Jackie's Journey: Raising a Wise Knight

"Raising a Wise Knight"

Little boys are born with an adventurous spirit!  They are challenged by obstacles and are great problem solvers.  This belief convinces them that they can find friendship with snakes, snails, frogs and caterpillars!  Their favorite pets are ferrets, hawks, huge dogs, bearded dragons and, of course, tarantulas! 

It is important to us that our little boys grow to be strong, bold and wise.  As their personalities develop, our task takes on tremendous significance.  We see the need for wisdom in our own lives and the need for teaching wisdom to these small ones following us, stepping into the footprint we leave behind!  Our worst nightmare is that our child will be regarded as foolish and unteachable, persuaded by every wind and doctrine, unprepared for life.

Scripture says that “wisdom is better than gold, yea, than fine gold…” Pro. 8:19   God puts great value on our being wise.  He says it is more precious than jewels (verse 11) and more valuable than riches (verse 18).  “Wisdom is the principle thing; therefore get wisdom…”  Pro. 4: 7  

How important is wisdom to you? 
 Do you value wisdom as God does?
 Are you a wise woman?

As our children grew we looked for the marks of a wise child:
•    A wise child will love the one who rebukes him. (Pro. 9:8)
•    A wise child loves the law of God. (Scripture) (Pro. 10:8)
•    A wise son delights the heart of his father. (Pro. 10:1)
•    A wise child listens to counsel and instruction. (Pro. 13:1)
•    A wise son controls his tongue. (Pro. 11:30)
•    A wise child seeks wise friends. (Pro. 13:20)

Can we raise a wise child in this generation?
How do we get this wisdom?

While living in Panama, our good friends, Johnnie and Ruth Jenkins, put the definition of wisdom to music:

“Wisdom is seeing life situations from God’s point of view
and acting in harmony with it. 
So be wise my son, heed my instruction, 
leave that road that leads to destruction. 
Hallow my name, don’t walk in shame…
Wisdom is…”   

As we raise our little knights to be wise, we teach them that the fruit of being wise is “first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.” (Jas. 3:17).   Is your home marked by this harmony?  Is your little knight bringing you joy or are you ragged by the end of the day?  In the first chapter of Daniel it is recorded that “God gave them (Hebrew boys) knowledge and skill in all matters of learning and wisdom…” (vs. 17-20).  The King found the young boys ten times better than all the magicians and astrologers. 

God gives wisdom to those who ask and all the keys to understanding wisdom are found in His living Word.  (Jas. 1:5; Deut. 4:6; Pro. 9:10; Pro.1:1-3; Pro.13:20: Psa. 119:98; Psa. 19:7…)  Just reading the Proverb of the day would begin to equip you with what you need to lead your fledgling young knight into wisdom!

 Sir Jonathan illustrates the character quality of Wisdom.  One night a fierce storm arrives with howling winds, bringing the surging sea into the village.  The heaving waves sweep in and swallow everything in sight!  Young Sir Jonathan awakens to a frenzied scene and a life-lesson that will eternally alter his life forever.  A noble knight sees life from God’s point of view and eminently acts in harmony with it.  This makes him a wise young man indeed.

We hope Sir Jonathan will encourage and inspire your little knight as you teach him to walk wisely.

~Jackie Johnson - I am a former tribal missionary to the Kuna Indians on the Colombian border in Central America.  Fluent in several languages, my husband and I currently pastor a Spanish-speaking church in Southern California.  My passion is discipling and equipping dedicated young women for life, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. I am the mother of two daughters and the grandmother of three Princesses and four young Knights. 

The Good Father

Our newest story in the Princess Parables series, A Royal Easter Story, weaves together a number of different lessons.  Just as God’s word can have many applications in just one verse, A Royal Easter Story does as well.  The beauty of using God’s word as the foundation for a story allows for a richness of many applications.

 One of the underlying storylines to teach your kids from the new story is found in Luke 11:11,12. 

"What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?”  

“What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?”

With Easter right around the corner, most of us will be putting together the egg hunts, Easter dinner and the highly-anticipated Easter basket.  Would you ever consider putting in rocks instead of colored eggs? Pebbles instead of jelly beans? Or a snake in place of a chocolate bunny?

