Swinging!

Thank you Miss Sharilyn for my swing!

The Review ...

I am blessed to be one of quite a few who was asked to read One Million Arrows, by Julie Ferwerda, and review it. There are very few parenting books I like because they give me rules and don't inspire me to great parenting. One Million Arrows has inspired me!

There are so many things I loved about this book ... the mission, the word pictures, the real-life examples and ideas, the chapter with parenting stories I could relate to and incorporate, the focus on parenting (my actual children and spiritual children God places in my life) with purpose in every season of parenting. I found the mission and goals were directed to every age. OMA remotivated me to look at the whole parenting picture and anticipate what I might be modeling and teaching next.

Being on mission with God might be hard at times, but it is never boring. It's exciting! It's not about giving up life, it's about having a life and impacting the Kingdom for the future.

Julie Ferwerda encourages us to parent with the purpose and mission of God, to be vigilant and intentional. To incorporate life-style practices into daily training remembering our children are little "temples of God" under construction. It's a 24/7 mission and one that we cannot take lightly or give over to the church ... or anyone else for that matter.

The end of the book is filled with resources and there are more on the website. I would recommend this book highly to my friends, family and anyone looking for a resource for focusing their mission on raising Godly kids who are warriors in His Kingdom. Oh, and, all the proceeds of this book are designated for international orphan ministry. Just one more good reason to get it!

Here are a few quotes from the book that will give you a taste of what there is to read ...

"Just think what it would be like to have kids who grow up in his self-destructing world with brave faces and hope in their voices, carrying within their hearts the ambition of bringing as many people as possible safely into the Kingdom."

"An arrow of God doesn't have to be in full-time ministry, but is always focused unwaveringly on bringing the love of Jesus Christ into every aspect of the journey throughout his or her life."

"... God wants to use the shepherds and shapers of His children to bring about change by raising them to become - as we are becoming - sharp arrows in the hands of Jesus Christ, prepared as skillful weapons against the kingdom of darkness. Remember, there is a war going on in the heavenlies. Our children can either be pawns unaware, or they can be weapons of mass destruction against forces of evil in the unseen realm."

"Once launched, an arrow aims high and heads straight for a target, without getting off course. The ultimate goal for all arrows of God is that wherever they land, they produce mortal wounds against the enemy of darkness - wounds of light, love, truth and life. This is exactly the picture God had in mind when He referred to our children as arrows in the hands of a Warrior!"

"God chose you to be the parent of your children. He gave you the vote of confidence that there is no one better suited in this whole world for the job of raising your kids to love Him wholeheartedly and to keep the faith."

"The sky is the limit for creatively investing in your children, but the goal is the same: get the Word into your kids - into their minds, their hearts and their character."

"In the short window of opportunity I have to impact their lives, I want to raise spiritually fulfilled kids who are productive members of eternity."

" ... a spiritual revolution that takes place 'out there' is less significant in God's eyes unless I can facilitate one 'in here' - in my own heart, first, and then in the lives of the people who live under the same roof as me. In particular, it is critical that I see such a revolutionalizing faith redefine the lives of my children. My obsession should be on the spiritual growth curve of each of my kids ... if I am going to be aggressive about something, it should be how I intentionally shape the lives of my children." George Barna

"The desire of every believer should be this: to see our relatives, neighbors, countrymen and everyone we can think of enter into a saving relationship with Jesus. And to raise up children - our own and others - who will one day be part of finishing the work of the Great Commission."