The Gospel in a Minute - with FREE Printable!

If you grew up in a Christian home, or have attended a church for a while, you have probably come across someone saying that it is a good idea to be able to verbalize what the Gospel is.  I remember doing this exercise before going on a missions trip in high school.  I think we had a list of colors and each color represented a different aspect of the gospel (Black - we are dead in our sins, Red - Jesus died to rescue us from our sins, White - Jesus' blood has made us white as snow, etc.).

Whatever way you want to learn to share the gospel is fine, but it is definitely something that you should do!  Obviously it helps when you are witnessing to someone.  You don't want to come across sounding like a bumbling idiot when you are talking about the most important topic ever!  =)  It is also a good exercise because it makes us slow down and actually think about what we believe.

Mark Dever's Gospel in a Minute

A few years ago, my husband heard Mark Dever speak about trying to put together a gospel presentation that would only take one minute to share.  We thought this was a neat idea.

I've heard some people try to come up with the fewest amount of words possible to convey the gospel message (I sinned, Jesus died, etc.), and while that is an interesting mental activity, its helpfulness is really limited.

Other people have such a complicated gospel presentation that it leaves room for so many rabbit trails and you have a hard time getting around to the main point.

So, my husband and I were really interested in this "Gospel in a Minute" idea.  Is it going to fully explain and defend every point of Christian doctrine? No, but it's amazing just how much content you can get into 60 seconds!

It's been a while now, so I don't remember exactly, but I think my husband took what Mark Dever wrote out and tweaked it.  The 9 Marks website shows the basic outline with verses to back up each point.  Dever has written a book, called The Gospel and Personal Evangelism, that also cover this topic.  Also, here is a youtube video of him talking through the gospel (though here it takes him 1 minute and 50 seconds!)

Our Gospel in a Minute

Here is what my husband came up with.  Like I said, it is very similar, just tweaked.  We slowly memorized this as a family and often review it before bedtime.  It's so wonderful to have this kind of things rattling around in our children's brains and nourishing their souls.  We reference it so often in our daily conversations and it provides such a great jumping off platform for deeper discussions.

The one and only God, creator of everything, who is holy, made us in His image to Know Him and glorify Him. 

 But we sinned, we rebelled. We cut ourselves off from Him, and there’s nothing we could ever do to earn our way back to Him.

 But in His great love, God became a man in Jesus, lived a perfect life, and died on the cross, taking on himself the punishment for the sins of all those who would ever believe in Him.

 And then He rose from the dead, showing that God accepted Christ’s sacrifice and that God’s wrath against us has been satisfied.

 He now calls us to repent of our sins and to trust in Christ alone for our forgiveness.

 If we repent of our sins and trust in Christ, we are born again into a new life, an eternal life with God.

FREE Gospel in a Minute Printable!

Recently, my husband mentioned that he thought it would be nice to have this Gospel in a Minute printed so we could have it up in our home.  I thought it was a great idea, so I decided to create a version that was pretty enough to have setting around =)

I got it printed on a 16x20 canvas from CanvasFactory.com and have it sitting next to the 5 Solas print that I got from them last year. 

I heartily encourage you to memorize this or something like it with your family!  If you would like this GOSPEL printable (or the 5 Solas one for that matter), you can get them for free just by entering your email address here (or click below).  An email will be sent to you with the links to download the images.  The file can be used as a background on your computer or other device, or it can be printed as a picture, any size up to 16x20 inches.

Memorizing John 1 in Latin - Helpful Resources

This post contains an affiliate link to a product that I use.

My children and I have been memorizing John 1:1-7 in both English and Latin as part of our learning this year.  The English part was not so hard, but Latin is a bit more of a challenge!  I am so impressed at how well my children have picked up on it, and it is so neat to hear them speaking in Latin.

We have found a few resources to be helpful in our learning and I wanted to share them with you.

Learning John 1 Through Song

Learning through song is always so helpful.  Our knowledge shouldn't stay in song form, but it is very effective for initially memorizing information.

Here is the song that we have used to learn John 1.  There are others out there, so search on youtube or Google if you don't like this tune.

John 1 Scripture Folder

Pam (from ED Snapshots) has created a great resource for helping kids to learn John 1:1-7 in Latin.  This file folder puzzle has 3 different levels for your child to practice what they have learned.  Children review by putting the words from the verse in the right order.  I love the version where they sit the words into the right sized boxes.  It is just enough help to encourage them on their way.

My kids did this last week and it was a good challenge.  My favorite part was hearing them sing the song over and over to themselves in order to figure out which word to look for next.  My son only did a few lines of the puzzle, but he must have sung the son 20 times!  What great practice!

If you are learning John 1 like we are, make sure to check out this John 1 Scripture Folder.

