on Good Friday and Easter Sunday), we will light a different candle and talk about the different "I am" statements taken from the book of John. (Adapted from "Finding I Am" by Lysa TerKeurst

Supplies
HEAR ME WHEN I SAY THIS: WE ARE NOT EXPERTS IN THIS. But we started doing this last year when we weren't able to find materials about how to lead a family during Lent and were amazed at how the Holy Spirit really spoke to their growing hearts through this season. Most of the supplies we used, we found in their toys. Actually, correction: ALL of them were found in the toys:

(except for the nail...)

• A piece of bread. (Don't use real bread if you have animals or The Bread of Life will be consumed prior to the Last Supper...)
• A light - a lantern, flashlight... whatever you can find to illuminate
• A gate- we used a little gate from the kids' Little People farm set. If you don't have that, build one out of popsicle sticks or toothpicks. 
• A lamb and a man. Again, we got these from the Little People box (Seriously some of THE most useful toys around) You're looking for something to be a shepherd. Be creative
• Something to show the way. We used a toy compass, an arrow, a road sign... You could even print off any of those
• A vine. It could be a twig or a switch, or an ivy branch.
• A nail
• An empty Easter egg

Every week, I will post what we will work through with our kids on our journey to the Cross. As a family, we will work to memorize the scripture verse with each of the "I Am" statements. 

Erin Moon also has a Lenten playlist on Spotify that I plan on having on in the evenings around the house (While cooking dinner, doing chores, etc.) Here is the link to that! 

How our children approach the Cross and the Holy seasons of our faith is up to how we demonstrate, as parents, their importance. If they 1) see it as a priority to us and 2) see us live it out in our lives (And not just doing it in front of them), they are more likely to internalize the Lord's teachings. 

The new week for the Lenten season starts on Wednesdays! I will try to upload that upcoming week's family devotion no later than Tuesday morning so you have a few minutes to look over the lesson. 

One of the most common things with Lent is for people to "give something up". For the most part, I don't think that our children grasp this concept or can understand the concept of sacrifice without falling into the trap of legalism. We try to add something IN to their lives. For us, it's making sure we're diligent to read their Bibles with them. I think we will also opt for no tv after school for any of us to create a more quiet home. And having worship music on around the house. The more WE have a heart of worship through our days, the more THEY will. 

PLEASE reach out to us with questions or things you're changing! Sharing is caring! So excited for this journey with you all! 

Psalm 145:4 "Let each generation tell its children of your mighty acts; let them proclaim your power."