Tadpoles

 

And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. Deut.11:19

What child doesn't enjoy a picnic at the pond, wading in and discovering tadpoles, and searching for a paper cup to take home a few swimming memories?

Betsy James perfectly captures not only a child's summer of learning about the frog lifecycle but also discovering her love and understanding of family.

The story is written from Molly's point of view. The reader can hear the child's speech and attitude, and her immaturity in every sentence. Molly has a baby brother. She's just a tad jealous. She wants to be carried. She wants to be held. She also wants to know more about her tadpoles and how they become frogs.

Molly's mom and dad help her care for the tadpoles she brings home from a day at the pond. The reader learns about caring for tadpoles. The illustrator does a great job of incorporating pictures of the frog life cycle with illustrations of the story. Along with the illustrator, Molly creates her own drawings of the tadpole growth.

As Molly's tadpoles grow, so does her little brother Davey. And so does Molly's love for Davey. She holds him up to show him her tadpoles. She helps him begin to learn to walk. Her mom and dad gently lead her in learning about babies by allowing her to watch the tadpoles grow. Her parents also encourage her knowledge and love of nature.

In the end, Molly must release her tadpoles, now frogs, back into the pond. Turning loose of the "babies" she's raised is hard for her and even harder when Davey's enthusiasm causes what seems to be a catastrophe. Mom finds a way to turn a catastrophe into joy. Davey, with Molly's help, has now learned to walk.

I wish I had been that good at parenting. This book will not only help children learn about nature, siblings, and life cycles, but it will help us as parents to understand the stages and reasoning of our littles.

Heavenly Father, help me to not only teach our children about your creation but also to teach them of the love you have for us. Help us train our children daily in your word. Help us show them your loving sacrifice in giving your Son, Jesus, for our sins. In Jesus' name. Amen. 

Follow the Son

 And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. ~ Luke 9:23

While growing sunflowers over the years I've noticed a few things.

• No matter the time of day sunflowers follow the sun.From early morning to late afternoon, they face the sun. 
• Their roots grow deep into the soil, cleansing it from radiation, arsenic, and other harmful chemicals.

I've also noticed the blessings that people have who follow God's Son every day.

• Following the Son keeps our eyes on Jesus and not on the world
• Being rooted in Jesus cleanses us from the harmful effects of the world.

I watch as bees carry pollen from flower to flower, helping the seeds to form.

• The pollen from the sunflowers feeds the bees.
• The seeds feed other animals, birds, and people. 
• The seeds also drop into the soil beneath, allowing new plants to form

There are seeds that form in our lives.

• As we interact with other Christians, we grow in knowledge and love.
• We are able to feed others with the seeds of the gospel.
• We teach our children who are under our care and instruction to grow into strong Christians.

The leaves of the sunflower plant gather sunlight. 

• The leaves transform sunlight into chlorophyll.
•  The chlorophyll feeds the plant and helps it grow stronger. 

The old folks used to say, "Leaf through that catalog and see what you like. Leaf through that book and see if it might be a good read." They referred to the pages. 

• If we "leaf" through the pages of the Bible, stopping to read, study, even devour passages we grow stronger.
• A solid reading of the scripture gives us knowledge, and then we are able to give every person an answer for the hope within us.

Heavenly  Father, help us to take notice of Your creation, allowing it to open our eyes to your truth.Your word tells us that the invisible things of You from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even Your eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: (My paraphrase from Rom. 1:20) Direct our lives, O Lord, we pray. In Jesus' name. Amen.

To Tell the Truth

 

 For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting;

and his truth endureth to all generations. Psalms 100:5

"What is truth?" Pilate asked Jesus this question. He didn't wait to hear the answer. 

The picture on this blog of the apple blossom with the bee inside tells us a truth. An apple blossom opened and its sweet fragrance drew a bee. The bee is pollinating the apple blossom by dusting the pollen from the stamen (the male part of the flower) onto its body and dusting pollen from other apple trees onto the pistil (the female part) of the apple blossom. From this pollination, an apple will form which will be food for many creatures and people. It will also form seeds that will grow more apple trees. 