Listening to a Beautiful Presentation

This is a video of from Classical Academic Press of Christopher Perrin reading the whole chapter of John 1 in Latin.  It is a beautiful presentation.  Take a minute to listen.  You'll be glad you did!

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Are you learning John 1 in Latin?  

What resources have you found helpful?

Do you have any memorization tips to share?

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Reformation Day Celebration

The Reformation is a wonderful thing to celebrate.  It falls on October 31st each year to commemorate when Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses on the door in Wittenburg in the year 1517.  There is so much rich history to learn about from that time period, but when you have little children, sometimes you just need to have a party...with games!

Last year, we had a family from church over to celebrate Reformation Day. Everyone had a great time and the kids got to learn a bit about church history.  The kids dressed up in costumes that related to Reformation Day in some way, and I taught the kids about Martin Luther through the games that we played.

If you would like to have a Reformation Day Celebration, or just looking for ideas to enhance your history studies, here is a look at what we did.  You can even download all the information for your own use (look for the link at the bottom of the post).

Reformation Day Costumes

I dressed my daughter up as a peasant girl and my son as Martin Luther.  You could also be a princess, a king, a horse, or anything else related to the 16th century!

Reformation Day Games

You can come up with lots of fun games to play on Reformation Day!  The ones that we played told the story of Martin Luther in a simple way for our young children.

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Coin in the Coffer:

Story to say to the children:

Did you know that in Martin Luther's day, people were told that if they gave money to the church, they could save their relatives that had already died?  We know that this is not true, but they were not allowed to read the Bible for them selves, so they didn't know!

Instructions:

Give each child 4 coins.  Have they try to throw each coin into a pan.  The child gets to keep each coin they get in.  We let the kids keep trying until they got all of them in =) 

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Pin the Theses on the Door:

Story:

Martin Luther realized that this and other things people were learning at church were wrong and he wanted to let everyone know, so he wrote a long list of many things that he wanted to share with the people.  He then nailed the list to the church door for everyone to see.

Instructions:

Blindfold each child and let them take turns trying to tape their 95 Theses onto a door.  The girls from the family we had over loved watching their mom get in on the game!

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3-Legged Race for Your Life! 

Story:

After a few years of defending what he wrote, the church declared him a heretic and ordered his arrest!  martin Luther had to flee for his life!

Instructions:

Pair the child up and tie their legs together.  Have them run around a circle to remember how Martin Luther had to run for his life after the Catholic church ordered his arrest!

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Translating the  Bible:

Story:

Martin Luther was rescued by friends and kept safe in a basement where he translated the New Testament from Latin into German (the language that the people understood).

Instructions:

Give each child a picture of the word Bible with an illuminated letter B.  Let them color the B and then have them try to make their own illuminated letters!

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If you want to have your own Reformation Day Celebration, you can download all of this information (and more!) to make your planning easy.  Included you will find:

 

Suggested Order of Events

Snack Ideas

Games (Stories and Instructions)

Reformation Day Balderdash (Instructions and Suggestions)

95 Theses (typed small so you can print them all, back-to-back, on one page)

The word Bible with an illuminated letter B

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Download the Reformation Day Celebration Idea Booklet

 

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Here are some ideas and resources that we have enjoyed!

Want More?

Sponsor Spotlight: Classical Academic Press

Have you noticed the new button on my sidebar this month?  I'm so excited to announce that Classical Academic Press is my newest sponsor here at Living and Learning at Home!

I first learned about Classical Academic Press when I read a review at Teaching Stars about Song School Latin.  After reading that post, I knew that Song School Latin was something that I wanted to use with my children.  I got it a few months ago to review and my kids have LOVED it since the minute we started.  You can read my review at The Curriculum Choice.

I wanted to take today to share with you a little more about Classical Academic Press and what other great materials they offer.  From their website:

Our mission is to produce and supply the finest classical curricula to the market today.

We seek to produce classical curricula and media with a clear design and structure, incremental and systematic instruction, all with a touch of delight, creativity and flair.

Great Curricula at Classical Academic Press

Classical Academic Press offers more than just Latin (though you should definitely check out their complete line of Latin curriculum for grades 1-12).  Here are a few great products to give you a taste of what they have for you!  If something looks interesting to you, make sure to click over and look on the product page because there are sample chapters and other free resources to help you learn more!

Logic (grades 7 and up)

• The Art of Argument -  introduces students to the logical fallacies

• The Discovery of Deduction - explores the structure or reasoning

•  The Argument Builder - helps students to build a sound argument that is also persuasive. 

Writing and Rhetoric (grades 3 and up)

This is a new series that will teach your child how to write by imitating excellent, whole-story examples of literature.  Right now they have two books out, but it looks like this is going to be a 12 book series to take your child all the way to graduation!  This series looks really neat and I'm excited to use it with my son in a year or two.

