HappyGrace Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 This is for her personal Bible reading in the morning. She is a Christian, but seems to be at a crossroads of sorts with trying to "own" her own faith, etc. She is just aimless in her personal morning Bible time and I think needs something maybe to direct her reading or something. When I say, how about reading 1 Timothy (or whatever)-she responds, oh, I've read that, or oh, I know that, or whatever. We do other Bible work as a family (reading thru Boy, Do I Have Problems w/ ds9-it's an engaging Kay Arthur study-we spend about 15 min on this, and then we read at another time a 2pg spread in the DK Illustrated Family Bible, plus there is other Christian content of course in her various curricula, she does Awana, etc.) So it is mainly just for her Bible time in the morning by herself-something she could do to focus her reading and add interest and enjoyment and engage her spirit in. She is very bright so something advanced is fine, but I really want something to draw her and engage her for that 10-15 min time period. Maybe a topical study or word study? I have no idea. I don't want to make it too "study-ish", more like reading but with some direction, maybe pointing things out to her that are interesting in the reading, etc. I got her an NIV Quest Study Bible, thinking that the little commentaries along the sides might be interesting/helpful, but it's not really illuminating it for her as much as I hoped. She is not rebellious or showing lack of interest in the Bible, it's not that, just this morning Bible time is like a drudge to her, and I'd like to see if there's anything out there that can direct her a little. A couple years ago she did the Wrong Way Jonah study (Kay Arthur for kids) in that time and she liked that pretty well, but it was kind of a lot of study/writing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fairfarmhand Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 She should read the books (or you could use it to give her suggestions) The Disciplines of the Heart and the Disciplines of a Beautiful Woman by Anne Ortlund. These really helped me learn to develop my own quiet time routines and mine the scriptures for valuable and applicable truths for my own life. She may need to be encouraged to pray and ask God what he wants for her to understand from the Word today. This is a hard thing for even adults, the scripture is not just meant to be read. It is meant to be digested, studies and pored over. If she is struggling in a particular area, she can learn more about that. I'd ask her where she would like to go, and try to find some ways of helping her. My dd(14) likes to listen to Chip Ingram. He has free study notes on his site too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanna Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 How about Our Daily Bread http://www.odb.org. My dd likes the booklets (which can be ordered from the site) and will have personal devotions as soon as she wakes up using them. I like reading the online version and it even comes with audio and links to Biblegateway.com to read the corresponding verse(s) for the devotion of the day. I esp. appreciate the applications (at times they can be very encouraging and/or convicting) and although the devotionals are short, they sure are better than nothing. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tntgoodwin Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 (edited) Maybe going through a book like this: http://www.amazon.com/Bible-Doctrine-Wayne-Grudem/dp/0310222338 (which is a much lighter version of his Systematic Theology) or this one http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0310255996/ref=s9_simh_gw_p14_d0_g14_i3?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=0ZY9JR25T0WBJADB1QGT&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=470938631&pf_rd_i=507846 (which is even lighter!) could help her dig into the Bible more. I think if she is learning about the Bible, she will hopefully want to dig into it more herself. Edited February 19, 2012 by tntgoodwin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Storm Bay Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 Honestly, I have found it best to let my dc read whatever they like in their Bible time for the most part. It's more important to me that they want to read their Bibles than anything else, and I think that even at 12 some of it really has to come from them rahter than from me making them. First and foremost by 12 their personal relationships with God have to come from them. I've seen too many dc who were raised Christian who later rejected it because they felt it was forced on them. I do have to say that my dc love to be a part of fellowship meetings, etc. I do remind my ds to read his Bible, but not my teens so much as I don't want them to make that a point of rebellion from me. Dh & I do set examples of reading ours. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harriet Vane Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 Two thoughts: One is that since you are studying systematically in other ways, let her choose how she wants to do her own Bible reading. My second thought is to let her pick a Christian devotional from the bookstore. My dd loves picking her own, and her investment in reading through it is much better when she "owns" the choice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NotAVampireLvr Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 when I was a teenager I struggled to find focus. I think a devotional might be better suited, especially if she's already getting bible study time at other parts of the day. Just make sure the devotional has bible passages built into it. If you push too hard I think it might cause her to push back - even if she is not rebellious in general. