An ancient passage
“These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. And you shall repeat them diligently to your sons and speak of them when you sit in your house, when you walk on the road, when you lie down, and when you get up.” Deuteronomy 6:6-7, NASB
This passage immediately follows the great shema, “Hear, O Israel, the Lord your God, the Lord is One.” To lead their children well, parents in Israel first had to have internalized this statement of faith and the commandments of the Lord, to have them written on their own hearts. It is difficult to lead where you have not been yourself.
Then parents are told to repeat them diligently. The goal was for the children to memorize the Word of God, and repetition is one of the greatest tools for this. Why should we commit the Word of God to memory and have our children do so as well? Having the Word in our hearts helps us to not sin, reminds us of the Lord’s promises, and encourages us. It’s also a practical blessing for the times when we may not have the written Word available to us.
Parents are also told to “speak of them”. Memorizing the Word of God is a beginning, but our children must understand it, too. We must speak of the Word and of all spiritual matters with our children so much that it is a regular topic in our conversations.
In fact, the passage names various times when and where this is to happen: “when you sit in your house, when you walk on the road, when you lie down, and when you get up.” From morning to night, at home and out of the home - no restrictions. But to make this happen requires something that we are often lacking in our culture - TIME. It assumes a family culture where parents and children are together and where parents are the primary voices of influence in their children’s lives.
It is difficult to have regular, influential conversations when parents may only have an average of thirty-seven minutes of quality time with their children each weekday, and when so much of our children’s learning and growing is outsourced to others, in addition to the influential voices of peers, media, and others, or when so many people, adults and children, spend time “together”, but staring at a screen. (One reason I am so passionate about homeschooling is because of the time it gives parents with their children - but we will discuss this part more later!)
Summing this up, as parents we need to be committed to the Lord ourselves and have His word written on our hearts and to help our children memorize and understand His Word, with a lifestyle that allows and encourages making spiritual conversations a regular occurrence in our families.
Let’s turn now to the other members of our string ensemble to see what we can do, from birth to young adulthood, to encourage this outcome. We cannot guarantee that our children will follow the Lord or that they will not fall into sinful patterns, but we can be faithful with what the Lord has entrusted to us, to prepare the soil of our children's hearts so faith can grow, and to create a faith-filled home environment to which even the wayward prodigal can someday return and find the faith of his or her childhood. Understanding how children learn and grow at different times in their lives will help us make wise and purposeful choices about how to focus those years and with what activities.
Click here to read more.
Then parents are told to repeat them diligently. The goal was for the children to memorize the Word of God, and repetition is one of the greatest tools for this. Why should we commit the Word of God to memory and have our children do so as well? Having the Word in our hearts helps us to not sin, reminds us of the Lord’s promises, and encourages us. It’s also a practical blessing for the times when we may not have the written Word available to us.
Parents are also told to “speak of them”. Memorizing the Word of God is a beginning, but our children must understand it, too. We must speak of the Word and of all spiritual matters with our children so much that it is a regular topic in our conversations.
In fact, the passage names various times when and where this is to happen: “when you sit in your house, when you walk on the road, when you lie down, and when you get up.” From morning to night, at home and out of the home - no restrictions. But to make this happen requires something that we are often lacking in our culture - TIME. It assumes a family culture where parents and children are together and where parents are the primary voices of influence in their children’s lives.
It is difficult to have regular, influential conversations when parents may only have an average of thirty-seven minutes of quality time with their children each weekday, and when so much of our children’s learning and growing is outsourced to others, in addition to the influential voices of peers, media, and others, or when so many people, adults and children, spend time “together”, but staring at a screen. (One reason I am so passionate about homeschooling is because of the time it gives parents with their children - but we will discuss this part more later!)
Summing this up, as parents we need to be committed to the Lord ourselves and have His word written on our hearts and to help our children memorize and understand His Word, with a lifestyle that allows and encourages making spiritual conversations a regular occurrence in our families.
Let’s turn now to the other members of our string ensemble to see what we can do, from birth to young adulthood, to encourage this outcome. We cannot guarantee that our children will follow the Lord or that they will not fall into sinful patterns, but we can be faithful with what the Lord has entrusted to us, to prepare the soil of our children's hearts so faith can grow, and to create a faith-filled home environment to which even the wayward prodigal can someday return and find the faith of his or her childhood. Understanding how children learn and grow at different times in their lives will help us make wise and purposeful choices about how to focus those years and with what activities.
Click here to read more.