Bible (grades 3 and up)

 This four part series teaches children the overarching story of the Bible.  I love that it teaches the Bible chronologically, which you could fit right in to your history studies (or just use it as a stand alone curriculum or or family Bible time).  Along with the great stories and learning about the covenant that God has made with his people, this curriculum come packed with:

• Passages to memorize
• Maps
• A Timeline
• Audio book of the stories

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I hope that this gives you a little taste of the great products you will find at Classical Academic Press.  I have been so happy with the products that I have used from them, and I know that you will be too!

Have you used any curriculum from Classical Academic Press?  Leave a comment, because I would love to hear what your favorites are!

Classical Mamas Read - The Well Trained Mind: Ch. 3-4

Here we are again to take a look the next chapters in The Well Trained Mind. (affiliate link)  Today we will be discussing chapters 3 & 4.  Just as a heads up, next week we will be taking a break because I will be sharing with you all a week-long series called The Classical Preschool.  It happens to go along great with the chapters we are talking about today (even thought I didn't plan it that way =)

Today we begin to look at Part 1 - The Grammar Stage - Kindergarten through 4th grade

Ch. 3 - The Parrot Years

This chapter is a introduction to the grammar stage, sharing with us what the basis of this stage is and how to implement it.  Here are some parts and thoughts that I wrote down while I read it.  Please discuss and share your thoughts in the comments below!

• 'Fact collecting' isn't a fashionable approach to early learning (self expression is what is popular now).

• I've definitely always known that how I do things is not 'normal.'  I never really thought much about it, it just felt like the right thing to do.

•  I loved the example of the sponge, that you can't squeeze anything out (creativity), without first saturating it (knowledge/skill)

• These years are the time to fill your child's mind with as many stories, pictures, and facts as you can.  These will be mental pegs to hang more information on later.

•  I know Classical Conversations talks about this too, and I really like it!

• My husband and I have talked before about how when you get a new car, all of a sudden you start seeing it on the road everywhere.  It's not that it wasn't there before, but now you're familiar with it and are receptive to more information about it.  I think that concept translates perfectly to our children.  I know my son is delighted when he hears somebody talk about something that he is learning about or hears our pastor say a word that we have learned in school. 

• Read! Read! Read!

• Children are excited at this age to learn, they love repetition, and are easily engaged.

• Sometimes reading is not convenient, but I'm trying very hard to never say 'not right now' when either of my children bring me a book!  I try to offer lots of time for reading, and a wide variety of books.  

• Memorize! Memorize! Memorize!

•  Tell your children the information and have them repeat it back.  Young children will memorize without taking the time to critique, which enables them to memorize large amounts.

• We focused on memorizing Bible, poetry, and (only recently) history.  I want to continue adding to this next year.

•  What do you have your children memorize?

•  Prioritization - How do you fit it all in?

• I always struggle with this.  There just never seems to be enough hours in the day to fit in all the great school resources I would like to, keeping up the house-related jobs (cooling, cleaning, etc.), and let the kids be kids and PLAY!  I'd love to hear what you prioritize and how you do it!

Ch. 4 - Unlocking the Doors: The Preschool Years

This chapter talks about what is needed and not needed during the preschool years, breaking it down into ages 0-3 and 4-5.  Here are some things I wrote down, parts I liked, and some of my own thoughts.  Please share yours in the comments!

• 10 minutes/subject, moving up to 30 minutes/subject by age 5

• I thought this was a very helpful guideline!  Personally, we have added more 'subjects' in each preschool year too, so that increases school time as well.

• What do you do when your child lollygags? I make sure that each thing I ask my son to do should take him no longer than about 15 minutes, but he just doesn't have the drive to sit and get it done and it can take FOREVER.  Do you 'punish' your child by having them finish no matter how long it takes, or do you move on after the allotted amount of time, even if nothing got done? 

• Ages 0-3

• Immerse your little ones in language. "A torn book is a small price to pay for literacy." (page 27)

• I've been thinking about this lately.  My son loves looking through the Little House series books that we are reading right now, and they are starting to get little creases and tears.  This bothers me, but I hate to squelch his desire to read!  I figure I'd rather have to buy a whole new set in a few years, than discourage him from reading.

•  Reading/Writing

• I start teaching letter sounds at age 2, and that seems to fit right in to what they are saying here.
• Encourage even these little ones to hold pencils/crayons/etc. correctly
• Draw circles with them, do dot-to-dots, anything to promote pre-writing skills.

• Math 

• Count items out loud with your little ones.
• Point to written numbers in books, on signs, etc. so they learn number recognition.

• Ages 4-5 

• Remember that children can vary in learning style so much at this age.  Some children will enjoy writing, other gross-motor type activities, etc.

