Turn a Child’s Storybook into a Devotional: “Where the Wild Things Are”

Are you looking for a fun way to teach your child life lessons that will help him or her thrive?   Does he or she have a high degree of curiosity and adventurousness that keeps you on your toes?  Do you want to encourage natural childlikeness without sacrificing thoughtful boundaries?  Do you ever worry that your child's boisterousness is being inconsiderate of others?         

As parents, we want our children to have a bright future; and one of the best ways we can support that is to teach them to be wise and respectful.  Even more important is to introduce them to Jesus. 

If you are looking for a fun, meaningful, and effective age-appropriate way to share God, here is a great tool you can begin using today!  It will help you reach this goal, build a stronger relationship between you, and deepen your connection with the Lord.  

By using inspirational mainstream storybooks and combining them with Bible readings, you can be the messenger of some memorable lessons that will help them build a personal relationship with Jesus and bolster well rounded personal development.  

Because God is the author of all truth, the positive morals in classic children’s stories can be found in the Bible.  So, by becoming personally enlightened and then awakening your children’s interest and awareness, you can inspire them to see the Lord all around them. 

This article includes a personal devotional for you to connect with God, equip you with Bible passages and children's resources, and transform storytime into a rich, hands-on teaching experience for you and your child.  

Contents:

• Your Personal Devotional - personally reading the Bible passage and talking with God
• Main Idea - identifying the core message to convey to your child by seeing the storybook's moral through a biblical lense
• Plot Summary & Key Concepts - understanding the ins & outs of how the story imparts the biblical lesson before teaching it to your child
• Prayer - preparing your heart & praying for your child before storytime
• Devotional Storytime - beginning storytime with an opening prompt to help your child hone in on the core Truth, reading the storybook, reading the Bible passage, and organically discussing all of it
• Questions to Prompt Discussion - asking open-ended questions to prompt fruitful exploration & dialogue over the course of time
• Activities & Other Resources - discovering additional Bible passages and storybooks that delve deeper into the lesson

This is a tool, not a script.  It is meant for you to read, gain insight, personalize, and then naturally share your own input with your children during storytime and throughout the day as natural discussions arise.  By using this lesson as your own personal devotional and by praying for direction, you will be ready to have dynamic conversations and enjoy purposeful play with your children at their level of development and interest.  Have fun with it!

For this lesson (stay tuned for others!) you will read what God has to say about feelings, relationships, and having fun.  We will use the classic Maurice Sendak book, “Where the Wild Things Are”.

Are you ready for a wild ride?

Your Personal Devotional

Read Psalm 139:1-6, 13-14 (NLT)

O Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me.  You know when I sit down or stand up.  You know my thoughts even when I’m far away.  You see me when I travel and when I rest at home.  You know everything I do.  You know what I am going to say even before I say it, Lord.  You go before me and follow me.  You place your hand of blessing on my head.   Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too great for me to understand!…You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb.  Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!  Your workmanship is marvelous - how well I know it.

As your Creator, God knows everything about you - your makeup, interests, strengths, weaknesses, desires, and fears.  Being wonderfully made, He has uniquely designed you to be a blessing to others.  Inclining your heart to Him will bring many blessings to your life.

The Lord knows your sins and secret thoughts.  Before you're self-aware, God knows what you will say and do.  Better than you know yourself, He knows you! 

Out of love, He goes before and behind you to encourage and guide you.  If you ask, He will reveal anything harmful in your mind and heart; and, through Jesus, forgive all sinful thoughts and attitudes.

God will never leave you and He will always love you.

Spend some time asking God to help you connect deeply with Him, reveal destructive things in your inner being, forgive you, and lead you in His good ways.

Read:  “Where the Wild Things Are” by, Maurice Sendak 

“Where the Wild Things Are” can evoke a myriad of feelings, including fear, sadness, curiosity, excitement, comfort, reassurance, acceptance, and love.  It is a deep and dynamic story that explores the multifaceted nature of people, relationships, and choices.    

Main Idea

In this lesson, the storybook's plot combined with the Bible passage will help you communicate:

God knows everything about you.  He knows all the good things you do and all the bad things you do.  And, He loves you more than you can imagine.  He will never stop loving you.  God’s love is unconditional.

Plot Summary & Key Concepts

“Where the Wild Things Are” covers a few concepts: mischief, separation, loneliness, and home.

• Mischief:  In Max’s pursuit of fun and adventure, he is being inconsiderate of others.  He even chases his dog with a fork. 
• Separation:  Instead of being apologetic, Max imagines going to a fun and exciting land where he can be as wild as he wants because he is in charge.
• Loneliness:  In time, Max begins to feel lonely and longs to be with people that love him.
• Home:  Upon returning home,  Max finds dinner waiting for him. 

Prayer

Before storytime, ask God for guidance in responding to your child’s questions or comments about naughtiness.  Remember that God loves us so much that He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to take on the penalty for our sins so we can be forgiven when we confess.

