Hearts and Hugs

by | Feb 4, 2022 | Mom Blog, Posts, Valentines Day

February is a great month to celebrate God’s love with your children! Hearts and Hugs is a simple activity to enjoy with your toddlers and preschoolers that will remind them of God’s love for them and your love for them too!

HEARTS AND HUGS

Supplies: Bible, paper, scissors, marker and pen

1. Cut

Cut four heart shapes out of paper. (See below for a heart pattern. You may like to use pink, white and/or red paper.)

2. Write

Write the following on the hearts:

Heart 1: The words and reference of 1 John 4:19.
Heart 2: The word God
Heart 3: The word loves
Heart 4: Your child’s name

3. Put

Put each heart in a different place where they will be easy to see in a room of your choice. For example, in your family room on a low table, on a chair, on a window sill and on the floor.

4. Find

Encourage your child to find the hearts and bring them to you.

5. Sit and Read

When all four hearts have been found and brought to you, sit with your child on your lap. Lay the hearts in order in front of you with the I John 4:19 heart first and then the other three hearts in word order. Read the words on the hearts, pointing to the hearts as you read. Give your child a hug!

6. One More Hug! :-)

Read the hearts again. Give your child another hug and say: “And Mommy loves you too!”

7. Repeat

Repeat as many times and for as many days as you like!

Heart Pattern Download

Ideas!

*Sing 1 John 4:19 together!  

*Partially hide the hearts the next time you enjoy this activity with your child if your child is ready for the challenge of finding them in less conspicuous places.

*If you have more than one young child, make a ‘name heart’ for each child. Use their ‘name heart’ when it is their turn to find the four hearts.  

*Laminate or contact plastic the hearts for durability.  

* When February is over, save the hearts to use again next year. Enjoy!  

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Marian Thomsen

Marian Thomsen

Wife, Mother, Mentor

“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”
Isaiah 41:10

Love Is…

Love Is…

, ,

February is a great month to help your children understand God’s definition of love found in 1 Corinthians 13. This activity is great for elementary school children or the whole family!

read more

Love Is…

by | Feb 4, 2022 | Mom Blog, Posts, Valentines Day

F ebruary is a great month to help your children understand God’s definition of love found in 1 Corinthians 13. This activity is great for elementary school children or the whole family!

LOVE IS SCRIPTURE PICTURE BOOK

Supplies: A Bible, paper, scissors, markers or crayons, hole punch and a binder ring or ribbon or string.

How To:

(It is recommended to prepare the hearts for the Love Is Scripture Picture Book following Steps 1 and 2, before enjoying this activity with your children.)

1. Cut

Cut seventeen hearts out of white paper. (See below for a heart pattern.)

2. Write

Write the Bible reference 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 on one heart. This will be the front page of the Scripture Picture Book.

Write one phrase from 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 per heart on the next fifteen hearts. For example: Write the words “Love is patient” on one heart, and “love is kind” on the next heart. (see pictures below)

On the final heart, write the date and the names and ages of the children who will help to make this book. This heart will be used as the back cover of the Scripture Picture Book.

3.Read

Read 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 from the Bible with your children.

4. Discuss

Share with your children that you are going to make a Love Is Scripture Picture Book together!

Give one child the first heart. Have all of your children listen while you talk with the child who has the heart. You may like to encourage your other children to offer answers after the designated child has had a chance to answer.

Ask your child:
1. What does your heart say?
2. What do the words mean?
3. What picture could you draw to tell what these words mean?

Give another child the next heart and repeat the above questions and discussion.

Continue to do this until each child has a heart.

5. Draw

Provide crayons, markers and/or colored pencils after you have discussed the meaning of the words on each heart that has been given to your children.

Have your children draw and color a picture that illustrates what the words on their paper heart says.

You may want to have each child draw one heart picture a day, or you can distribute other hearts on the same day when a child is ready to discuss and draw another picture.

Encourage thought and careful work. Let them know that they are creating pages of a Scripture Picture Book that will be enjoyed and read many times.

6. Collate

Collate all the completed hearts in verse order. Include the front and back cover. Punch a hole in the top left hand corner of each heart and add a binder ring or ribbon or string to hold the pages together.

7. Enjoy

Enjoy reading the Love Is Scripture Picture Book together.

On the first reading, take time to let each child share about their drawings before going to the next page.

