In Episode 007 of Playfully Faith Parenting, I interview Christia and Kenny DeShields about playful biblical declarations for kids and their new book.
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Show Notes
Episode Summary:
In today’s episode, I talk with Christia and Kenny DeShields about playful declarations and their newest book, God Made Me Perfect.
Christia and Kenny DeShields are educators, songwriters, musicians, and creatives, who carry the spirit of family everywhere they go. Parents to three boys, ages 2, 4, and 6, They enjoy family adventures, making memories and having fun.
Find them on Instagram: moda_christia + kennydeshields
Verses from the episode:
Deuteronomy 6:4-9
Links from the episode:
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Transcript
Here is a rough transcript of Playfully Faithful Parenting Episode 007: Using Playful Declarations. This isn’t meant to be pretty and perfect but is here as a resource for those who want it.
Transcript
Joy
All right, hi, thank you so much for joining us today.
Christia
Thank you for having us.
Joy
Yes, would you introduce yourself to our audience?
Christia
I’m Christina.
Speaker 3
And I’m Kenny.
Christia
And we’re the Shields. We have three boys 2/5 and seven. And yeah.
Speaker 3
It’s a busy household.
Christia
Yeah, it’s so busy.
Christia
That’s a busy household.
Christia
I am a bum.
Christia
Teacher I taught high school for several years and now I teach from home and then Kenny is our worship arts director at our church.
Joy
Wonderful I.
Joy
I see the worship and arts coming out in the books, so that’s great.
Joy
And and so when you say you teach at home, do you?
Joy
Are you teaching other kids or just your kids?
Christia
What are you doing right now?
Christia
I am, you know the kids are right now.
Christia
So I’ve been working for a company that.
Christia
So the students come to school.
Christia
They’re in person, but the instructors are virtual, so they’ll see me on a screen.
Christia
So it’s been it’s.
Christia
Been pretty cool teaching kids like all over the country.
Christia
My students are all over the country, so it’s it’s been pretty fun.
Speaker 3
You teach me stuff.
Christia
Wow, that’s an almost managed teacher.
Christia
Oh CBN so.
Joy
Yes, so on our podcast we have defined spiritual parenting.
Joy
As living out your authentic faith in front of your kids and inviting them to get to know who God is and we base this on Deuteronomy 6 verses 4 through 9, what does spiritual parenting mean to you and how does that play out in your home?
Christia
This is a great question, so I grew up I’m a PK so and I my dad was and my mom.
Christia
They’re both intercessors.
Christia
So like I would all we would I grew up in a House of prayer and that just really marked my life and so.
Christia
That really kind of influences the way that our parent awake any parents as well is that kind of having that foundation myself as a kid, it’s like you live out your faith.
Christia
You know, in the good times and the bad times you know, we were always pointed towards the Lord, and so that is something that I.
Christia
I I live by.
Speaker 3
Yeah, we’ve seen that.
Speaker 3
Like as even as we’ve become, I think even more transparent and authentic in front of our kids.
Speaker 3
With we’re praying, believing God for this uhm, that we’re seeing their faith start to grow, and I think a lot of that Christine was saying was modeled from, you know, our parents.
Speaker 3
And so we just wanted to continue to pass that on.
Joy
What a blinding to what a blessing to grow up in families like.
Christia
Yeah, right?
Christia
Yeah, I I like I didn’t always think it was a blessing, but now I now you know, as you get older you realize your parents were really cool.
Christia
And not as lame as he thought they were growing.
Speaker 3
I remember going to college and my freshman year and like coming back and telling my parents.
Speaker 3
Thank you for the upbringing because you just go and see like wow everyone did not grow up like this.
Speaker 3
Everyone didn’t have that background and it’s just like, you know, thank you, Lord, and that’s you know, in in the world we are now we’re like God.
Speaker 3
We have to teach them now.
Speaker 3
You know who Jesus is and what he says.
Joy
Yeah, in one of your YouTube videos you talk about either you have to disciple your kids or the world will would.
Joy
Will you talk about that for a minute?
Christia
Yeah, there’s so many and I was a high school teacher too, so I’m I’m kind of close to this subject.
Christia
There’s so many messages, so much peer pressure and like it seems like the messages are being amplified and.