That's not the end of the picture. What about the bee? It will return to the hive with pollen to be made into honey to feed the hive and allow the queen to produce more bees to replenish the hive. The honey will also be food for other creatures and people. 

This is a very simple explanation of both processes, but it is plain that there must have been a plan for this to work so perfectly in tandem. Would we just pour liquids into a vial and wait until it exploded and expect to make something? We would never attempt even the most simple of tasks without first having a plan we expect to succeed. 

Pilate asked the same question many people ask today. "What is truth?" Earlier Jesus, while praying to the Father declared "thy word is truth." (John 17:17).

So why is it that we ask "What is truth?" when we have the truth probably in our own homes. Suppose we don't have a copy of God's word in our homes. Romans 1:20 says we are without excuse. That creation itself shows us the Godhead and His eternal power. You may say, "nature has evolved over millions of years." Why not consult the truth?

 Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created...

So many people today are rejecting the truth in the name of equity, love, tolerance, etc, etc, etc. The truth is no one wants the truth because it doesn't approve of their sin. Excuse me for the politically incorrect term. I should have said agenda. Sin is sin and I called it what it is. Anything that is the opposite of truth is a lie. A lie is a false witness. The Bible has said Do not bear false witness. Again, truth is God's word. What other truths are found from the beginning?

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. ~ Genesis 1:27

And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.
Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. ~Genesis 2:23,24

Heavenly Father, Help others not to think I am unkind. My desire, Lord, is to speak the truth in love so that no one is deceived by believing a lie. In Christ Jesus's name. Amen.

Hey Kids:

Spring is showing up more every day. What a special time of year Life is being resurrected from the dead of winter. We discussed some of God's special plan for creation in the devotion above. 

As the weather warms, go out and try spotting bees. 

Count how many flowers a bee visits in a minute.

What type of flowers are the bees visiting?

If you're not allergic, see how close you can get. Can you spot the pollen sacs on the back legs?

Honey bees won't usually sting because once they sting they die.

Try journaling your observations. Draw some pictures of the bees you've spotted.

Thank Jesus for His marvelous creation. 

For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. Colossians 1:16

I borrowed some of the Hey Kids ideas from my friend's new devotional Quirky Critter Devotions by Annette Whipple. Check out her devotions and activities for an adventurous summer. 

Windows of Learning (1)

 

But ask the animals, and they will teach you,

    or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you;

8 

or speak to the earth, and it will teach you,

    or let the fish in the sea inform you.

9 

Which of all these does not know

    that the hand of the Lord has done this?

Job 12:7-9 (NIV)

I wonder what this boy is thinking. He's mesmerized by God's creation just outside his window. Can you see him in your mind looking back to see if anyone is watching? Then slipping through the window to discover something. Something really cool, forgetting all about the school lessons on his desk that need to be finished before supper. 

Why do we make learning so difficult? Watch, no, observe a child observing a bug, squatting down, focused, momentarily reaching out to touch it. Maybe just with a stick. Maybe prodding it with a finger or a toe. But the child is learning, discovering what God has created to show us about Himself. Will the child learn more from the books and papers on his desk? Can he learn the same material from the things he's discovering outside his window? I truly think he can and this is why. From Genesis chapters 1 and 2 we can observe these things. 

• God created the universe.
• God is in control of the universe.
• God created the universe to tell us about Himself.
• God wants us to learn about His creation.
• God wants us to have dominion over creation--that does not mean controlling but working with creation for our betterment and the creation. 

That little fellow who was observing the bug will likely tell on himself when he comes to supper full of questions about the things he observed. Mom, Dad, or siblings don't have to give him the answers. All that is needed is to point him in the right direction to find those answers with age-appropriate texts, (fiction and/or non-fiction), technology, a visit to a nature center, etc. In the meantime, what will he do? He'll likely collect that bug and draw a picture of it. When he reads about it he may use the text as a mentor text to write about his find. He may measure the length of his captor, count its legs, and observe its wings. He may figure out what it eats. All the while making notes so he can remember this especially cool bug. 

