Welcome to Simply Susan, where I write honestly about faith, marriage, motherhood and the everyday threads of God's grace.
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Homeschool Bible Reading
Learning to accept the difference between forgiveness and reconciliation. Trying to rebuild a relationship when there are two very different beliefs about the world, its Creator and therefore how we should live as well as how we see the current status of our relationship and everything surrounding it.
It’s been 16 and a half years since Mum passed away. I visited my Mum’s grave last week. And as happened in the past I got angry and frustrated. With myself. I don’t believe she is in the grave. Her body is but her soul has crossed from this earth and this time to that of eternity. I don’t see why the burial plot should hold significance for me.
Having naturally been a positive person it was a shock to accept that I was depressed. I thought I was stronger than that. Little did I realise that I was delaying any healing or growth.
God delights in us. Our lives don’t have to be full of rigidity, somberness and dull faces. We can live life! And have fun. We are allowed to enjoy life! In fact, He wants us to. He is pleasured when he watches us living and enjoying life within the environment He has provided for us.
We recently became grandparents to three babies. All within three months! How did that happen? I’ve been busy helping when and where it is appropriate. I try not to overwhelm them with my thoughts, ideas and advice… they have enough of that already.
How do we eat spiritual bread that will satisfy us? How are we to work for the food that endures for eternity? Jesus says that the way to work for the spiritual food, is to “believe on Him.”
As parents we all want to raise our children in the ways of the Lord, to teach them His ways, to teach them His story. But there is so much to do, to read, to share. Where do we start? We start and end with the good news. But what exactly is this good news?
God’s purpose for my teen is the hope that keeps me going.
My teen asked ‘why’ to everything and I wanted to ‘straighten him out’. God, being the Great Multi-Tasker, already had plans. God knew.
Ask an average homeschool parent about self harm and they will likely look at you with a quizzical look. Self harm is what other kids do. Right?
There is a difference between hearing about, believing in Christ and receiving Him. Only those who receive Him become God’s children. Jesus is the only way to God. What does it mean to receive Jesus? “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God…” John 1:12
He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light. John was merely the forerunner who announced the coming Messiah. Like John, we bear witness to the light but it is Christ in us which shines! Everyone that sees us – sees a few gleams of the true Light.
John the Baptist was sent by God. He was equipped and commissioned by God for a special ministry....
In the beginning was the Word… In the beginning, before the time when heavens and earth were even...
I’m a Christian, a homeschooler, a Christian homeschooler. I’m all this and much, much more. But I’m also none of those things. I do not like labels. I don’t like to ‘follow’ or adhere to any particular preaching or teaching. However, for those who really need labels to help define a site or person it might be said that I lean toward a Puritan, Reformed and Calvinistic mindset. You can see my thoughts here on even calling myself a Christian! Why do we need labels? Why do we feel the need to rally together under any other banner other than Christ?
God does not desire that we work our way to Him or that we try and make something of ourselves apart from Him. The story of the Tower of Babel is mercy in action.
The world Noah grew up in sounds very much like our own. How can we possibly miss seeing Jesus in the account of Noah? God’s promises concerning him shine brightly out of every single event.
Are you trying to hide from God? Are you embarrassed or ashamed of something in your past or even now in the present? Then this study of Genesis is for you!
A Bible study where we learn of the newness of the world and how The Eternal Word Illumined the darkness, ordered the chaos, filled the emptiness and breathed the breath of life into man and then… rested.
“Seeing Jesus in the Old Testament: The Promised One” Promotional Video
Nancy starts by telling us why we’re starting our study of Genesis with the end of Jesus’s earthly ministry. For it is there that something is revealed that makes us want to go back to the very beginning. This week we’re beginning at the end and next week we continue at the beginning!
Introduce yourself: Post a comment on the Meet n Greet Bible Study Page with your name, where you are from, and answer to this question- What is your favourite story from the Old Testament?
Are you getting ready for the Bible Study, Seeing Jesus in Genesis: The Promised One? We’ll “meet” once a week, starting on Monday. Various other FAQ
Join me for a 10 week journey through the OT, as we see Jesus in Genesis, using the study guide called The Promised One by Nancy Guthrie
A little bit pregnant? A little bit alive? A little bit dead? Nope! You are either are or you are not. So why do we expect godly behaviour from those who are not alive in Christ?