Christia
You know, pushed harder and I’ve never seen so many kids that grow up with like anxiety, depression.
Christia
All of these.
Christia
All of these things that were kind of like, you know, not as prevalent as they are now, and it’s because the world is discipling our kids and so it’s like either we’re going to disciple them or the world.
Christia
And so it having that, I guess, that that foundation of who you are, your son, your daughter.
Christia
And that’s good enough, you know, God made you perfect.
Christia
He didn’t make a mistake when he made you.
Christia
He knew what he wanted you to be, and he he didn’t make a mistake.
Christia
And so I I feel like especially now it’s super important that kids know who they are and who know who’s they are and who they are and that God you know made them on purpose.
Christia
And that he has a plan.
Christia
For them, and so that’s why we created this book.
Christia
Some of the like.
Christia
A lot of these, the declarations or songs in the book we have been.
Christia
We’ve been singing them for years and it kind of started out because our oldest son struggles with anxiety and ADHD and sensory processing, and so that was a whole journey in itself and.
Christia
We released a book earlier this year called Sensory seeking sabastian, which kind of like I didn’t see any books that.
Christia
My son could relate to and we didn’t know what sensory processing disorder was, and so that was a whole journey and we wrote a book that kind of like.
Christia
Uhm, empowers kids to self regulate because mom and Dad won’t always be there.
Christia
And so even with this declaration, this declaration book is kind of an extension of that, because we notice like that.
Christia
You know our oldest son, like his confidence was kind of low and things like that and he was like because I mean he was different from other kids and.
Christia
And some of the things that was going on with him.
Christia
He didn’t know what was going on, you know?
Christia
So it was like lots of prayer, lots of like Lord, you know what is going on and I remember.
Christia
His anxiety was so bad like Kenny would drop him off at school and he would be like clinging on to him.
Christia
He would run out, you know, and it was just like Lord, we’re like praying we’re like read like does this even you know me as BK growing up in the church scene like this is word even work like what you know and I remember I went to sleep.
Christia
At night and the Lord woke me up about 12:00 AM.
Christia
And he gave me this scripture.
Christia
Second Timothy, one in seven.
Christia
God hasn’t given you a spirit of fear, but of power and love and sound mind.
Christia
And it’s kind of like he started breaking me that breaking it down to me like we you’re in fear you’re not thinking rationally you know all these different things and it was almost like he gave it to me as like here.
Christia
This is what you used to fight you know this is your sword.
Christia
And so I got up and I went in the kids room and I just started praying over them and I literally felt like the word was was like fire in my bones.
Christia
Pretty much like the word.
Christia
And so I was like this, his word.
Christia
Is so powerful.
Christia
This is our tool.
Christia
This is.
Christia
This is how we get through this, you know.
Christia
And so ever since then it’s just been like so we so that’s kind of one one of the declarations that you know came out.
Christia
You know, fear get out.
Christia
You can’t stay here and I have power, love and a sound mind is because that is where we we fight our battles.
Christia
That’s how we fight our battles, yeah?
Joy
Yeah, I love that.
Joy
That is a really powerful story.
Joy
Yeah, that’s blessing for your kids to have to have you praying for them in in those ways and listening to God for them in those ways.
Joy
And it it really is.
Joy
So equipping for our kids to know their identity and to be able to grow into.
Joy
A person confident in their relationship with Christ when they have parents who are so visible in their faith and trusting in God with those big things and with their kids and.
Joy
I mean giving our kids back to God is sometimes one of the hardest things to do and just you’re the way you’re modeling that prayer and trust in him is is a beautiful model for your kids to see that those things that are really important to us.
Joy
We give them back to God.
Joy
So I just I love that.
Joy
So just from your social media and your website, it looks like your family loves to play and have fun and adventures.
Joy
Uhm, so tell me about the role of play and your faith and your family’s faith.
Speaker 3
Yeah, it’s I think even this year I’ve kind of been feeling like the word adventure has been standing out more.
Speaker 3
You know, it’s like we life can get, you know kind of mundane if you allow it to be.
Speaker 3
And so there’s been times we’ve traveled a whole lot.
Speaker 3
Then there’s been times where, like we haven’t had chance to travel as much, but what can we do to still add that?