Consider reading the Love Is Scripture Picture Book during each February Bible Time. You may like to encourage different children to read the book out loud to everyone during each Bible Time.

Heart Pattern Download
Idea!

At the end of February, store this Scripture Picture Book with your Valentine’s decorations and it will be ready to enjoy again next year.

Or store it with other Scripture Picture Books you have made with your children and enjoy reading the book all year long!!

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Marian Thomsen

Marian Thomsen

Wife, Mother, Mentor

“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”
Isaiah 41:10

Love Is…

Love Is…

, ,

February is a great month to help your children understand God’s definition of love found in 1 Corinthians 13. This activity is great for elementary school children or the whole family!

read more

Scripture Hearts

by | Feb 3, 2022 | Mom Blog, Posts, Valentines Day

Looking for a Valentine’s Day activity to enjoy with your older children? Perhaps you would like to consider Scripture Hearts! This activity is suitable for middle schoolers and high schoolers and other children who are very comfortable reading, researching, copying and writing.

The completed Scripture Hearts can be used during family discussion and/or while praying with your family year after year.

SCRIPTURE HEARTS

Supplies: Bible(s) and Bible Concordance(s), white, pink and red paper, scissors, pens

 

1. Cut

Cut hearts out of white paper.

Cut slightly larger hearts out of pink and red paper.

2. Find

Encourage your children to search for and find Bible verses that talk about God’s love, using a Bible concordance. This provides a wonderful opportunity for your children to learn how to use a concordance and how to search the Scriptures for themselves.

3.Write

After finding a Bible verse that talks about God’s love, have your child write the verse he found on a white heart.

4. Repeat

Have your children continue to find and write more Bible verses that talk about God’s love.

5. Glue

Glue each white verse heart onto a larger pink or red heart.

6. Share

Have your children share the verses they wrote on the hearts. Talk about how God’s love is described in each verse.

7. Pray

Pray out loud together. Have each person use the verse on one of their Scripture hearts as a guide as he thanks the Lord for His love.

Ideas!  

1. Set the completed hearts down the middle of your kitchen or dining room table as a decoration. Choose one heart to talk about as you enjoy meals together this February.  

2. Place one verse heart on each dinner plate on Valentine’s Day. Have each person read the verse on their heart and then use the verse as they pray and thank God for His love.  

3. Tape the hearts on various doors in your house. Enjoy reading the verses as you pass by them or use the posted hearts as a reminder to stop and tell God “Thank-You” for His great love.

Keep!  

You may want to laminate the completed hearts. Years ago, we laminated the Scripture Hearts our daughters made and I am so glad! These hearts have become a keepsake and we continue to enjoy them year after year.

Emphasis added.

Scripture quotations taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version ®, NIV®.
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ®
Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Note: Our family has used the NIV 1984 for many years. This is the NIV version we continue to enjoy.

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Marian Thomsen

Marian Thomsen

Wife, Mother, Mentor

“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”
Isaiah 41:10

Love Is…

Love Is…

, ,

February is a great month to help your children understand God’s definition of love found in 1 Corinthians 13. This activity is great for elementary school children or the whole family!

read more

Melanie Shares

by | Feb 2, 2022 | Mom Blog, Posts, Valentines Day

“What’s your favorite holiday?”

This classic conversation question has been hard for me to answer.

My family celebrates multiple holidays and all of them are special to me. Of course, it seems like the correct answer to the question ‘What’s your favorite holiday?’ should be either Christmas or Easter.

Christmas is the time we remember and celebrate Christ’s birth, His taking on human flesh for our sake (John 1:14). Easter is the time we remember Christ’s sacrificial death on the cross and His triumphal resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:3-5). Both of these holidays are very important and they grow in meaning for me as the years go by.

But if I’m really honest, my personal favorite holiday is actually…Valentine’s Day.

It’s my favorite for several reasons, the most important of which is that to me it is a celebration of God’s love.

Growing up my Mom made Valentine’s Day a whole family event. It was a time to celebrate God’s love for us and our love for each other. Some years our family’s celebration of Valentine’s Day was simple, other years more elaborate!

On occasion we would do a creative activity. One particularly meaningful craft project was writing Bible verses about God’s love on paper hearts and laminating them. We still use those cards as a decoration and/or as a guide for prayer around the dinner table.

