4 huge benefits of lying down with your kids.

It’s the end of an exhausting day. You’re beat. You finally got the kids in bed and you still have 50 things to do before you can get some rest.That’s when you hear that still small voice – not the Holy Spirit but one of your kids – “Will you lie down with me?”

My default response when I was young and stupid was, “OK, but just for a minute.”

Now that I’m a little further down the road – OK, a lot further down the road – I see the amazing value of this prime time and want to help you take advantage of it, too.

TV stations put their best stuff on during prime time because it’s the time they will have the most attentive listeners. Bed time is prime time. It’s when your kids will be the most open and attentive.

Here’s why bed time is prime time and some tips on how to make the most of it.

1. It’s prime time for news and views.

During this relaxed time with few distractions your kids will likely share information with you that might never come up during the day. They’ll share concerns, fears, questions, daily victories and challenges. These are the small things that become big things if kids are left to navigate through life on their own.

Listen carefully and try to put yourself in their small shoes. What seems like a trivial trial to you may be an overwhelming mountain to them. They may need your help with answers to their problems but most likely, just knowing that you know, care and understand will be all the help they need.

2. It’s prime time for imparting faith and values.

When your kids are sharing struggles and victories it’s a great time to naturally share how what’s happening relates to how Jesus wants us to live and treat others. Don’t get preachy! Don’t rebuke them if they handled a situation wrong! Listen, ask questions and let them think it through for themselves with the least amount of guidance possible from you.

If this becomes a “you should have” or “why didn’t you” time when they feel judged they’ll slam the steel door shut and you ‘ll have to work hard to gain access to their heart in the future. Just listen and be a friend. You can be the parent tomorrow.

This time at bed is such a crucial time that the Lord even tells us we should take advantage of it.
Teach (these words of mine) to your children and speak of them as you sit in your house, as you walk along the road, as you lie down, and as you get up.
Deuteronomy 11:19

I’ll give reasons 3, 4 and some final tips in part 2 of this post.

But finally, when they ask you to lie down, even if you can only stay a minute, don’t make the mistake I sometimes did by saying, “OK, but just for a minute”. No matter how sweetly you say it, that screams, “I really don’t have time for you. I’ll do it but I don’t want to spend this time with you.”

Handle it the way a pastor/mentor told me to handle hospital visits. “Go in like you’re going to stay all day and then leave in a few minutes. After all, these people are in the hospital and need to rest.”

Lie down like you’re going to spend the entire night there. Listen, chat, then hug and kiss them in a few minutes (or when you need to go) and be off. After all, these kids, and you, need to rest.

Part 2 of this post.