Has he learned anything important? Sure! Check out the standards for education in your state. SC standards can be found here: https://ed.sc.gov/instruction/standards-learning/ Check any grade level, including high school biology, and you will find he has met many of the standards with just this one bug. Check the English, Math, and Writing Standards as well. Maybe the bug has even played a role in history by immigrating to your area from some other part of the world during a particular event. He has integrated learning in all subjects with just one little bug. He has learned things he will never forget, including the memories he made with his parents, siblings, and friends. He won't dump this info as soon as the test is over. Oh, what test? 

If you included the Creation story in your discussions, you have implanted the Word of God in his knowledge, or perhaps the bug is a locust and there are also other Bible stories to go along with his studies.  Education is just outside your window or perhaps in your kitchen or garage or tool shed and it's never boring if we allow God's creation to lead the way. 

Heavenly Father, help us let Your Creation lead the way in teaching our children even the most complicated subjects because You are the ultimate Teacher. In Jesus' name. Amen.

God's Great Love

 

                                         

For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:38,39 KJVWe camped in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. As usual it was overflowing with people, but we were there for the same reason, to find some peace from the crazy rat race of work and cell phones and TV's and technology of every description that invades our lives every day. True, without technology, I wouldn't be able to share this with you, but sometimes you do need a break.
When you cross into the park, your cell phone immediately loses signal. It will search until all power is gone, which won't take long unless you cut the phone off completely. Then to get your pictures you have to go through all the stuff to get it back on and to the camera. Whew! Word to the wise, pack another camera. We camped at Cades Cove. There are no electrical sites, except maybe the handicapped sites, another shut down of technology. I'm not sure if even the generator powered campers had the ability to receive TV and radio signals. Who would want it when you are surrounded by the glory of God's creation.
The eleven mile loop that takes you through forest and meadows and leads you to old cabins and trails. Traffic creeps along at ten to fifteen miles an hour with people stopping to view deer and bear. Pull-offs are frequent for those wishing to get out and get a closer look or walk through cabins and along trails. You may be accompanied by fifty to hundred people but most speak in whispers, in awe of the beauty that surrounds them. Smiles greet you as fingers point out the wildlife across the meadow or up in the tree. I thought, this is almost heaven. There are no harsh words. There is no hurry. There is no worry. That's probably why so many signs say stay fifty feet back from wildlife! We lose all fear. Peace and calm reign and you wish for the day to never end.
The highest mountain in the Smokies is Clingman's Dome. For many years it was thought to be the highest mountain in the east until more accurate measurements declared Mt Mitchell the winner. There are also a significant amount of caverns under the Smokies. Most are not open to the public, but there are a few. We ventured into Tuckaleechee with an older guide who knew the cavern inside out. Though I didn't take pictures inside (I didn't know going in I could take my camera), the beauty and magnificence of the cavern was awesome. Stalactites and stalagmites, curtains of formations, underground rivers and a waterfall, amazement at every turn. Then he turned off the lights, but God was still there in the dark, the dark you could almost feel. Here in the Smoky Mountains, we could ascend to one of the highest peaks or descend in one of the deepest caverns. No matter where we were, we were never without God. We could pray at the heights or in the depths. God would still hear. We could still feel His presence. We still had His love. There is no escape from God or His love and why would you want to escape? It's because of His love that we have the beauty of His creation. It's because of His love that we have salvation through Christ Jesus. God is love (I John 4) in all He does.
Heavenly Father we thank you for your loving kindness in creating this tiny earth filled with wonder. Thank you for placing us in the midst of the wonder. We are such a tiny speck on the earth in the midst of your gigantic universe yet you care for us. You sent Your Son to die for us in the midst of our sin. May we never lose sight of Your great mercies. In Jesus's name Amen
Hey Kids:
God's creation is so amazing. Have you ever thought that God created all things because He loves us? From the smallest atom to the tallest tree to the deepest cavern, we can see our amazing God and His love for us.
Why not take a little vacation from technology this week and take note of something far more amazing - God's creation.
Take pictures or draw or write about something awesome.
Here's some hints to get you started.
Watch fireflies or lightning bugs as they begin their nightly dance. What makes them glow without burning up?
Listen for woodpeckers in search of food or building homes. Why doesn't his beak break or bend?
Check a flower bud for a few days to watch it as it opens. Does it twirl open or pop or slowly, slowly broaden its petals.
Can you find a way to measure the tallest tree in your yard or neighborhood or park?
What other things can you find that God has created to bless you with?

