Teach This

When kids are young it’s easy to have family devotions.  Read a Bible story and pray before the kids go to sleep.  In my family we have been doing this for years with a variety of Bible story books that can be purchased at any Christian Book Story or online.  My daughter is getting older (12), but she still participates in family devotions.  We intend to keep this practice going on a nightly basis for as long as we can.  In reality there is going to come a time as my kids become teenagers that their schedule will make this more difficult.  In addition the kind of material we use now will become juvenile for the maturity level of my daughter, but I have a plan!!

Maybe you are already in this situation and haven’t really thought this through.  Take my plan and alter it to fit your family.

• First, don’t give up on family devotions.  As schedules for my kids become more and more difficult we may have family devotions fewer times a week, but it will always be something we do even if it is only once a week.
• Second, if you have older kids and younger kids have the older ones lead devotions.  We have begun this already.  My daughter Catrina will on occasion read the Bible story and we always pray.  As time goes on we will ask Catrina to do more, maybe even prepare something where she reads a scripture ahead of time, studies it, and then shares the devotional with the family.
• Third, if you don’t know what to read, read whatever passage is used for the sermon each week.
• Fourth, pray.  One of the things we do is pray for people we ran into or encountered that day.  This was the brainchild of my wife.  This teaches students to have a lifestyle of prayer and it teaches them to pray out loud.
• Fifth, keep track of what you pray for.  We don’t always do this very well at my house, but it is something I would like to do more of.  Maybe a big white board we keep somewhere in the house where company can’t see it.  When prayers are answered celebrate together as a family.

Family devotions are sooo important.  If you keep it up your students will not only see how important it is to you and how seriously you take your faith, but they will begin to take their faith seriously as well.  I realize you might have to fight them a little, but make it mandatory except for very special circumstances.  You and your family will benefit.

You may think your daughter won’t get one or o your son would not encourage their girlfriend to get an abortion, but it might be a good Idea to talk to them about it.  In every abortion there is one dead and one wounded.  Unfortunately those wounds are not simply physical.  Teens who have abortions are more likely to attempt suicide, struggle with depression, risk difficult pregnancies in the future, suffer from post dramatic stress disorder and so on (for more info click this).

It’s time we take this issue on with clarity, grace, and intentionality.  Take time to talk about this issue in your family and in your ministry.

This was a good Thanksgiving for me and my family.  I had one set of parents in town for the week along with one of my nieces.  It was a great time, and I was very thankful.  Our thanksgiving service at The Rock was fun, interactive, and a big hit.  It was a time of expressing thanks publicly.  For some reason it seems that no matter what is going on in our lives on Thanksgiving we can usually find something to be thankful for.  This is what 1 Thessalonians 5:18 commands us to do all the time.

I realize that some of you may be reading this and thinking about your current circumstances and wondering how you can give thanks every day.  The short answer is I don’t know, but I thought I would share some things that have helped me give thanks when times are difficult.  Here are five tips:

1. Start with the hope we have in Jesus

I know it seems obvious, but sometimes the most obvious truths are the ones we forget the most.  This life on this earth is sure to be difficult.  Whether you are experiencing some kind of loss or major transition in your life it is only temporary as is this life.  There is a life to come, and that is where we find hope to get us through difficult times.

1. Live in the past as much as the future

Living in the moment is great when things are going well, and it is in those moments we must remember to thank God for giving them to us.  When the moment is painful, we must remember the past when and thank God for the times He protected us, provided for us, and even blessed us.

1. Compare

Yeah, I know you are not suppose to compare, but sometimes the thought of those who have less or hurt more can help us to see how blessed we really are.

1. Serve

Serve those who are in need.  There are opportunities all around us to serve others, it doesn’t have to be at the Salvation Army.  Service should be our lifestyle, not something we do during the holidays and not something we only do when there is a special event.

1. Love

When we are busy loving, we often find ourselves giving thanks for those we love.  The power of love never ceases to amaze me.  If I will take the time to love God and others the difficulties of this world seem to fade.  When my eyes are on a goal much greater than those that are self serving  my focus allows me to more easily navigate the rough waters.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 …give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.