Daddy Boot Camp 2007 - Day 3 & 4

We're having a great time at DBC 2007! Thought Mommy would love some fun pictures of the kids, especially J&L. The bottom right is right before bed (at DBC, all of us, yes ALL of us sleep in one room!!); Tori wanted to take a picture for Mommy....Lael is so cute holding a map of Africa (Tori spent 20 LONG minutes trying to teach the others about where Kenya was)....Tori & Timo are holding pictures of Mommy and Daddy (Tori said: "I like these pictures because Mommy and Daddy aren't kissing in them...yuk!")...Jonathan is just cute because he's cute.

The past two days have been full of fun...Greg Bailey and I have had alot of conversations about ministry and life! I'm thankful for his family willing to let loose of their Daddy...thanks girls! Yesterday, I got to get away to a leadership training meeting with Greg for a few hours...it's good to be with men of faith who are eager to grow in their knowledge of God and His mission.

Up to this point in their lives, Kelly and I have always enjoyed being the ones who pray over our kids at bedtime. We will likely continue this at times, but just as the kids do pray at meal times, I wanted them to start "saying their prayers" at bedtime, too. I asked Tori: "do you want to practice praying whatever is on your heart or would you rather learn to recite a memorized prayer?" She picked the latter. I didn't want to do the "now I lay me down to sleep" (I couldn't remember all of it, plus I thought it might creep Tori out to say, "if I die before I wake"...that always made a little uncomfortable). I solicited her help (Timo kept interjecting, "Thank you dear God for pickles!" then he'd burst out laughing)...with a little tweaking for rhyming sake, here's Tori's new bedtime prayer (no references to pickles thank goodness):

Thank you God as this day ends

Bless my family and my friends

Give us rest as we sleep on our beds

Take captive all the thoughts in our heads

Forgive us our sins

In Jesus' Name, Amen!

The "take captive" thought was mine (2 Cor 10.3-5)...something I always pray for the kids...that God would reach down from heaven and take captive of all the fears, sickness, busy thoughts...anything that would keep them from having bad dreams or restless sleep! I love the idea that we can ask God through His Spirit to take captive our thoughts...mine aren't always thoughts that glorify God.

I talked about the last phrase with Tori...how important it is to ask God to forgive our sins...the importance of confession. (Of course, I laughed because growing up I always thought it was amazing that everyone rhymed their prayers at the end...seems every man at church said it the same poetic way, "forgive us our sins, in Jesus' Name, Amen.") Tori did clarify that "A-men" (long-A sound) was not right...she corrected me "Dad, you say "Ah-men" (funny! where does she get this stuff?!)