Speaker 3
Venture there.
Speaker 3
And so, like even this year, we’ve kind of been tourists in our own city, and so there’s been some opportunities that have opened up.
Speaker 3
But we’ve got a chance to go to the City Museum or to the lake, or there’s a a Creek or lake that we have here and just go and walk and see, you know, throw rocks into the water.
Speaker 3
You know sometimes there have to be these big, grandioso things sometimes.
Speaker 3
It’s beauty end up the mundane and even some days it’s like we’re going outside in our yard and we’re going to have field day.
Speaker 3
You know we’re going to do, you know, a ride bike, so we’re going to take a walk.
Speaker 3
Part of it is for our sanity.
Speaker 3
And then part of it is for theirs as well, because I think just.
Speaker 3
That you know, moving, continuing to move, not being so sedentary a lot.
Speaker 3
Christina has been a really big advocate for our family, especially in terms of health, from physical health and even the foods that she prepares.
Speaker 3
But then also that carrying into us having an active lifestyle, and so we’ve just been wanting to do things to to stay active and then some.
Speaker 3
Are you know as a married couple active dates have been, you know, something that we tried to incorporate a lot more to like.
Speaker 3
We went on a walk, hike and cream Coral lake here and just got a chance to just see you know the beauty of nature and so I think those have been two things from us as a couple.
Speaker 3
But then us as a family that we’ve been doing.
Christia
Great yeah, I’ve I was always like a beach person like like.
Christia
Why do people go like to to like these mountains and like why do you guys do those things and tell COVID you know everybody was stuck inside and so like we we we went to the Smokey Mountains and I was like I.
Speaker 3
The mountain.
Christia
Get it this is.
Christia
So amazing, you know you just I don’t know.
Christia
I just experienced God in a whole new way, you know and his you know the beauty that he creates and so now I’m like sign me up for every National Park you know.
Christia
Gotta get our cars.
Yeah, yeah.
Joy
Yeah yeah, so I’d love to hear more about this book and your hopes for it. And you know, you told us a little bit about where it came from but but what are you hoping God’s going to do with this book? And and?
Christia
So like being a teacher by trade, you know, I’ve I.
Christia
I always want to like equip and empower.
Christia
Students, young people, people in general, so this book is something that we think we hope will empower not only kids, but parents.
Christia
A lot of times parents at our church, they’re like, you know, wondering like ways that they can incorporate the word with their with their kids or like you know, just like.
Christia
I guess living that faith out loud in front of their kids are with their kids and so our hope is like this is this book is something that they can do together and it will empower their kid as there’s their child as well.
Christia
Well as empower themselves, like I mean the declaration we say them for ourselves.
Christia
Like we we need these two.
Christia
We can do the hard things.
Christia
We can do all things through Christ.
Speaker 3
Right?
Christia
It’s kind of.
Christia
I mean, it’s a book for kids, but it’s really the message is ageless, you know, and so our hope is that it can be as a guiding post.
Christia
For people who want to go deeper adults and then for children, something that will empower.
Christia
Children and anything exact.
Speaker 3
Part of those those prayers that are even at the end of the book too, we will, as C was saying about us going through even the tough times with ADHD and sensory processing.
Speaker 3
We I remember us Googling.
Speaker 3
You know what does scriptures are pertaining to this or what are prayers related to this and not, you know seeing a few but then also wanting to give some.
Speaker 3
Holy Spirit inspired language to what this says about this, you know it.
Speaker 3
2019 was such a hard year for us as a family and it was just like you know it came to a point like God.
Speaker 3
Are you real or you not?
Speaker 3
Is this word work or doesn’t it work?
Speaker 3
And like I remember us, you know, as we were even writing, typing out these prayers and stuff, just feeling God, power starting to come through this like wow, thank you Lord, that you.
Speaker 3
Empower us and giving us something and we want to help other parents who have been in these situations.
Speaker 3
So how do I pray through this?
Speaker 3
I’m like I’m just tired.
Speaker 3
I don’t know what else to say and hoping that as they’re saying these words out loud that the Lord would just take over their tongue and start to say, you know, like other things.
Speaker 3
Was that when we were reading the other day about anxiety, the declarations and the prayer about anxiety?