What is Life?

photo courtesy of Pixabay

I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well. ~Psalms 139:14 KJV

A friend of mine posted a picture this week of a swan walking around Lake Junaluska, NC. Its majestic swagger was evident even in a still photo. I wondered if he was looking for a mate or a place to show her for a nest. 

I follow the Wonderfilled Days blog, though I no longer teach or homeschool or even have children at home, I love reading her explorations and connections to children's literature. Part of her email this week was about The Trumpet of the Swan by E.B. White. She brought to the reader's attention that at the end of most chapters Sam, posed a question, a thought provoking question. 

    "I don't know of anything in the entire world more wonderful to look at than a nest with eggs in it. An egg because it contains life is the most perfect thing there is. It is beautiful and mysterious. An egg is a finer thing than a tennis ball or a cake of soap. A tennis ball will always be just a tennis ball. A cake of soap will always be just a cake of soap until it gets so small nobody wants it and they throw it away, an egg will someday be a living creature."

~The Trumpet of the Swan

We value so many things, our grandmother's china cabinet, or our dad's '67 Mustang. We value the homerun baseball signed by our favorite player and the concert tickets from that special night but how valuable is a life? Tennis balls, fragrant soap, china, cars, signed balls, and tickets are just stuff, even those with memories attached are still just stuff but an egg, any egg is life itself. It will grow and transform into that beautiful cygnet, a bluebird, a salamander, or a platypus. Watching a mother robin tend her nest and seeing the newly hatched chicks is one of my favorite childhood memories. But these are not the only eggs that contain life. 

We may not be able to see the horse's egg or our dog's egg, or even a goat's egg but they all originate as an egg. Neither can we see the human egg inside the mother's womb but it is there growing with God forming the little person's every detail. He creates each human with love and a purpose. Whether there is only one child or twenty, whether the child is born into a family or adopted a child is still created with purpose and loved by God. 

Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward
As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth.
Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate. ~Psalms 128:3-5

So much is happening to destroy the lives of our children physically, mentally, and spiritually. The swan builds a nest six feet wide to lay her eggs and protect her cygnets. The cob (male swan) swims close by guarding her and the young. Like swans, we need strong homes with watchful fathers and mothers who "fuss" over our families.  I pray we watch carefully over our children from conception to their flight from our nests. 

Father, give us a new heart for children and families. Help us guard them against Satan's entanglements and create a home where the wonders of the Lord and His salvation are shared daily. In Jesus's name. Amen. 

Hey Kids: 

Have you read The Trumpet of the Swan by E.B. White? Perhaps you have had it read to you. 

Did you notice the questions Sam thought of each night? 

He wrote them in a journal by his bed and pondered them as he went to sleep each night.

When he wondered about eggs he also wondered how the bird knew how to build a nest. 

Take some time to go outside and watch as spring brings new life. Watch as the birds and insects and other animals prepare homes for new life. 

Create a journal for your observations and questions. Ask for help finding literature about your questions. Add quotes from the literature or Bible verses that support your observations and questions.

Wonder at the wonderful world God has created to for us to enjoy and teach us of His great love. 

Water in the Beginning

And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. Genesis1:7

Eight times in the first nine verses of Genesis the word water or waters appears. One of my Bible Study students mentioned that her "aha" moment this week was the often mention of water in the creation since The Holy Spirit is often symbolized by water. 

I'd never really thought of water in the creation like that! All three of the Trinity were present at the time of creation. God said "Let us make man in our image." But here was the water covering everything as the Spirit covers our lives and controls our thoughts and actions if we know the Lord and allow Him control as we should. Here the water was above and below saturating the universe with life. Yes, life because without water we cannot live and without the Holy Spirit we have no eternal life. 

The image above helps me think of the beginning of the world. The clouds above and the water beneath, both in motion yet controlled and purposeful. The tides to cleanse the ocean and more. The clouds moved by the winds to move great ships, bring more water in rains, and more. All working in tandem for God's purposes. 

