Food for Hungry Sheep
By Kimberly Thigpen
When my husband, Brian, and I planned to raise our kids on the mission field, what to do about school was a major concern. The local public school had steady and open indoctrination of the religion of that country. How were we to train our children, our “lambs,” to grow in the knowledge of the Lord? Had we remained, having a good biblical program would have been extremely important.
Instead, God sent us back to America, where much is different and yet much is the same. Having good, trustworthy Bible material for our children is still paramount, and being in a culture that bombards our children with false messages is still a problem.
When God sent us to Source of Light, one of the things that impressed me was the genuine priority of discipleship. Their lessons aren’t fluffy with a tiny bit of Bible. It is not questionable material, truths wrapped up inside worldliness. I don’t feel the need to check through them to make sure that what my children are studying is based fully on the Word.
You care about your “lambs” like I do mine, and that’s why I recommend Source of Light’s material. They have courses for every age group. Each lesson has a test that the student fills in and returns. The grader sends back the graded test with the next lesson, along with answers to any personal questions the student might have or help for an area of struggle. For home study, the parent can be the grader, providing a special time of connection over God’s Word, and providing a way for children to mention areas of struggle. You might be surprised what questions and insights you get!
My daughter, Hope, is eleven. She is doing Explorers 1 and says, “At the end it has questions that you have to actually read it—instead of skim it—to be able to answer.” Hope’s lessons are graded by one of our missionaries here at SLM Headquarters. “She’s a wonderful lady,” Hope says of Sylvia. “I think she’s eighty-six (she’s 88!) but she still walks to her house for lunch. Sometimes she’ll put a sticker or write something on the lesson when she gives the graded sheet back.” As her mom, I love her connection with wise older Christians.
“Thank you for teaching me. This is very fun!” – Benjamin, age 9
Children are not the only lambs who need special care. What about lambs in the faith—the new believers?
When a person becomes a believer, they need extra care, like a new sheep in a fold. A good shepherd would not bring a new lamb in and then leave it to fend for itself. In the same way, new believers need to be purposefully discipled so they can not only grow in the Word, but to learn how to grow in the Word. Their spiritual food is very important.
My New Life in Christ is an excellent course for new believers. It does not assume prior Bible knowledge and would be good also if you are studying the Bible with an unbeliever. The course covers important questions including:
Who is Jesus Christ?
What is God like?
Creation or Chance?
Why did Christ Die?
Ways to use SLM Lessons:
Send as a birthday or Christmas gift.
Sunday school or small groups.
VBS follow up.
Bible training at home or family devotions.
Prison ministry.
Give to new believers or study with them.
“I’m 71 years old and it’s never too late to learn…. These lessons are going to help me get back where I belong.” – Patricia
“This has so opened my eyes and humbled me and slowly but surely, I am beginning to understand God. Thank you all at SLM.” – Kraig
According to raisingsheep.net, “Providing sheep with proper nutrition is the key to a thriving flock.” Spiritually, the same is true of us. What flock has God given you to shepherd? A Sunday school class? Your family? Sheep like to eat and then travel in groups. They tend to follow each other, sometimes to their own harm. We humans are the same. When it comes to food, it is easy to just grab what is easiest, or eat what everyone else is eating, not taking care to make sure it is good for us. Spiritually, it is easy to choose whatever is fed to us, or whatever is the latest trend, and for that reason, those who are shepherds must take great care with what they choose to feed the flocks entrusted to them by God.
My son, Daniel, who is fifteen, will be doing Source of Light courses for his Bible curriculum this coming school year. He has chosen Winning the Race of Life for his first course. For mothers who homeschool or whose children go to a school that does not teach the truth of the Bible, how are our children to grow if we do not purposefully give them spiritual meat? They are getting plenty of junk from the world. Church every week is not enough. We need to equip them for the great, strong future God intends for them.
“People regret putting their kids in too many sports, or letting them spend too much time on TV or video games, but I have never once heard a parent express regret over time spent training their children in the Word.” – Kim
“I have always read my Bible, but this has helped me so much in my understanding and reading. I look forward to each new lesson. Bless you all!” – Michael
Sheep food is made of grass and grains. Food for spiritual sheep is made of truth from God’s Word. Here at Source of Light, one way that food is provided is on paper. We can’t feed our flocks without it!
Paper Partners has been a special ministry to our family long before we ever considered coming to serve here. As a writer, when I read about a pair of young boys who raised the money for an entire roll of paper ($800), I was so impressed and excited, I contacted the family for permission to write about them for a children’s magazine. After that, our own family decided to try to save enough money so we could buy a roll as well. It took time but watching that jar fill was exciting for all of us. We sent the money to SLM and received this letter from Philip Fraiser in the Print Department.
When you give to Source of Light, only God knows how far that gift will go and how many sheep it will feed.
We have the words. Will you provide paper to print them on? Or money to ship them to countries around the world? Or funds so our headquarters can meet emergency needs, or promote the work through productions like the Reaper?
So many sheep around the world are lost and need finding.
Those found need feeding.
Those fed, well, they need more feeding if they are to keep growing!
Will you partner with us to feed more today?