Who's the Boss?

A few days ago, when my husband took a toy away from our 5 year old daughter as a form of discipline, I was surprised to hear her say: "Mommy! Make Daddy stop! Daddy, Mommy will tell you you're wrong!"

Although it's politically incorrect, I want my daughter to grow up knowing who's in charge, biblically. To help illustrate my point, we made a mobile.

What You Need:

Photographs of everyone in your family (Mommy, Daddy, and kids)
Cardstock
Scissors
Printer*
A clip art image representing God (I chose a cross in a heart I found through a
Google image search)
An 18 in. piece of yarn, ribbon, or string for every member of the family
A hole punch



How to Do It:

1. Using photo editing software, crop the photos of each family member into a circle shape, then print them on cardstock.

2. Print the image representing God on cardstock.*

3. Have your child cut out all the images.

4. Help your child punch a hole at the top of each image.

5. Lay all the images out on a table and explain which one represents God. Ask your child who she thinks is in charge. Hopefully, she'll answer "God."

6. Have her string some yarn through the hole at the top of the image representing God. If your child can make a simple knot, have her knot the yarn at the top of the hole, securing it in place. Otherwise, do this for her.

7. Ask your child who she thinks is in charge, after God. (The answer is "Daddy.") Have her string the yarn and tie it at the top of the hole on the photo of Daddy. Secure the top of Daddy's yarn through the hole in the image representing God. (Adjust the yarn so Daddy's face is clearly visible below "God.")

8. Pull out your Bible and read 1 Cor. 11:3: "But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man... " If your child can write easily, have her write this Bible verse on the back of Daddy's photograph.

9. Ask your child who she thinks is in charge, after Daddy. (The answer is "Mommy.") Have her string the yarn and tie it at the top of the hole on the photo of Mommy. Secure the top of Mommy's yarn through the hole in Daddy's photo. (Adjust the yarn so Mommy's face is clearly visible below Daddy.)

10. Read Eph. 5:24: "Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything." Have your child write this verse on the back of Mommy's photo, if desired.

11. Finally, ask who is in charge of the children. (The answer is "Mommy and Daddy.") Have her string the yarn and tie it at the top of the hole on the photo of herself and her siblings. Secure the top of these pieces of yarn through the hole in Mommy 's photo. (Adjust the yarn so the children's faces are clearly visible below Mommy.)

12. Read Eph. 6:1: "Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right." Write this verse on the back of the kid(s) image(s), if desired.

13. After discussing the project with your child, hang the mobile in place where the child will often see it, like her bedroom.

* Alternatively, you could use actual photographs in place of digital images, cardstock, and a printer.


3 comments

  1. What a neat idea you have there, Kristina. I'm sure she has learned it's not nice to take toys from other children. Perhaps she thought those same rules applied to her Daddy. :)

    You know, during wedding ceremonies when the preacher gets to the part about "obeying your husband," I see and hear bad attitudes from young brides, as well as the brides maids. I think teaching our young daughters to respect their Daddy, to be humble and submissive, will help mold them into their future role of humble, submissive wives.

    Keep up the good work!

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  2. Just wanted to say that I really love your blog.

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  3. Fruit, thanks so much!

    Loretta, the world tells girls they should never submit - that they even should be superior to - men. The whole idea of equal but different is not always easy to teach, but I'm working on it!

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