Never! Right?

I love giving gifts to my kids.

Their faces light up with eyes shining with excitement.  Hugs flow freely, even with my teens.  Smiles and gratefulness follow a well-chosen gift.

I am just a little giddy inside myself.  Nothing is as good as being the giver. I especially love to grant their requests, when I can.  I always want to be the “Yes!” mom.

Our God is the “Yes!” God within His will.

The story in Luke teaches us three things, which in turn are great teaching tools in A Royal Easter Story.

Our God gives good gifts

The story is intended to be absurd, even in the 21st century.  But the stark reality is, if our fathers here on this earth treat us well, how much more our Father in Heaven does.  He longs to give us good gifts.  Not a million dollars from the lottery, but the gifts He knows will grow us and mature us into the person He has designed us to be.  As we gift Easter baskets this year, let us not forget to remind our children that God gives great gifts.  The best gift was His son for our lives.

We can pray with confidence and persistence

If God is so good to us, then we can come to him to ask for what we need.  He is our good father and wants to give us what is beneficial for us. Because of who God is and what He promises, we can pray knowing He will answer and do what is best.  We can remind our children, just as they may not always get candy for breakfast and cake before bedtime.  Neither can we expect to have prayers answered that are not wholesome for us, but we can come confidently knowing God will give us everything we need.

Because of our Heavenly Father’s character, we can treat others right

Jesus is asking us to treat others the way we want to be treated – the Golden Rule. This verse sets up the perfect story to teach kids not to worry if things don’t turn out the way they want.  God has everything under control and he has “your back”. We can treat people as ambassadors for Jesus and not worry about what we get in return.  God is already ready to give us good gifts.  We don’t need to worry; we just need to do the right thing.  This is an important truth the princesses learn in A Royal Easter Story.  They have to give up winning the race to rescue a lost little girl, but in the end, they are blessed to have done the right thing.

We are so excited for you all to read this book to your kids.  Can you tell?  Have you ordered it yet? 

A Royal Easter Story came out on Tuesday, just in time for your Easter basket!

~Jeanna Young

When Jeanna is not writing, speaking, event planning, or homeschooling, she can be found scrapbooking her life, redecorating her home, loving on her husband, planning fun events for her kids or eating healthy to stay cancer-free!

Jackie's Journey: A Royal Easter Story

“Rejoice with Us!”

The Princess Parables Book Series is designed to inspire noble thoughts and actions.  We have been blessed in so many ways by those of you who buy them, read them and use them as a teaching tool to minister to the spirit of your little girls.  We have a Princess Parable Prayer Book for Toddlers and a Devotional Book coming soon. We have recently been asked by our publishing house to submit a proposal to bring you another series of books for the little princesses who started with us six years ago and are now ready for chapter books.  We humbly seek God’s Word for inspiration and His heart for leading.

Will you pray with us?

The first of our two seasonal princess books arrives in bookstores tomorrow, the 26th of January 2016!  We are excited to announce its arrival in time for Easter.   A Royal Easter Story is taken from Luke 11.  We are introducing our five young Knights in this book for those of you who have patiently waited for them to arrive.

From Luke 11:9-13, A Royal Easter Story reveals the truth of a caring and selfless good Father who not only gives us good gifts, but also answers us when we seek Him. The princesses’ life-lesson is that a TRUE princess must learn to lose her life serving “Others first” - no “Me first” attitudes.  While in carriages racing the young knights to the annual Easter celebration, the girls come upon a lost little girl who desperately needs their help. They terminate their contest with the boys to give their attention to the more important needs of little forlorn Alina. Her name means “light” and she opens the eyes of the princesses to see the real race in life.  

Easter is the celebration of our heavenly Father and King, who is “The Light”. He is noble and always focuses on others and what is eternal and matters most … US!  He never sacrifices the permanent on the altar of the immediate!  Our Father’s devotion caused Him to wage war against principalities on our behalf. He gave the ultimate sacrifice (His life for ours on the cross!).  Not only did He die for us, but He is alive and is available to all who ASK, SEEK, and KNOCK!

