Years ago the thought about children was that they should be “seen and not heard.” Remember that?
Well that’s a pile of rot, obviously. It was not how Jesus treated them. He said, “Let the little children come to me!” In other words, permit and allow… do not hinder… don’t get in the way… don’t stop them.

For the last couple of days, I have written about stress in children. This is the last blog on this subject. Here are three more ways to connect with those little one who you feel may be having a hard time.

1. Give your children the chance to be creative. Creativity connects us all to God, the source of all inspiration and helps us to process some of our feelings. If you don’t believe me, do this:
Empty a large bag of uncooked rice into a big bowl. (Stay with me here!) Make yourself sit there and play with it for five whole minutes. Let it run through your fingers. Try and hold it”¦ simply play. I guarantee that unless you drop the rice all over your carpet near a hungry toddler whilst your hoover is broken, you will find it stress-busting and wonderfully theraputic. Another thing I like to do is break an egg over a bowl and play with that. Kids love to do things like this too. It is messy, sure. But it actually changes your mood too.

The other day I took one of our children to one of those ceramic painting café’s. We have a new one at the top of the road run by a poppet of a girl who is fabulous. He sat for a whole hour painting, with a massive smile on his face. Occasionally he chatted, but most of the time he was just happy to dab paint on the moneybox he had chosen to paint for his sister.

A recent national US poll about stress in children showed that many of them find doing something creative or active a helpful way to combat worry and stress. If children spend less energy dwelling on stressful topics of thought and are able to spend time in a creative process, I believe that they can start to sense God’s presence and gain the peace they need.

2. Encourage your children to get outside. My boys are like dogs. A good walk or run twice a day will do them the world of good. I also need outdoor time. Walking gets the heart-rate going and makes you feel alive. Spending a bit of time outdoors surrounded by nature whenever possible will help you and your children connect with the Creator and the peace and wonder of His world. Even on a trip to school across a busy road can be time to spot what God has been up to. The skies, the falling leaves and the people going past are all clues to His majesty.
3. Make them feel special. Yesterday was my daughter’s first birthday. It was a lovely occasion and we went to town by inviting a large number of friends to celebrate with us. Last count 70. Little Esther was a bit overwhelmed at first but soon got into the swing of the party. I had gone to a lot of trouble earlier in the day to help her brothers to choose what they were going to wear and (VERY rarely for me) actually ironed some shirts for them. All of us spent time tidying the house and getting things ready for our friends. It felt like a real family occasion. I know that when she looks back on the DVD footage or photos of that day, she will be reminded of how loved and precious she is. (The boys were also delighted as I had over 200 cakes left over, so they have taken mounds of icing-laden goodies into school for their teachers and pals!)

All of us and especially little ones, need to feel loved and special, especially on days where things are not looking rosy and easy. We all need to know that there is someone in our lives who will love us, pray for us and spend time and energy on us. Anyone can be that for a child. A neighbour, a friend at church, a Grandma”¦ There are so many things you and I can do to ‘tune in’ to the needs of those little people around us.

When I was first out of university, I befriended a new family at church who had a little boy. I ‘adopted’ the 1 year old Hamish as a person I wanted to invest in. When his Mum was pregnant with her next baby and very sick, I went over every night to bath him and feed him. He became very precious to me. There was no family connection, but I felt he was, in some way, a gift from God to me at that time. May I encourage you today to ask Father who you can befriend and love? There may be a little person who needs a ‘you’ in their lives in order to really thrive.

You may be the key to a little one being not just seen, but heard.