•  Begin teaching them how to write.  Require only a little bit of writing, but make sure they do it really well!

• For math, use manipulatives to demonstrate the concepts of addition, subtraction, etc.  Play games that require counting, matching, sorting, etc.  Talk about numbers in your daily life!  

What are you favorite resources for the preschool years?

In case you'd like to prepare, next week we will be discussing chapter 5 which talks about Spelling, Grammar, Reading, and Writing.  If you don't have the book already, you can look for it at your library or get it on amazon. (The Well Trained Mind affiliate link)

If you are behind, feel free to still comment on chapters 1 & 2.  If you want to be emailed when someone makes a comment, make sure to click "Subscribe by Email" right under the comment box (right hand side), so you won't miss out on any discussion!

Classical Mamas Read Link-Up

Did you write about these chapters on your blog?  Have you been reading and blogging about another book (for you, not a children's book)?  Do you have a book club going on at your blog (once again, not for a children's book)?  I'd love for you link up here so we can all be encouraged by each other and maybe find another great book to read!

I think I'm going to keep this link-up ongoing since there aren't going to be a huge number of posts and then anyone new will be able to be encouraged by the other book reading ideas and discussions.  If the number of posts gets too large, I will fix it.

Please note, all posts must be on topic (about a book you are reading) and appropriate (think family friendly).

Old Testament Days and Classical Kids Activity Books

I was not compensated in any way for this review, but there are affiliate links.  I am telling you about these books because I love them and use them often in my homeschool

An activity of any kind is sure to bring life to your child's studies.  Often, we will be reading a book and I can just tell that my son doesn't truly understand what I'm talking about =)  When material is new, it is understandable that there would be questions.

We have been learning about ancient times this year, and that can be really difficult for young kids.  Of course they are great at memorizing facts and answering questions, but kids just assume that everyone has been just like them so conveying to them how other people lived can take a bit of work.

Two resources that we have used this year to help my children understand what life was really like thousands of years ago are Old Testament Days and Classical Kids.  They are activity books that each have around 100 ideas/activities to do with your children pertaining to ancient times.

Visit The Curriculum Choice to read the rest of my review!

Grapevine Studies - Resurrection (Traceables) Review

I'm excited to announce that I am now a reviewer for The Curriculum Choice!  My first review is today and it is for Grapevine Studies.  Take a peak here, and then I hope you will head over to The Curriculum Choice to read the rest!

I'm guessing that you have heard of Grapevine Studies...what I want to talk about today is their new traceable studies. More important than (probably) anything else I have to say is that my children LOVE them. They ask to do the study every night and are very disappointed when we skip a night.

We are working our way through the Resurrection study right now, preparing for Easter. These traceables are designed for 3-5 year olds and you can choose from the Beginner studies or the Multi-level studies. In these lessons, a light gray stick figure is already drawn in each box so all your youngster has to do it trace over it. Tracing is a great activity for little hands and minds, teaching them how to make good work on their own.

This Resurrection study takes your family from the Last Supper through the Ascension of Jesus in nine easy lessons. Each lesson tells you what Bible verses to read, what colors to use in your drawings, words to look up in a Bible dictionary, a memory verse, and review questions. You can choose to incorporate all of those things into your lesson or you can pick and choose which elements you would like.

What I love the most is...

Find out and read the rest of my review at The Curriculum Choice!

Exodus Notebooking Pages

Download Exodus Notebooking Pages

We have been studying Ancient History this year.  So far we have made it through Genesis and Exodus, studying the Ancient Sumerians and Ancient Egyptians as we went.  I am excited to be headed to the book of Joshua now, and beginning to study Ancient Greece!

Most days I assign a copywork page to my son, but sometimes I switch things up by doing some other sort of writing assignment.  (He is still very young and I know that he can only handle one major writing task per day, though I see him increasing his abilities all the time!)  One of the things I had him do some days was a notebooking page.

I love notebooking pages because they let your child express what they have learned creatively and without feeling like they are being tested.  When my son does copywork, I make sure that everything is copied correctly, but with pages like these I let him work without any criticism or critique.  I really just want to see if he has absorbed anything that I have read =)

I created these pages (because that's how I roll) as we went along in our studies, and I wanted to share them with you before I moved on and forgot about them!

There are three pages, each with a picture, lines to write, and a box to draw a picture in.  You could assign your child something particular to write and draw, or let them retell what they have learned in whatever way they wish.

Pages Include:

• The Nile River
• Baby Moses in the Nile
• Moses and the Burning Bush

These are just pages that I created when I felt like assigning a notebooking page to my son.  I was not trying to capture each event in the book of Exodus, but if this is something that you would enjoy, I would love to make more for you!  Please let me know if these are a benefit to your family!

Download Exodus Notebooking Pages