Speaker 3
Uhm, just as like this is one of the parts that says I do not have a spirit of fear.
Speaker 3
I have power, love and a sound mind.
Speaker 3
Just being able to say that in that word I do not have a spirit of fear and just feeling God.
Speaker 3
Like yes, I’m with you and just wanting to empower other parents and kids to say that you know too.
Speaker 3
So that’s that’s one of our biggest.
Speaker 3
Hopes that people feel that like God is with them as they’re saying these words.
Speaker 3
’cause this word is alive.
Joy
Absolutely, absolutely.
Joy
And I love that.
Joy
You also have discussions or little activities that go along with them.
Joy
Uhm, the there’s like a kicking one and looking in the mirror and I just think those that’s such a great way to add play and and physical motion and movement and activity that can you know really build connections in the brain to this scripture.
Joy
As well as the music that you’ve you’ve added to it, so do you want to talk a little bit about adding that the music and the rhythms to the.
Christia
Yeah, sure we come so they all actually like started.
Christia
All of them started off as songs that we sang around the house and then we started to write them down and it turned into this book.
Christia
But we are, we do have a YouTube channel playlist.
Christia
It’s Christina and Kineta Shields and it has some of some of the some of the declarations.
Christia
Record it and we’ll be adding to that because we’re musical people. So we, you know, we think it comes, I guess. Easy to other people, but we also love to hear other people’s interpretations of the declaration so.
Christia
Like if you don’t sing it quite like the way we do, that’s totally fine.
Christia
Like sing it the way that you feel it so.
Speaker 3
And I think that makes it more personal to when they kind of you own it.
Speaker 3
Like oh this came out of us.
Speaker 3
This came out of this situation or experience, and so it just it’s like oh this our our family song or this is my child song that came from this so it’s like their own little gift, yeah.
Joy
And there’s you know, there’s this power in music that helps us.
Joy
To to remember and to feel the words in a different way than if you were just to kind of recite them or read them.
Joy
And so I think that’s it’s a lot of fun and really equipping to both kids and and their parents.
Joy
One question is, you call these declarations?
Joy
Is there a difference too between declarations and affirmations?
Joy
And like affirmations?
Joy
Is kind of this big thing you know, especially in secular circles, is there?
Joy
A reason you chose that language over declarations over affirmations.
Christia
I, I guess because it’s ours are biblically based and so you know they’re not.
Christia
I don’t I I use, I use them in both, but I.
Christia
I think because orza the book because they’re you know, biblically based.
Christia
There’s I don’t know.
Christia
There’s just that extra punch and power to them because they come from the word of God, you know.
Christia
And not just like good thoughts are great, you know.
Christia
But these are like.
Christia
Words inspired by the Holy Spirit.
Christia
It’s his word and we’re just saying it back to him.
Christia
So we’re declaring it back to him.
Christia
So that’s kind of why we’ve we chose declarations over affirmations out of you.
Joy
Yeah, absolutely.
Joy
I love it.
Joy
And when I saw the the title of the book and I was like, oh, I really like that word and that that language over.
Joy
Kind of just that, you know, affirmations.
Joy
That mindset.
Joy
Kind of.
Joy
It’s really beautiful and powerful, so.
Joy
Is there anything?
Speaker 3
And I think we’ve been afraid of.
Speaker 3
Using declarations and decrees, remember, we have the conversation about using Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost.
Christia
Yes, so one of our editors in the book ’cause you know the whole we have the Holy Ghost in one of them and she’s like ’cause she was.
Christia
She was Catholic and so she’s like that would just scare me and I was like, well, that’s the Bible says Holy Ghost like so it’s like so like we can’t be afraid to use.
Right?
Christia
What the Bible says, and so in the in the activity I said, I just said Holy Ghost is another way to say Holy Spirit.
Christia
So I mean, it’s just a teaching moment, you know.
Right?
Speaker 3
Yeah, and I think sometimes in Christian culture recently there has been this maybe need to water down or or to pull back or to come.
Speaker 3
In a lot of ways, devalue that language because it may seem too churchy or whatever, but it’s like that the power is in the word it it it just it is what it is, and I think we want to encourage other parents, specially other Christian parents.