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HappyGrace Posted February 20, 2012 Author Share Posted February 20, 2012 (edited) I actually don't make or force her to have that Bible time-I am so sensitive to not forcing and having rebellion later! I've always let her just read whatever in that time. It's just that she is now at a loss as to what to read or how to read it and is floundering and starting to skip it, etc. She lately said she thought she'd read Revelation, and I said ok, sounds good-that lasted one day and she was stymied. I will look into all these suggestions, including letting her pick her own devotional-good idea! (It is just a bummer that so many for tween and teen girls are lame or more directed toward kids with "school issues" etc.) I am praying about this, of course, and also asking the Spirit to stir up a hunger and thirst for the Word in her! tntgoodwin-LOVE Grudem! :) Edited February 20, 2012 by HappyGrace Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ereks mom Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 (edited) Two thoughts: One is that since you are studying systematically in other ways, let her choose how she wants to do her own Bible reading. My second thought is to let her pick a Christian devotional from the bookstore. My dd loves picking her own, and her investment in reading through it is much better when she "owns" the choice. :iagree: CBD has some great devotionals for kids, some just for girls. Here's an example: Faithgirlz! Real Girls of the Bible. And here's another: God and Me! Devotions for Girls, Ages 10-12. We used to buy devotionals like that for EK, and she used them some, but what really got her interested in having a quiet time was when she began to incorporate journaling into it. When EK was about 11 or 12, she began to write out her prayers in a journal. We have always read the Bible together as a family each night before the kids go to bed, and she would go to her room and write for a few minutes each night after family devotions. This is not something we suggested, but something she thought of on her own. She started off writing in a spiral notebook, I think. Now, she likes to get nice ones from the office supply store or a stationery shop. We just buy her blank journal books, and she fills them up. When one gets full, she starts a new one. She has completed several because she has written in her God Journal (that's what she calls it) every.single.night for the past 5-6 years. She even takes her journal when she goes to camp or to sleepovers or on vacation. Dh & I have never read any of her journals; we figure that what she writes is between her and God. We have seen SO MUCH spiritual growth in her since she started journaling her prayers. Edited February 20, 2012 by ereks mom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happyhomemaker25 Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 I was going to suggest the journaling as well. My girls like it best with pretty pens and journals. Also the Elizabeth George books for preteens and teens were a hit around here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HappyGrace Posted February 20, 2012 Author Share Posted February 20, 2012 She sees me journaling in my quiet time, and she loves to write, so I was hoping it might catch on, but it hasn't. I think it might when she's older. Again, I try hard not to push anything. I will look into the devotional suggestions-thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samba Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 My strategy with dd12 has been to try to be consistent with memorizing scripture and finding something she connects with in a devotional rather than academic approach. My dd has a lot of head knowledge but it's bringing scripture to mind in a needed moment that has been the most fruitful (and I've been more slack than I'd care to admit in nurturing this area). She's enjoying Violet's Life Lessons, Young Person's Guide to Knowing God (we're reading this as a family) and may try Girl After God's Own Heart when she's ready for something new. I am trying to be really sensitive in this area. As an adult, there are so many studies I find absurd and condescending. I'm not going to subject dd to stuff like that (ie. tell what John 3:16 (or whatever verse) means in your own words. This kind of stuff drives me crazy. But, I digress... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harriet Vane Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 I actually don't make or force her to have that Bible time-I am so sensitive to not forcing and having rebellion later! I've always let her just read whatever in that time. It's just that she is now at a loss as to what to read or how to read it and is floundering and starting to skip it, etc. She lately said she thought she'd read Revelation, and I said ok, sounds good-that lasted one day and she was stymied. I will look into all these suggestions, including letting her pick her own devotional-good idea! (It is just a bummer that so many for tween and teen girls are lame or more directed toward kids with "school issues" etc.) I am praying about this, of course, and also asking the Spirit to stir up a hunger and thirst for the Word in her! tntgoodwin-LOVE Grudem! :) Don't bother with one for teens--often they are either watered-down and totally insipid, or focused entirely on "hot-button issues." :tongue_smilie: You'll find the grown-up stuff is just fine for her--just carefully avoid the ones that address marriage issues. BTDT with my own dd and the adult devotionals have been a real hit with her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mallorie Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 For me, when I get in that rut, it helps to have girlfriends to talk about it with, pray with. When I see them get excited about a passage that God has spoken to them through, or a devotional, prayer time, etc., it encourages to me to get in the Word again and seek Him for myself. An accountability of sorts. Does she have Christian friends her own age that she can pray with? To talk to about how God is leading their lives into becoming women who live for Him? Could she start a small group once a week or every other week at home, where they could pray together, share how God has been working in their lives, do a devotional or service work? She may need to make her faith a little more "mobile". Do some community service, share Him with people, and see what He's been doing in the lives around her. Just a thought. