Last time we looked at a few resources that can be used for Family Ministry as we seek to serve and lead those in our families in the faith. There are so many good resources so that we don’t have to feel like we are doing it alone, but in truth we are never alone.
In an earlier post, I mentioned the comfort and confidence that we can draw from the fact that when we put God’s Word out for people to hear and see, it works through the power of the Holy Spirit (Isaiah 55:11). When we treat God’s Word with the close attention and serious application that it deserves He is pleased to bless our effort.
When we treat God’s Word with the close attention and serious application that it deserves He is pleased to bless our effort.
To that point, none of these resources are meant to replace the position of primacy that we give to the Word of God in our lives. It probably goes without saying, but if we exchange the Bible for resources (no matter how good they are) then we shoot ourselves in the foot and dishonor the confidence that we should have in God’s revelation to us. Even as we encourage our children to grow in their understanding of the Scriptures, we can do so by introducing them to it bit by bit and by modeling for them through our own developing knowledge of God’s Word.
My ABC Bible Verses: Hiding God’s Word in Little Hearts by Susan Hunt
One book that has been invaluable for our family has been My ABC Bible Verses: Hiding God’s Word in Little Hearts. It is a slightly different book in that it is not a Bible story book for children, but an exploration of different occasions where God’s Word can and should become a useful tool for our lives. Essentially, the book goes through 26 verses (A-Z) and portrays a situation where a child might have need for the wisdom and power of God’s Word to better handle that situation.
“A” is for “A soft answer turns away wrath” (Proverbs 15:1). With my children being the spirited bunch of youngsters that they are this is a verse that has frequent occasions for real world application! The little girl in the story handles a dispute with her friend in a way that is not as kind and gentle as it needed to be and her mother brings this verse to light as a way that she can glorify God even in conflict.
Now that our children know this verse do they always abide by it? Not quite. Do we as parents always think to remind them of it? Not by a long shot. We struggle to give a soft answer ourselves sometimes! Nothing says “hypocrite” like giving a wrathful answer to your children when you are correcting their wrathful behavior towards each other. (“We don’t shout in this house!” I sometimes bellow out at my flustered offspring). Still…each verse that is learned is hidden away in our hearts and is a weapon for later spiritual warfare. Even if we don’t always remember and use God’s Word as we ought.
This book is focussed on God’s Word, paints a relatable picture for family devotions, and uses surprisingly “real” scenarios to communicate where God’s Word fits into our lives. For those reasons, we love it and we use it often.
Our Home is Like a Little Church by Lindsey Blair and Bobby Gilles
This book was a gift for our family after the birth of our first child and it does a great job of setting up how the dynamic of discipleship from the church can translate into the home. It makes comparisons between the pastor and the parents and how the love and care that we experience at home ought to be reflective of what we experience in the church as well.
For those who are really grappling with the idea of doing family ministry in their homes, this can be a great introduction for young children. It even has a good summary of some of the foundational things we have talked about in previous posts for the parents as well. All in all it is a fun, inexpensive, little book that rhymes its way through the idea of letting our light shine in the home, just like we seek to do at church.
These resources are a little more directly related to family ministry than those in the first post, but to whatever extent they can instill and encourage us in our efforts to share Christ with one another in our homes they are each well worth the cost of the books.
Next week we will conclude our conversation about resources by considering some of the things we can do as our children get older and even as they proceed in their teenage years.