Yet more than the decorations or crafts it’s the meaning that draws our hearts together. One of the most essential truths we need to know as human beings is that God loves us. My parents emphasized this to me since before I can remember and celebrating a Christ-centered Valentine’s Day was one of the ways they did so.

The result?

As a single in my 30s Valentine’s Day is my favorite holiday and one of the seasons when I feel most wrapped in the love of God. It’s a time to rejoice in what I know to be true in the depths of my soul, that God loves me. His love for me is not dependent on my performance; I do not have to earn it (Romans 5:8). It is freely given and since I have opened my heart to receive not just Christ, but His love, my joy goes beyond words.

Oh the wonder that I am loved by God!

And what a joy to offer back my love to Him! I do this through cultivating my relationship with Him and through letting His love spill over from my heart into the lives of others (Matthew 22:37-39). It’s wonderful to have a holiday that gives me a special opportunity to focus on doing this.

Celebrations are a time to remind ourselves of what is true and important. Valentine’s Day is certainly no exception. For when we know we’re loved, by God and others, celebrating comes quite naturally.

May your family’s Valentine’s Day this year be full of joy as you consider His great love for you!

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Melanie Thomsen

Communications, Discipleship & Story Blog Writer

 

"He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?" Micah 6:8

Love Is…

Love Is…

, ,

February is a great month to help your children understand God’s definition of love found in 1 Corinthians 13. This activity is great for elementary school children or the whole family!

read more

Three Questions

by | Feb 2, 2022 | Mom Blog, Posts, Valentines Day

As you prepare to celebrate a Christ centered Valentine’s Day with your family, may I encourage you to take a moment to pray and ask the Lord for His guidance?

THREE QUESTIONS

Then, as you wait on the Lord you may like to consider three simple questions:

1. What hymn would we like to sing?
2. What Bible passage would we like to enjoy?
3. What activity would we like to do?

IDEAS

If you would like some creative ideas as you pray and plan for your family’s Valentine’s Day celebration watch for more Valentine’s Day posts here on the Mom Blog!  

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Want to be updated about new posts and receive notes from Marian? Sign up here!

Marian Thomsen

Marian Thomsen

Wife, Mother, Mentor

“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”
Isaiah 41:10

Love Is…

Love Is…

, ,

February is a great month to help your children understand God’s definition of love found in 1 Corinthians 13. This activity is great for elementary school children or the whole family!

read more

It’s Just Like His Great Love

by | Feb 2, 2022 | Mom Blog, Audio, Posts, Sing, Valentines Day

Are you looking for a hymn to sing with your family this Valentines Day?

“It’s Just Like His Great Love” is a wonderful hymn to consider. The words found in the three verses of this hymn are a great reminder of the glorious truth that Christ loves us.

 

It’s Just Like His Great Love

Chorus
It’s just like Jesus to roll the clouds away,
It’s just like Jesus to keep me day by day.
It’s just like Jesus all along the way,
It’s just like His great love.

Verse 1
A friend I have called Jesus,
Whose love is strong and true,
And never fails how-e’er ’tis tried,
Now matter what I do;
I’ve sinned against this love of His,
But when I knelt to pray,
Confessing all my guilt to Him,
The sin-clouds rolled a-way.

Verse 2
Sometimes when clouds of trouble
Blot out the sky above,
I cannot see my Saviour’s face,
I doubt His wondrous love;
But He, from heaven’s mercy seat,
Beholding my despair,
In love removes the clouds between,
And shows me He is there.

Verse 3
O I could sing forever
Of Jesus’ love divine,
Of all His care and tenderness
For this poor life of mine;
His love is in and over all,
And wind and waves obey
When Jesus whispers “Peace, be still!”
And rolls the clouds away.

Words by: Edna H. Worrell

LYRICS AND ACCOMPANIMENT

If you would like to print a free copy of the words for this hymn see download below:

Lyrics for "It's Just Like His Great Love"

Or perhaps you would appreciate some piano accompaniment as you sing! We welcome your family to sing along with this recording as our daughter Kristen plays “It’s Just Like His Great Love” on the piano.

It's Just Like His Great Love

May your family’s hearts rejoice as you enjoy singing together this Valentines Day!

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Marian Thomsen

Marian Thomsen

Wife, Mother, Mentor

“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”
Isaiah 41:10

Love Is…

Love Is…

, ,

February is a great month to help your children understand God’s definition of love found in 1 Corinthians 13. This activity is great for elementary school children or the whole family!

read more

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