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HappyGrace Posted February 20, 2012 Author Share Posted February 20, 2012 Don't bother with one for teens--often they are either watered-down and totally insipid, or focused entirely on "hot-button issues." :tongue_smilie: This has been my experience exactly!!! Can you recommend any adult ones that have been a hit? I guess more of a devotional than a study? (There were a couple of others in the thread that I am chking out already.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HappyGrace Posted February 20, 2012 Author Share Posted February 20, 2012 Could she start a small group once a week or every other week at home, where they could pray together, share how God has been working in their lives, do a devotional or service work? She may need to make her faith a little more "mobile". Do some community service, share Him with people, and see what He's been doing in the lives around her. Just a thought. :) It's so tough-she's really mature for her age, and the other girls at youth group are so silly that she is starting to dumb herself down. I have been praying about this. I like the idea of the "mobile" faith-I am going to pray for guidance on how to go about this because I think it would really help her in a lot of ways, thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milovany Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 (edited) Perhaps instead of reading more, she could say morning prayers, using prayers that have been used by saints in the church throughout church history. This is where I have seen my faith come "alive," become more personal and real. The prayer book I have is quite thorough. Our kids have a morning prayer rule that includes reading some scripture but is mostly prayer. I thought I wouldn't like written prayers, but honestly I have really come to appreciate not having to think up all the words every morning. I would end up saying the same thing every day anyway - if I chose to put out the effort. . With the prayers already written, I can just pray. If you need help finding a simple prayer book, let me know. Edited February 20, 2012 by milovaný Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lllll Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 .. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 Do you think she might like to do a Beth Moore study? They are very devotional. If she wants to get excited about reading the bible agian, they might do the trick. I loved learning about the symbolism in the tabernacle with A woman's Heart study. She might also like the Esther study. If you can get the dvd's, so much the better. But that may be too old and too "academic" for her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurie4b Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 When I say, how about reading 1 Timothy (or whatever)-she responds, oh, I've read that, or oh, I know that, or whatever. . This makes me think that she is approaching the Bible as a book of facts, which is an important stage, but then kids often have no clue how to move to the next stage. She does "know" 1 Timothy, KWIM? I think what you need to do is to teach her how to read the Bible devotionally, not for facts or study. What is God saying to her through what she reads each morning? One thing that you might do for a while is have her read through one of the gospels--I'd choose Luke for various reasons--and try to imagine herself in the story. For instance, what would it be like to be an outcast tax collector and have Jesus ask you to follow him? What would it be like to be Martha trying to get her sister to help? To be Mary sitting at his feet? etc. I would encourage her to read only one story at a time but to spend the time "soaking" in the story. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xxxxxxxx Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 http://www.christianbook.com/teens-guide-friends-faith-family-future/elizabeth-george/9780736907897/pd/07890?item_code=WW&netp_id=294396&event=ESRCG&view=details Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Storm Bay Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 I actually don't make or force her to have that Bible time-I am so sensitive to not forcing and having rebellion later! I've always let her just read whatever in that time. It's just that she is now at a loss as to what to read or how to read it and is floundering and starting to skip it, etc. tntgoodwin-LOVE Grudem! :) That makes sense. Another option which won't work for all 12 year olds & which mine haven't officially done, is to read the Bible in a year. I don't know the link to the great one I used a while back on my old computer but here are a few & there are others if you google reading the Bible in a year. http://www.bible.com/readinayear.php http://www.biblegateway.com/resources/readingplans/comprehensive.php This one has a choice of doing it in a year or doing it chronologically. http://www.oneyearbibleonline.com/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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