You are now ready to enjoy a meaningful storytime and Bible lesson with your child!

Devotional Storytime

Before opening “Where the Wild Things Are” consider asking your child (in your own words):

Does God love you when you're doing naughty things?

After reading the book together, talk about what happened.  It will be more impactful and personalized if you help your child recount the story rather than for you to do it. 

Use the example of Max's naughtiness to acknowledge that everyone (you included) does wrong.  Then, explain that God made and knows everything about us...and that His love is unconditional. 

Show your child where to find this core Truth in the Bible by reading this lesson's Bible passage which I have included again below.

Read Psalm 139:1-6, 13-14 (NLT)

O Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me.  You know when I sit down or stand up.  You know my thoughts even when I’m far away.  You see me when I travel and when I rest at home.  You know everything I do.  You know what I am going to say even before I say it, Lord.  You go before me and follow me.  You place your hand of blessing on my head.   Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too great for me to understand!…You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb.  Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!  Your workmanship is marvelous - how well I know it.

Consider sharing what this passage means to you; and sense whether it would be beneficial to inquire about what it means to him or her.

As you discuss the storybook and Bible passage now or in future conversations, here are some good principles to understand and convey, as well as ways to validate your child's natural self-expression:

• Boisterous play is normal and healthy.
• It's important to choose the right time and place for your activity of choice.
• Your activity of choice should never include being unkind to others or putting them in danger.
• Testing limits is part of child development.
• Anger is a God-given emotion that serves a good purpose, but can be destructive if applied unrighteously - like being overused or expressed inappropriately.

Questions to Prompt Discussion

(Remember that these are intended for you to pick-and-choose from and to be used over time, not all in one sitting.)

1. Was anything in the book scary to you?
2. Was anything in the book exciting to you?
3. Why do you think Max got in trouble?
4. What do you think about what Max was doing?
5. How was he treating his Mom and dog?
6. How did the forest grow in Max's room?
7. How do you feel about the place where the "wild things" were?
8. Do you think that is a real place?
9. What do you think about the way Max played with the "wild things"?  
10. Is it okay to climb, be loud, stomp around and do other wild things sometimes?
11. Do you like this kind of playing?
12. Where are some good places and times you can play wildly?
13. What kinds of wild play are never okay?
14. What are some of your favorite things to play?
15. Why do you think Max felt lonely?
16. Do you ever feel lonely?
17. Why do you think Max's Mom brought him dinner?
18. Do I still love you when you are being naughty?
19. Does God still love you when you are being naughty?
20. What can you do to help yourself or get help when you are doing something naughty and want to stop?
21. What can you say to someone that you were unkind to?

Activities & Other Resources

1. “No, David” by, David Shannon - This is a great book to help your child observe and relate to the choices of other children.  It also provides opportunities for you to gently teach and lovingly discuss self-control, safety, respect, and pros and cons of different choices.  [Purchase, check out of the library, or watch it read here.]
2. 1 John 1:9  - This verse shows how we can be forgiven.  Children need to know about forgiveness through Jesus.  I have heard it said numerous times that "children don't sin;" but this is false...even children know it's false.  Many years ago, a grandmother I knew tried to help her five-year-old granddaughter feel better after she took something that didn't belong to her.  Despite all the grandmother's reassurance, the girl's sadness continued.  Eventually, I gently asked the girl if she would like to apologize to God and to the person whose item she took.  She immediately said "yes," so, the three of us said a simple prayer and, upon saying, "Amen," the girl skipped along back to playing happily.  Confessing wrongdoings and asking for forgiveness is freeing and helps people build strong relationships with God and others.  (Here is a verse you may find personally helpful but is not as age-appropriate for preschoolers:  Isaiah 1:18.)
3. Ecclesiastes 3:1 - This verse can help your child gain more wisdom in choosing the right time and place for the activities he or she wants to do.  James 1:5 can encourage him or her to ask God for help in making decisions by showing that God gives wisdom generously to all who ask.
4.  These verses highlight the importance of not letting anger control you:  Ephesians 4:26-32;  Proverbs 14:29.  

Takeaway

Children are a gift from the Lord (Psalm 127:3).  Jesus wants all children to come to Him (Matthew 19:14).  You have the amazing opportunity and responsibility to share Jesus' love with them.   

The Lord designed children to be active, adventurous, and curious; and He wants them to freely express themselves as long as it is respectful to others.  By remembering that part of child development involves testing the limits and making bad choices, you can be better able to provide gentle and effective correction.  And by appreciating the forgiveness you receive through Jesus' atonement on the cross, you can help your child understand God's great love and teach him or her how to receive forgiveness and restoration through Jesus.

Comment below.  I'd love to hear how your storytime devotional experience has been!

Do you want to learn more about the Bible, how to become a Christian, and how to find a church?

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