Families are rich and fertile soil for faith growth. Soil has properties that also apply to families. The growth potential of both is huge. Think about the organic materials that are found in fertile soil. There is a process involving worms and digestion and decay and plant materials. Lots of things go into fertile soil in order for plants to grow.

Now think about the fertile soil of families. Lots of relationships and experiences go into families. These are organic. There is a process that is blessed by God. The difference from soil is that in order for the faith to take place in families, we need to process experiences and relationships. How many times are you in the library, or in the car or watching a movie and you think to yourself, “we should talk about that.” And guess what, often we just don’t do it. We just don’t talk about how faith comes in contact with our daily life.

Be in conversation about faith and where it meets life. Build on the fertile soil of family relationships and experiences and see what grows!!!

Teaching children about holiness is difficult because they come from such a different viewpoint than adults. Here are some resources that although they are not called “Koran” or “Bible” help children understand the holiness of the meaning of texts.

Muslim Child: Understanding Islam through Stories and Poems, by Rukhsana Khan, Albert Whitman & Company
This beautiful book was written to educate everyone about the life and message of Islam. It brings together messages of all faiths while teaching the basics of Islam. The book is worth the price just for the poem “One Big Family” found on page 96.

The Jesus Storybook Bible: Every story whispers his name, by Sally Lloyd-Jones, Zonderkidz.
This lovely little storybook delights readers in the messages in both the Old Testament and the New Testament. The illustrations are simple and fun. My favorite readings are “The Story and the Song” and “The Friend of little children.”

Today my youngest grand child will be baptized into a community of believers. It is interesting how this ritual has changed for me since my own children were baptized. Although I have stood on the side of the community and welcomed a child, there was message between the lines in my welcome. It was welcome to THIS community. How could I have thought in such a small way, when God is so BIG.

This baptism is not about a few splashes and one community. It is about a waterfall that never quits flowing. It is about great sheets of water falling great distances. It’s about millions of droplets and a community of believers that goes outside a single building and past a city beyond a country and into the universe.

Today my youngest grand child is baptized and the water flows forever.

Home schooling is sometimes like a choreographed dance. There are moves towards lessons, times of group and solo work. But the most often it is the shadow dance where faith learning happens. The faith that follows quietly mimicking the messages of unconditional love, grace and welcome. Passing on the faith in home schools happens in unplanned ways.

Shadows are just outlines but they indicate what is and what has been. Adult words such as “good work”, “settle yourself and think about it” or “I love the way you did that” come back in wonderful ways. When you see an oldest child look over at a youngest child and say, “Good work, brother”, the shadow dance of God’s image is visible in a unique and blessed way.

As a grand parent, I think my most delightful moments are those where I am one-on-one with one of the kids. At ages “almost 7” “almost 2” “definitely 4” and one month, these little darlings delight me in so many ways. Perhaps it is the language issues that are so fun at each of the stages. When we are all together I miss so many of the nuances with words as kids are learning language.

I was playing with “definitely 4” and said, “I wonder where”. The response was, “Gwamma, that’s silly, talking about w’under wear”. Hmmmm… Then I was observing fish with the “almost 2” and said, “Aren’t the fish awesome?” The response was a quick pointing at self and “ahhh, me”.

And so goes the wonder and awe of grand parenting.

Holidays are such a great way to bring families together in the fertile soil of relationships and experiences. Some of the experiences are rituals associated with the holiday like fireworks. Some of the experiences are related to food traditions like those brats or s’mores (graham crackers, cooked marshmallows and chocolate). And some of the experiences are new like a cooking on a new grill.

The fertile soil of relationships is also evident at holidays. There is always one person who falls asleep and snores in the recliner. Another family member might have a 2 year-old melt down. These relationships are harder because when families are only together for holidays, there are lots of places for disagreement and lots of places for grace. Fertile soil has organic matter-it’s full of manure! No matter how much manure is in family relationships on holidays, God is present.

So what are the 3 R’s of holidays?
ReFresh ReConnect ReCreate

All in the context of family and friends and relationships and experiences.