Here are downloadable and printable copies of God’s Gift for Marriage Day 1-5. I have included the Chichewa translation. If you translate this resource into another language please email me (malawimvc@gmail.com) a soft copy so that I can post it here to share with others.
Ideas of How to Use God’s Gift for Marriage Day 1-5 Dialogue:
- For Girls: When it comes to talking to your children about sex, you want them to hear the truth from you rather than pick up misinformation from the media or from friends. Bringing up the topic early can help establish a trust relationship. The first day of the dialogue is written to bring up the topic and discuss puberty. It’s helpful to start talking about this before the periods start so your daughter knows what to expect. Periods usually begin within 2 to 3 years from the breast buds appearing. Therefore, for girls, when you see breast buds appear, start looking for opportunities to have a good conversation. You may find that while your daughter might be ready for the first day of dialogue, you may wait to discuss day 2-4 until she is a little older.
- For boys: Sex education can often be overlooked since they don’t have to deal with periods. As a parent of boys, I have found that all cultures put a lot of pressure on boys to have sex outside of marriage. Movies and TV shows act like pornography and premarital sex are just part of growing up. So, I feel like it is important to be very intentional at a young age to teach our sons to respect girls and women and to have a healthy biblical view of sex. While boys should also read all five days of the dialogue, Day 5 is designed specifically for boys to step up and be the kind of man that women want to marry. As a part of family devotions we (me, my husband, and our two sons) read through the book, What’s the Big Deal: Why God Cares about Sex by Focus on the Family. Check out their resources written to an American audience. This dialogue, written to address African specific sex education needs, can be read as part of family Bible study as well. If the dialogue brings up questions, feel free to discuss them. The purpose of this resource is to give parents a tool to get the conversation started. Your sons and daughters need to know that they should come to you if they have questions or concerns regarding this topic.
- Church based women’s groups: Develop a Bible study that discusses what the Bible teaches about sex. (Read scripture about sex and the role of parents in teaching children.) Discuss cultural challenges parents face in teaching this topic to their children. Talk about social pressures their children face to not obey the Bible. Note that 1 in 3 women have faced some form of abuse. Be compassionate as you discuss this topic, pointing them to Christ’s love, mercy, and grace. (There are many Bible stories of Jesus showing compassion and forgiveness to women that have not obeyed God’s commands about sex.) Read the dialogue as a skit in the group and/or print it out as a resource parents can use to share it with their children.
- Youth groups: Ideally parents should be having these conversations with their children. Some have successfully used this resource as a skit at a youth event. The youth read a day of dialogue, then divided into same sex small groups and discussed it. If you use this dialogue at a youth event at your church, I encourage you to tell parents ahead of time what you will be discussing and encourage them to have follow up conversations with their children.
- School: This dialogue is an abstinence-based sex education tool that could be included in a unit about reproduction in science class. It could also be used in the Bible knowledge classes. The dialogues could be printed out and sent home to be discusses with parents. Once again, as much as possible, parents should be the ones using this tool.
- Commercial Use: This dialogue can be printed and distributed with reusable sanitary pad kits.
Healthy Global Kids 