Speaker 3
You don’t have to be afraid to say what the Bible says.
Speaker 3
It’s been working for thousands of years and it’s never gonna return back.
Speaker 3
So we just I think we just we want to help other parents have permission to say this is what the Bible says and it’s OK.
Speaker 3
You can be comfortable with it.
Speaker 3
Don’t let culture and society you know bully you to say though I gotta say it this way.
Speaker 3
Like no it is.
Speaker 3
What it is? Yeah yeah.
Joy
Absolutely I love that.
Joy
Do you have a favorite declaration from the book?
That’s a good question, yeah?
Christia
I didn’t prepare you for that one and I I like, I love them all.
Christia
I think at different times they’re like favorite, but I think as of recently, it’s, uh, God made me perfect.
Christia
He didn’t.
Christia
There’s he didn’t make mistake.
Christia
He didn’t make mistake.
Christia
God made me perfect.
Christia
He doesn’t make mistakes.
Christia
He doesn’t make mistakes.
Christia
I think that one is probably.
Christia
My favorite one, yeah?
Speaker 3
The fear get out.
Speaker 3
One has always kind of been a a funny one to me because there’s that the UM, if you look inside the book that way the the kid is doing like this karate chop you know to it so it’s just always been fun to just like fear.
Speaker 3
Get our son Chicago who is?
Christia
He loves that one.
Speaker 3
He loves that when his imagination is so big.
Speaker 3
So it’s just like you could just see him doing this.
Speaker 3
Fear you get out of here, he said it a few times too.
Speaker 3
Like you get out of.
Speaker 3
Here fear you don’t belong, you know, so it’s it’s so funny to.
Speaker 3
See it, yeah played out in real life for him.
Joy
I love that and I think it’s really.
Joy
Really powerful to give our kids these words that you know they can use when they’re making these declarations, but then also in their ordinary life and they can.
Joy
You know it’s so ingrained in them that when they’re having a moment or a big emotion, or in a certain situation that they’ll be able to pull those words of scripture.
Joy
From their hearts and their minds, and connect them to their their life.
Joy
And what’s actually going on?
Joy
Yeah, yeah.
Joy
Uhm, so do you have anything else you want to tell us about your book or even your other book?
Joy
It was called Sensory seeking Sebastian.
Christia
Yes, they’re both available on Amazon right now, and so just let us say if you order, just let us know what you think and you know we love to stay connected since we seek and Sebastian is a a book that empowers young centuries.
Christia
Speakers and it makes them think about ways that they can calm down and regulate their body.
Christia
It gives them ideas, but at the end there’s some great.
Christia
I’m a teacher so I always have to have activities, so there’s some great like discussion questions in there about how you can calm yourself down if you’re nervous.
Christia
If you’re in a new space.
Christia
Uhm, if you’re feeling really antsy, what are some things that you can do so basically just kind of like turning kids into advocates for themselves because their parents won’t always be there.
Joy
Yes, yeah, that’s great.
Joy
Great and So what about you guys?
Joy
How do you like to play?
Joy
Because play is so important for all ages.
Joy
Uhm, so you two as either a couple or individuals?
Joy
How do you like to play?
Christia
We have been the greatest at it, but we we love doing like active things.
Christia
Yeah, active things and so it could be like you know, going on a hike or doing a zip line or you know working out for me, working out for me is my.
Speaker 3
Looking out.
Christia
Is my how I play?
Christia
I love working out I love like moving my body uhm I know for Kenny.
Christia
Is reading books you know into.
Speaker 3
Yeah, with coffee shops and just reading writing that whole.
Speaker 3
The whole coffee shop vibe is my thing.
Joy
Yes, I am definitely a reader, so I understand that is my my favorite way to play as well.
Joy
Do you have anything else that you would like to share with us?
Joy
It’s been so fun having you.
No, I was so excited.
Christia
Yeah, thank you.
Christia
Thank you for having us on your show.
Christia
So it’s been a privilege and honor.
Joy
Yes, it’s same for me and I’m excited for others to get these.
Joy
Get your books into their hands and into their kids hearts and.
Joy
Just ask God to bless you and your work and just thank you for being vulnerable and sharing what the Holy Spirit is doing in your life and and in your family.
Joy
So thank you so much.