The apostle Paul acknowledges the influence of Eunice & Lois upon Timothy’s life… he was acquainted with the Scriptures from childhood. Encouragement to expose our children to our rich faith.
I do my best to be the wife, the mother, the friend that God wants me to be but I cannot escape the fact that God is The One who holds my future in His hands, despite what I do or don’t do. Do your best and leave God to the rest. Our hope is in Him. He is the great Healer, the restorer. He is our Saviour, Our Lord and our Master. He is more than capable. Share His goodness with your children every day. Yes train them, guide them, discipline them. But always be pointing to His goodness, His strength, His power, and His sovereignty. This is the way to teach your children that they are saved by grace, not works.
I want to honour the ordinary, to be fully present in the moment… to savour the little pockets of time that so often go by unnoticed. I want to fully engage with whatever it is that my hand is doing at the time. I want to connect all parts of me – head, hands and heart.
Five Things that I Firmly Believe and are the most important to my life as a Christian. I believe the Bible is the inspired, infallible, inerrant Word of God. It is the final authority for faith and practice. I believe in one God, who is Creator of all, who has revealed Himself in three distinct Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
If you are a homeschooling mama of little ones, how long do you spend reading either God’s Word or a devotional every day?
It’s not possible nor reasonable to train or teach every child every thing they need to learn. I don’t need to do it all. Just as God is perfecting in me His work, so He is with the children. I am not perfecting them – He is. God has begun a good work in me and He will continue it until the Day of Christ.
Meaty Bible study for teens, young adults and new/young believers. This book is not devotional in nature. The concepts it deals with are meaty. But it is written in a way that even children can understand. There’s no reason not to learn doctrine when there are truth-filled, helpful books such as this. Letters to Brian & Daniel will clearly impart wisdom on the nature of God, the nature of man, the sovereignty of God, salvation, grace, faith, law and freedom.
Learn the Bible in 24 Hours is presented by Dr. Chuck Missler of Koinonia...
As a woman of the word, I need to guard my heart and mind. I do not need to be about gossip and ‘knowing who said what to whom’. I need to be about the word and serving others. I will continue to use fb as a way of sharing but forgive me if I don’t comment on your walls or updates. I need to guard my heart, be careful to not be a busy body, be busy at home and not be idle. This is my weakness… and as such my course of action.
Kerugma Family Bible reading guide for use with young children. This guide is a no-fuss, easy to...
Kerugma Family Bible reading guide for use with young children. This guide is a no-fuss, easy to...
Month 2: Kerugma Family Bible reading guide for use with young children. This guide is a no-fuss, easy to implement, overview of the Bible for the whole family. Preschool homeschool bible study.
Kerugma Family Bible reading guide for use with young children. This guide is a no-fuss, easy to implement, overview of the Bible for the whole family. Preschool homeschool bible study.
I have previously linked and recommended an online sermon by Paul Washer… called the...
I’ve often been asked to share what our Bible study looks like using our methods as outlined in a Bible Based Education. Here is a quick lesson. Bear in mind that I didn’t write this lesson plan before hand…I was reading it in my Bible during my quiet time and thought it was too good (read: relevant) to not share with my children.
Which Bible do we use? Quite a few! Some are better than others for reading or studying. What am I...
Bible reading plans and charts. Bible study helps. Homeschool bible study. family bible study
How do you learn? Who I am, how I learn, what I believe makes up who I am as a parent, and...
Links to free Christian Bible helps for young children.
Is there anything better as a parent, than to witness one’s adult child profes their love...
Be in it but not of it. It is 10min long but grab a cuppa and be prepared!
Ephesians 1:4-6 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless...
Originally posted in Jan, 2006. This isn’t an original idea but something that I have just printed...
What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did...
“ The goal of this system is simple, and twofold: To know scripture, and to love and obey God...
This did the Internet rounds a few years ago and I shared it then… but it’s too good...
Knowing I was going to be laid up recently I had been on the lookout for a new fiction book. I...
I don’t want to play the game of religion. I don’t even want to play the game of Christianity. I want to know God and I want to walk with Him. There was a time when I felt secure in my life because of certain ‘religious’ activities, but God has been pruning these things out of my life, showing me how unimportant they really are to relational living. This post about my devotions and quiet times.
“Read the Bible daily. Make it part of every day’s business to read and meditate on some portion...
Begin reading your Bible this very day. The way to do a thing is to do it, and the way to read the...