“So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” Luke 11:9-13

Please visit our store to find our “hot off the press” Easter Book.  Also available are the Princess companion pieces (Princess Dolls, Princess Sticker and Activity Books, Princess I Can Read books for the emergent readers, A Treasury of Three Princesses or a Collection of all Five Princesses and much more…).  Our seasonal Princess Christmas Book is also due out for this Christmas 2016.  We are so grateful to each of you and the encouragement you give us as we continue to step into the print HE leaves behind…

~Jackie Johnson - I am a former tribal missionary to the Kuna Indians on the Colombian border in Central America.  Fluent in several languages, my husband and I currently pastor a Spanish-speaking church in Southern California.  My passion is discipling and equipping dedicated young women for life, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. I am the mother of two daughters and the grandmother of three Princesses and four young Knights. 

Life Applications for Princesses

We have an exciting lesson for your kids this Easter!

Should we tell you what it is all about before the book comes out?  Yes?  I think so too! Just don’t tell our publisher!

Like a scrumptious crock pot dinner, A Royal Easter Story has been brewing slowly in Jackie’s and my heart over the last couple of years, and we are thrilled the story is finally here, in color, for all your children to enjoy.

Just like all the books in the Princess Parables Series, this latest edition is full of lessons and character examples.  I am going to take this week and next to expound upon the two verses and parables we used to create this inspirational story.  Our hope is when you order the book and read it to your princess, these lessons can be brought to life. 

The reason the Princess Parables was created in the first place is we wanted your daughters to love God’s word and the parables of Jesus.  We wanted to help create a conversation at bedtime when they are sitting on your lap reading their favorite princess book. 

This is our hope and goal.

Here is the first part of the focused verse of A Royal Easter Story.

Luke 11:9-10

So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

ASK:  If your kids are anything like mine, they ask A LOT of questions.  I have always encouraged them by saying “You can ask me anything!” I believe this verse does not mean if we ask God for anything, he will give it. He is not a genie waiting to fulfill our every desire. For as any good parent knows, not everything my kids ask for is good for them.  Just like my father in heaven knows what is good for me.  Ask and it (the answer) will be given to you.  The answer to a prayer is the biggest way we ask.  Sometimes the answer is yes.  Sometimes it is no and sometimes it is wait.  In A Royal Easter Story, we have Princess Charity asking her father a question and he answers.  It is symbolic of our heavenly father answering our prayers.

SEEK:  Hide-and-seek was a favorite for my kids for years.  They had just as much fun hiding and they did seeking. However, seeking was the only way to find the reward.  In the same way, God wants us to seek Him. He is not a hovering, demanding parent who controls us like robots, but he has allowed free will.  Within this freedom, He desires us to seek His salvation, His will, His wisdom and His plan. A three-fold promise is found in this scripture.  God says “You will find me!”  In A Royal Easter Story, we find the princesses helping a lost little girl where they promise to SEEK her family and not give up.  They were persistent in their promise, just as God is to us.

KNOCK: One of my kids went through a Knock-Knock joke phase.  Did any of yours? Funny as they were, it was never just one joke, but as many as they could say in a short period of time, until they were out of breath. I was reminded that when we knock, we never rap just once, but it is a series of knocks that open the door.  As we look at Luke 11:9-10, we can see Jesus’ idea building: first we ask, then we seek and lastly, we knock – showing repetition. Jesus wants us to pray repeatedly, not because He didn’t hear us the first time, but because the practice of prayer is saint-perfecting.  In our Easter story, the princesses are supposedly lost, and as they return they KNOCK.  The door opens to a worried father who is relieved to see them.  As promised, if we knock, the door will be opened.

Fun Fact:  Just so you know we have “hidden” this parable in the story.  We have used all capitals ASK, SEEK, KNOCK in the text so you can ask your kids, why is this word capitalized?  It will make sense in the end and be a great teaching tool.

In just 6 six days, A Royal Easter Story will be released.  We can’t wait for you to make this book part of your Easter traditions and stories.  You can order it here if you haven’t already! Enjoy it!  Let us know what you think too.

~Jeanna Young

When Jeanna is not writing, speaking, event planning, or homeschooling, she can be found scrapbooking her life, redecorating her home, loving on her husband, planning fun events for her kids or eating healthy to stay cancer-free!