Starting off the day right...

When my children were very young, we determined to start each day off with a short Bible study together.  At first we did a little verse, talked about it and counted ladybugs in their little devotional book.  By the time they were 5 we advanced to reading a chapter in the Bible together each day, talking about it, and doing "popcorn" prayers where, beginning with the youngest, each person would pray about how they'd apply what we talked about to their life.

As they grew older, it was just a habit that was easy to keep to.  When we homeschooled, it was a great way to start the day.  When they were in school, they knew that they had to be dressed and at the table at 7:15 a.m. for the Bible study.  They couldn't be late or they had to write the chapter!  

Through the years, that little 15-25 minute Bible study became God's podium to speak into our lives as a family.  It seemed God always knew what we needed to hear, and as we read through the entire Bible twice together as a family, the lesson was usually very pertinent.

This little study time also gave us a strong spiritual connection into each other's hearts.  Praying together is really powerful.  Even when at times their whole hearts may not have been into it because they were focused on getting off to school, we had a lot of great discussion and insight and commitment during those times.  Also, even when everyone scattered and were off in different directions in their days, we had that awesome connection with each other each morning.

Challenge:  Take the time to begin the day with prayer and Bible study as a family as often as you can.  It makes it very easy if you start off when your children are young; then when everyone gets older they know it is possible to keep time open first thing in the morning to "get into the huddle" with the Lord before going out into the field!  Stay connected to the Lord AND to each other!