There is so much the Creation can teach us about God and His eternal purpose if we only stop and take the time to notice if we study and share if we listen to God's creation speak to our hearts and in our lives. 

Our Bible Study uses the S.O.A.P. method. 

• Scripture
• Observation
• Application
• Prayer

Read a chapter and write down the verse that seems to jump out.

Write down what you observe about the passage

Write how it applies to you.

Pray and ask God to help you apply this truth to your life.

Who will you study and share with this week? We will continue our study of Genesis in our Bible Study Class. We invite you to share your thoughts with us.

Blessings,

Gail

Work Together

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28

At a recent book fair, I had the privilege of meeting Cathryn and John Sill. She is the author of All About Birds, All About Mammals, All About Reptiles, etc. He illustrates her books. Mr. Sill's illustrations are true matches for his wife's words. One without the other would not make a very informative book. There would be beautiful pictures without explanations or concise information without a necessary visual. Working together, they create great non-fiction books for children 4-7 years old.

Genesis 1:1 says,"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." Later verse 26 says, "Let us make man in our image." (emphasis mine.) The Lord gives us His word and He illustrates it through creation. If we only look at creation without reading the scriptures, we only get a minimal view of God's plan. If we only read the scriptures and never examine the creation, we fail to get a good understanding of how things work together. Working together, God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit have created perfect information and illustrated it for us.

The Lord not only created and controls creation, He also sets up and control governments, things visible and invisible working out His plan. Knowing God the Father has given all things to the control of His Son, Jesus Christ, (I Corinthians 15:25-27; Hebrews 2:8) gives me great courage to hopefully work together to be the illustration of Jesus in my life.

Blessings, 

Gail   

Hey Kids:

Did you know Jesus has provided stories in the Bible with great illustrations in Creation?

Here are a few examples you may want to investigate this week. 

What can you discover by reading scripture and observing nature?

Ants - Proverbs 6:6-11

Spiders - Proverbs 30:28

How can these illustrations be applied to our lives? Colossians 3:17,23

Now try these.

Seeds - Matthew 13:3-9, 18-23

Sheep - Isaiah 53:6; John 10:11, 14-15

Rock - Matthew 7:24-27 I Corinthians 10:4

What Is Truth?

 For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting;

and his truth endureth to all generations. Psalms 100:5

What is truth? Pilate asked Jesus this question. He didn't wait to here the answer. 

The picture on this blog of the apple blossom with the bee inside tells us a truth. An apple blossom opened and its sweet fragrance drew a bee. The bee is pollinating the apple blossom by dusting the pollen onto its body and dusting pollen from other apple trees onto the pistil of the apple blossom. From this pollination an apple will form which will be food for many creatures and people. It will also form seeds that will grow more apple trees. 

That's not the end of the picture. What about the bee? It will return to the hive with pollen to be made into honey to feed the hive and allow the queen to produce more bees to replenish the hive. The honey will also be food for other creatures and people. 

This is a very simple explanation of both processes, but it is plain that there must have been a plan for this to work so perfectly in tandem. Would we just pour liquids into a vial and wait until it exploded and expect to make something? We would never attempt even the most simple of tasks without first having a plan if we plan to succeed. 

Pilate asked the same question many people ask today. "What is truth?" Earlier Jesus, while praying to the Father declared "thy word is truth." (John 17:17).

So why is it we ask "What is truth?" when we have the truth probably in our own homes. But suppose we don't have a copy of God's word in our homes, Romans 1:20 says we are without excuse. That creation itself shows us the Godhead and His eternal power. You may say, but nature has evolved over millions of years. Why not consult the truth?

 Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created...

Hey Kids:

Our school session is winding down. We have learned so many things this year. Maybe you have learned about the rotation of the solar system. We daily observe that rotation by the rising and setting of the sun and the travel of the moon and stars across the night sky. But did you know the Bible says the earth is a circle? Isaiah 40:22

What truths can you discover by observing God's marvelous creation?

What things can you discover that are 3s like the Godhead? 

Hint: the sun

What things show love by sacrificing themselves?

Hint: animals with little ones.

What do the lives of animals like bees show us about God's truth? 

Hint: bee communication

Have fun this summer discovering truth

Gail