What about Fairies???
Some of my favorite stories I read in my beginning readers were fairy tales. I enjoyed imagining these tiny people dancing in the grass and playing games. I remember once as a child finding a rotted out tree stump in the woods. The outside of the stump was still standing, and part of the top was still there. There was lots of moss and even a couple of tiny mushrooms inside. I imagined it to be a little house where the fairies might play and was pleased with myself for thinking of it.
It is good to encourage our children to use their imaginations. But can it go over the top if we carry it too far? Can believing in fairies get in the way of believing in God?
There is a new fairy fad going around with parents putting tiny fairy doors in their daughters’ rooms (or gnome doors for boys) and playing them up as if they were real. The children leave messages for the fairies and get messages in return – with the help of Mom or Dad. And everyone gets caught up in the fun. Fairy notes and treats are used to reward good behavior. To many, this seems like a win-win situation.
But while these children are leaving messages for fairies and getting written replies, are we giving them the impression that fairies hear their requests – maybe even better than God does? Could we be unwittingly teaching our children to pray to fairies, to put our confidence in them by using these methods to get our children to behave? Good behavior is no longer about pleasing God, but pleasing fairies. Sometimes things that seem good get in the way of what is best.
It is our responsibility as parents to teach our children to put their trust in God – to teach them that He is always there and He hears and answers their prayers. We must teach them that God has given us all the messages we need in his Word, the Bible. And we need to be knowledgeable enough about the Bible to help our children find the answers they need.
Where do we draw the line between encouraging our children’s imagination and teaching them Biblical truths? How can we put that same kind of excitement into talking with God and learning from His word?
By Janice Green
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