Elf on the Shelf

Our Elf on the Shelf is not quite like everyone else. We like to call him Elvis: the Advent Elf (Our first year of having Elvis). He brings us a Bible verse for each day, and some questions to ponder. Last year we did something special with him. We told a Christmas story throughout the month with the way we displayed Elvis. The fun part was that the kids had no idea that we were doing this.

When January came around, we surprised them with a new story book that told the adventures of Elvis. He went from being the sad elf who was searching for something in his life to the end of the story where he found Jesus. We affectionately named the book, "Twas the Night Before Christmas". (If you click on the link, it brings you to a website to purchase the book. HOWEVER, you can preview and read the entire thing for free.)  You can also click on the photos below to read a larger copy. The kids loved it! They remembered all the crazy silly things that Elvis did the previous month and now saw the story come alive. It was wonderful to be able to surprise my children with this book. I made sure to incorporate each of them into Elvis' book. They each in their own way added to how he found Jesus.

I thought this Christmas it would be fun to share the book I wrote. You can view it in pictures. In order to read the book, you might need to view the photos at their full size. In each photo of Elvis you will see him holding an envelope with a number on it. Inside each envelope was his Bible verses he shared. You can access my Bible verses at the link I posted in the first paragraph. Enjoy as Elvis learns that joy comes from deep within where Jesus lives!

Christmas Coloring Pages

Prophetic Prayers

We all need people to speak encouragement and life into us. It's so easy to be torn down by other's words and actions. We must treat our words like gold. We shouldn't be careless in the way we throw them around, in the way we speak to others. Words can wound and burn like a fire. But they also have the amazing ability to heal. I want to use my words for good.

Over a year ago, I was challenged to pray prophetic words over my children. I decided I would be part of the crowd that speaks life into them. Prayer is a very powerful tool. Scripture is also powerful. I combined the two together and came up with cards that I use each morning during my devotion time.

As I was preparing these cards, I prayed that God would show me words to focus on for each child. I also asked my kids which character qualities they wanted to live out, and to excel at. Together, with God's help, I tailored a list for my kids.

I printed the character qualities on index cards, along with some Bible verses that I pray. I punched a single hole in the corner of each card, and strung them together with a binder ring. Each morning I flip the card and spend just a couple of minutes in prayer for my child with the character quality in mind. The cards on my ring are alternated between all my kids, and my niece. I don't overwhelm myself and try to pray for each kid every day. I keep it simple. I pray for one kid, one card.

The results are incredible! Prayer changes things. It changes others, and it changes me. I don't know which is the better deal.

Today I prayed for Zechariah to be RESPONSIBLE. That he would know and do what both God and others are expecting from him. That he would feel an obligation to follow through and complete a task satisfactorily. I prayed he would be dependable and trustworthy.

I inserted my son's name into the three scriptures I found.  Praying scripture is effectual and life giving. It will increase your own spiritual growth. You will gain an understanding of what the Bible says, and you will be applying it to your life.

These are the scriptures I prayed over my son for RESPONSIBLE: Ephesians 2:10, Matthew 16:24, and 1 Corinthians 13:11

In Ephesians, I prayed, "For Zechariah is God's masterpiece. He created him new in Christ Jesus, so that Zechariah can do the GOOD THINGS that God planned for him long ago." 

In Matthew, I prayed, "Jesus, guide Zech to be a follower of you, help him to TURN from his selfish ways, TAKE UP his cross, and FOLLOW you."

In 1 Corinthians, I prayed, "When Zechariah was a child, he spoke and thought and reasoned like a child. But WHEN HE GREW UP, Zech will put away childish things."

It's very simple to pray scripture. I like simple things that have a big impact. It's like all the giving campaigns you hear this time of year. If you give today, a generous donor will match your gift by fifty percent. When we use the scriptures in our prayers, God matches it and makes it worth so much more. He puts His stamp of approval on it.

The reason I call this my prophetic prayer cards is that most of these character qualities are in the process of being made perfect. I am prophesying that my children are going to do these biblical truths. None of us have arrived at our final destination yet. We are all a work in progress.

 Prophetic:

• the foretelling or prediction of what is to come.  
• declared by a prophet, especially a divinely inspired prediction, instruction, or exhortation.
• a divinely inspired utterance or revelation
  From Dictionary.com 

If I struggle with selfishness in my life, I'm going to pray a prayer that I can become more selfless. If I historically let people down, then I'm going to declare dependability. Pray for your child's weakness, or your own weakness to become your greatest strength. Declare that it will happen. Don't settle for this is the way I am, and there's nothing I can do about it.

PRAYER CHANGES PEOPLE. God works on the heart.  Heart transformations are the best kind. They last.

Just to get you started, I want to share all the prayer cards that I put together. If you click on the Assertive card below, it's a PDF file made to print on 3x5 index cards.  Feel free to use them, or change them how you see fit.

Assertive- Beautiful- Bold- Compassionate- Content- Courageous- Creative- Dependable-  Determined- Discerning- Empathetic- Faith Filled- Faithful- Flexible- Gentle- God's Messenger- Honest- Humble- Integrity- Intercessor- Initiator- Joyful- Just- Leader- Loved- Loyal- Obedient- Passionate- Patient- Remembered- Responsible- Righteous- Self-Controlled- Selfless- Sensitive- Steadfast- Truth Speaker- Truthful- Understanding- Wise- Witness