After using the “Children Arise” CD’s with my children for circle time I was interested in reading the story of how they came about in “Parents Arise” by Janine Target. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and recommend having a look. (Here at Koorong or here at Growing Families) With the author’s permission, I am reproducing below just one of the ideas she presented in her book and I think it was worth purchasing it for this alone.
We have always had our children apologise (say “sorry”) for mistakes and accidents and ask for forgiveness for deliberate sins (acts of unkindness etc.) They are required to reconcile by making eye contact, naming the specific sin, asking for forgiveness (I’m sorry I spoke unkindly to you, will you forgive me?) and then hugging the offended person. (There is just something about physical contact that melts hearts and helps siblings to reconcile. Older children, especially boys, are required to shake hands.)
Once they have worked through this process, they spend some time praying about it and asking for God’s forgiveness and help for future events. Janine’s sorting out prayer takes this part of the process a couple of vital steps further and I will be introducing it as part of our family pattern for making things right with God and between family members from now on.
Here it is as it appears on page 102 of her book:
The Sorting Out Prayer
1. I forgive ……….. for…………
(Matthew 6:14,15)
2. Dear God please forgive ……….. for ………….
(Luke 23:34)
3. Please forgive me for getting angry.
(1 John 1:9)
4. Please take all the anger and upset out of me.
(1 John 1:9)
5. Please bless ………
(Luke 6:27, 28)
In Janine’s words; “It keeps us free from resentment, kept our forgiveness up to date, and it helped create an environment for strong and healthy emotional growth in each of our children.”
Filed under: Christian Education, character, Sundays and the Sabbath, Reviews & curriculum | Tagged: brothers and sisters, character, conflict resolution, family relationships, fighting, forgiveness, sibling conflict, sibling rivalry | Leave a comment »
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