WRITE: My Dear Friend (or what to do on your summer vacation)
My Dear Friend,
We all remember those “How I Spent My Summer Vacation” assignments. Did my teacher really want to know how many times my brother and I visited the neighborhood swimming pool, weeded the garden, or played kickball?
This year, I want to suggest a great way to spend your summer. You’ll find it fun, economical, family-friendly, and best of all, life-changing.
I’m sending you this letter because I care about you and your family. I know you’re like most parents: you want what’s best for your kids. You’ve even told me you want to “train them up in the way they should go” (Prov. 22:6). You want them to reach adulthood with the deep desire to follow Christ with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength as well as the tools to carry out that desire.
The Shelby Kennedy Foundation is a nonprofit dear to my heart. SKF exists to encourage parents as they disciple their children through in-depth study of the Word of God, Scripture memorization, and prayer. And my friends there have created two fantastic tools to help families make this vision reality.
The first is the Sword Study, an age-graded inductive Bible study designed not only to teach the Bible to families of all ages and sizes but to teach them how to apply that study method to any Bible passage.
I wish I’d had the Sword Study as a young mom. It would have made a great way for our entire family to study the same passage at the same time. It contains activities and applications designed for each level. And it also includes specific, step-by-step guidance for dads (or moms) to lead the family in discussing and celebrating what they’ve learned every week, no matter how much or how little time the parents has to devote to the Bible study.
The Sword Study takes the fear out of family discipleship. If we’re honest, we know such fear exists—but God is never its author (2 Tim. 1:7). And the SKF’s optional competition step, the Bible Bee, provides fellowship, support, and fun—along with some fantastic opportunities to win cash and scholarships. We’re talking $25,000; $50,000, and $100,000 to the top winners at the Nationals competition in Primary (7-10), Junior (11-14), and Senior (15-18) Divisions—not exactly small change.
True Confession: I do some writing work for SKF. I’ve even blogged about the Bible Bee before (here, here, and here).
But I’m not about sales (I couldn’t even sell Girl Scout Cookies when they were $.50 a box). When you read the Sword Studies, you’ll see little pieces called “Vignettes” between each week’s work. Those are mine. But I don’t make more money if you buy the product. In fact, I write for SKF not because of money, but because of my belief in God’s Word and its power to change lives.
SKF has instituted some changes this year to make the Bible Bee more family-friendly, more achievable, and more accessible to families across the globe. Check out the infographic below. Click on the links in this post. And please, not for my sake, but for your family’s, pray about completing at least one Sword Study. Pray about participating in the Bible Bee. The signup deadline is June 30, but if you sign up soon, you’ll receive your Sword Studies as early as June 2.
If you have questions or comments, feel free to share them below, and I’ll do my best to respond. Thank you for letting me share my heart. May His Word continue to guide, inform, and inspire us as we devote ourselves fully to Him.
Blessings,
Marti
