Keeper of the Home & Little Hearts

It's the first official week of summer vacation. While I'm happy to get a break from the daily grind that school brings, the boys are happy to get away from the s choolwork. The school year brought with it a steady stream of homework, tests, projects and memory Bible verses. 

Just last week, I told myself I wanted to keep up the scripture memorization for them this summer. But wasn't sure how to incorporate this...until my sweet friend Kelli posted a photo on Instagram this morning. Family scripture memorization. Duh! Why didn't I think of that?

Right now I have them posted on my picture frame turned "hand-made" dry erase board. But I like her idea of putting them on index cards that way I'll have a record of what scriptures we have memorized this summer and be able to review them. 

As a busy mom, it's so easy to get in the rut of being a keeper of the home and make sure they have clean clothes, food to eat and a tidy home, but I have to remember that I'm also a keeper of these little hearts as well. What a disservice to them if I didn't train them in the ways of the Word and left them to decide on when they wanted to learn God's Word. My greatest desire is not to just point the way but to be a living truth of the lessons I'm trying to teach them. 

Deuteronomy 6:6-9 says:

6 “And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. 

7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.

 8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 

9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

We are to diligently teach the scriptures to our children. Not casually or as an afterthought. That's some hefty stuff right there!  And it's a continual teaching so that the Word won't just be in their mouths, but will transfer to their hearts as well. It's one thing to offer lip service but quite another for that Word to be rooted and settled in you.

In the Message Bible Psalm 119:11 says: "I’ve banked your promises in the vault of my heart so I won’t sin myself bankrupt." I've seen far too many people sin themselves bankrupt because they weren't well-versed in the Word and weren't equipped to fight temptation. The more Word they have stored up, the more ammunition they have to pull from to battle the enemy of their soul.

So we are starting the summer off with an awesome promise from God's Word. I'm praying they claim it for their future families and generations to come as well. 

Got any tips? I'd love to hear them.