Nice. It’s one of the most overused words ever. And I admit, I am guilty of using this word WAY too much. How nice. That was so nice. She’s so nice! Ugh.
When we started Character Builds Joy, I wanted my children to be more than just nice kids. As parents, don’t we desire for their hearts to be compassionate, full of gratitude, forgiving, generous, patient, self controlled, truthful, and so much more? We want them to know that their Savior is the perfect embodiment of every character trait we could ever imagine. So, if this is our goal, how do we get there? I don’t claim to have all the answers but may have an idea of where we can start!
We have been thinking a lot about goals this month, goals with our children for the upcoming school year and with CB&J. Our ultimate goal through Character Builds Joy is to:
Intentionally and creatively, shape the next generation to have character like Jesus.
That’s very broad, so we identified three skills that will help meet this ultimate goal.
- Know and love God’s word.
- Describe and identify character traits of Jesus.
- Demonstrate God’s love to others.
The second goal is where I want to camp out today! If we want our children to be able to describe and identify the character of Jesus-to actually know Him instead of just knowing about Him, they must be comfortable using words like perseverance, love, courage, and obedience. We as parents must make those words so much a part of our daily vocabulary that their ears are tuned to hearing them. And, they are actually looking for opportunities to use them! We take advantage of typical daily moments and use them as divine opportunities. Chris Gardner says it like this:
“Speak what you seek until you see what you’ve said.”
Chris Gardner
So, we call character by its name. Instead of saying, “that was so nice” we change our language to point them towards Jesus every chance we get. “Wow, that was very generous” or “I just saw Jesus in you by your forgiveness.”
This is exactly what happened while watching the Titans game last weekend. As we watched the game, the announcers commented how much “perseverance” a player had. The boys’ eyes lit up, and their mouths dropped open. “Did you hear what he just said?!” Banks exclaimed! “That must be his WOW word, too!”
We truly find what we are looking for. This week, look for everyday moments to point out perseverance. And, in turn, use that to remind children of the greatest example of perseverance to ever live, Jesus.
Nice is out, character is in!
Mr. Marc was our next door neighbor and often played songs on his guitar as the boys ran around in the backyard. As part of the Speer Family, he grew up singing gospel music and continues using his gifts to record hymns for CB&J today! These hymns are a timeless way to remind children about the character of Jesus, and we are grateful to be able to share these with you.