His voice has been very influential in our family. For years, even before being a mommy, I tried praying and meditating everyday. Once I had babies, that became much more difficult because when I actually tried giving myself sometime to pray and read I was so tired I could barely concentrate. I also wanted my kids to be spiritually fed. There I was, a young mom with two very active little boys, feeling like all three of us could use some help from God.
Somewhere along the way we came across VeggieTales. I was hooked. First reason: my boys would actually sit still and watch it. Second reason: the stories were spiritually strengthening. Third reason: those vegetables were funny!
One of the first VeggieTales we watched was "Where is God When I'm Scared?"
http://youtu.be/iNVXbC1iHck
It was so good because at that time one of my boys was really struggling with fear. It helped strengthen my little son and encouraged me to be strong in teaching my son to be brave. We put a big sign in his room that said "The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid" Psalm 118:6. Then we got the kids the VeggieTales Bible and came across this page:
The day I met Phil Vischer, he spoke about a time he was sitting on a bench having a cup of coffee. Two cute little girls ran passed him jumping on everything they could, followed by their mother pushing a stroller trying to keep up with them. His heart went out to the mom. He has two daughters that are older now. His thoughts were something like: "these little kids go from watching Blues Clues to watching Jersey Shore and Snookie."
"I want to help parents shepherd their kids through this messy world" Phil Vischer.
I loved what he said: "Shepherd through." We can't shelter and protect our kids from all the mess in this world, but we can "shepherd them through." We can give them wisdom, perspective, boundaries, and train them to make good choices.
Another aspect of VeggieTales I really like is that God is presented as loving, not bent on punishment, but a God of grace... a God who cares about the little children. In Matthew 19:14 Jesus said, "let the little children come to me and do not hinder them."
I didn't get my intellectually stimulating times of prayer, meditating, and Bible study when my kids were little but I definitely felt God meet all three of us through these veggies. So to all you Mommies out there needing a little help like I did, remember "God made YOU and your kids special, and he loves you very much!"
Keep up the good work Mommies!!!!
Love,
Rosa, Mommy Tips
