Joshua’s House

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What movies are OK to watch? Should I stand up for the underdog? What should I do in this situation? How do I deal with this person? Tim stole my toy, should I steal one of his back? Are these similar to some questions you may have heard leaving the mouth of your children?

It’s so easy to quickly spout off an answer to guide your children in the right paths. But wait, by taking just a few more minutes, you can teach them so much more!

It is important that our children learn to go to God to find the solution for all their problems. Here’s an idea of something you could get started at a family worship, or one afternoon after church. Once you’ve made this Solution Archive, you can continue to add to it as new problems arise. Then, when your kids seek guidance, you can go to the Solution Archive together to see what God’s Word has to say.

For this activity you will need:

• 3×5 File box
• 3×5 note cards
• 3×5 Alphabet Dividers
• Concordance
• Bible

What are some things that your kids might face? Let’s say your daughter is planning on going to a sleepover with some of her friends. They are planning on watching some movies and she’s not sure if all of the features on the play list are the best choice. What should she do? First search God’s word. Sometimes a concordance or topical dictionary in the back of the Bible might be helpful. In this case you may want to use a study Bible. See if there is anything in the back about entertainment.

Philippians 4:8 addresses this very issue:

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. ”

Now you would make a card with the heading “Entertainment.” Then you would put this Bible verse on the card, and would file it under “E” for entertainment. But wait, before you file it, take some time to talk it over with your child. What does it mean for something to be true, noble, right, etc? What other areas of life can this be applied to?

Now your daughter will see that God’s word is relevant and that she can turn to it for guidance no matter what her trials are.