Where I share just a little of our lifestyle and how it looks, what sort of books we use in this pursuit of a Bible based, Cross-centric lifestyle of learning.
A Gospel-driven, Cross-centric, Discipleship approach simply means that we’re teaching each child what he needs to know, with a view to his/her God given strengths, weaknesses, interest, passions, and talents… their natural bents. An individual’s strengths and weaknesses and interests are part of their God given make up! By identifying and encouraging their natural bents we will be launching them toward their purpose.
So began a new chapter in my homeschooling journey: that of putting God first…depending solely upon Him. I wanted Him to show me what to teach and when to each child. I was literally asking ‘What would Jesus do? What would Jesus learn? How would Jesus teach?’
Noteworthy Free Bible Studies for homeschool, high school, family and personal use.
Sample lesson Kerugma Bible study, based on Proverbs 26:17
I’m off again on another rant. It’s in relation to a newspaper article which you can...
Our Devotional Journal that we used with the girls. I designed this as a simple way that the girls...
Yay, I have finally uploaded the first 5 studies, in pdf format, of our Kerugma Family Bible...
The Bible can be hard to understand. It can seem like a foreign language. In a sense, it is. If you were going to go and live in another country where English isn’t spoken would you try to learn the native language in an effort to understand the people, the culture? Well, the Bible can be likened to that too! Learning the language, the terminology, the use of literary style…It’s hard work. It takes study. It takes time, effort, patience and diligence. It won’t happen in 10 min a day, especially if that 10 minutes a day is spent reading someone else’s thoughts on that country or language. Naturally, you’d be much better off to spend time directly learning that language eh. So I’ve been thinking that I’d like my children to have a better grasp on the Bible and God’s plan and purpose than I did…so how am I going about that?
Just a quick note to let readers know that I have added a few more downloadable freebies to the...
I use a teaching method that I learnt from Heart of Wisdom called the 4mat system. I have modified...
History Lives series Peril and Peace: Chronicles of the Ancient Church Volume 1 by Mindy and...
Bible study scope and sequence
Families who have an older child using a HoW approach seem to find it easier to know what to do...
HOW has been a great launching pad for our family and has put some wonderful ideas before myself...
“Hear, Yisra’el: the LORD is our God; the LORD is one: and you shall love the LORD...
Do we do Bible Study every day? I think we have tried every approach that is bantered about in...
My family has been laid down with a horrid flu-like virus/bug. It is nasty. Fever, nausea, body...
Genesis, A Commentary for Children is part of the Herein is Love series by Nancy E. Ganz. And I...
We’ve been so busy house-hunting for a rental house that there hasn’t been much time...
Christian Biographies A few years ago, I felt strongly impressed of God to read more biographies...
Those of you who know me will probably have gathered that we place great importance upon the...
I’m starting to read this little book called, “The Practice of the Presence of...
‘A’ has been using a wonderful book to enhance her understanding of New Testament...
Have I mentioned before that I love the Internet??? I am constantly amazed at the generosity of...
John Stott used the following time allocations dedicated to Bible study: * One hour a day * One 3...
Following my review of the Heart of Wisdom Teaching Approach, a reader, Jamie asked me the...
Those who are interested in a Bible based, Delight-Directed, Note-Booking, or Charlotte Mason approaches may like these products as the author has taken the best from each approach and blended them to make the Heart of Wisdom Teaching Approach.
I have used some of the Heart of Wisdom units for a few years now but I have been most influenced by Robin’s book, The Heart of Wisdom Teaching Approach. I have learnt that the Bible outlines how we can teach our children and that study is a form of worship. The goal of this approach is to train children to read, to study, to understand, to love to learn and, most importantly, to desire and seek true wisdom. A benefit to this approach is that it is multi-level teaching and can be used by a mother with children of all ages.
This time of year is always fairly spiritual for me as I meditate and ponder fully the work of the...
Often the Bible is like a mystery- we want to read it and study but how? How can we study the Bible for ourselves, and lead our children into a lifetime love of study of the word of God? The Bible isn’t an easy book to read, let’s be honest about it. In fact, it isn’t one book- it’s a whole library containing sixty-six books! However, that shouldn’t deter us from reading and understanding it. It’s good that we desire for our children to read the Bible. This site is an attempt to give you some tools to do just this: read, understand and communicate the word of God.
Bible Translations… which Bible is best.