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Family Devotional Success
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| Getting started... |
Nov. 2009 |
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Greetings!
 Welcome to our introductory issue of Family Devotional Success. We are excited about the possibilities this newsletter offers in providing quality articles on how to find success in your own family devotions. As you struggle to pass on the Faith to your children, we want to be there to offer encouragement and help.
This monthly newsletter will be organized in three sections.
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First, the main article is focused on how to find success in your quest to pass on your Faith to your own children.
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Second, there will be short articles on the Bible Bookmark topics that are up coming. While you do not need the Bible Bookmarks to subscribe to our newsletter, they will be a focal point within this section.
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Third, we want to include some of your personal stories. We hope they will be an encouragement to you and that you too will be able to share your story.
There are many family devotional ideas availabe which we will introduce you to, but our goal is to help you become successful in family devotions, not to overwhelm you with twaddle.
We desire to enlarge your vision for what is
possible within your own family devotional time.
May God bless your family,
Marvin Heyboer |
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 How to begin...or begin again.![TOP]( "TOP")
You are new to the whole idea of studying God's Word together as a family; or, you have started with great intentions, but over time have stopped.
Beginning a new routine within the family unit can be difficult, but you are capable. Today, I would like to provide one simple action you can do to get started.
Remember, first and foremost this is a journey! It's not a race and it's not a destination. You are on a walk together as a family and while it will take you to many great places, sites, and people along the way, your goal isn't to arrive at a particular place. Your goal is to walk together.
So let's get started.
You are about to begin a long term plan. The road may seem long and nearly insurmountable; to teach your children God's Word. You may have read books, heard sermons, or discussed with other families which left you longing for the same experience, but wondered how and where to start.
Starting slowly is a good place to begin. When you're over weight you don't begin getting healthy by running a marathon the first week. I've grown to love the show, "The Biggest Loser" It's inspirational. These over weight people show up on campus and loss weight and they loss it fast. This season 8 began with the heaviest person ever, Shay, at 476 lbs. She nearly quit the show after attempting to climb a ladder contraption for less than one minute. The trainer says, "It's a choice. No one can help you [make it]." Shay walked out.
This task was so difficult that it nearly ended her stay. After some soul searching she had an epiphany. It was now or never. She had to do the work one step at a time. In her own words, "If I stop now, nothing is going to change."
The last episode I watched, episode 5, I noticed her in the back ground climbing that ladder like it was an every day event...and it was.
Julian, the trainer, didn't start this woman by having her run a marathon. That thought is laughable. But when we think about having Bible study with our family, we compare ourselves to the marathoners out there. We see or hear the "greats" doing it and when we realize after a week or two that we are not achieving those results we quit; but quitting isn't an option. "If you stop now, nothing is going to change." Are you going to let a ladder stop you?
Let's face it. Many of you are "fat" people when it comes to leading your family in Bible study. Failing to admit that isn't going to help you. You have not been doing it consistently and you have not been effective.
All of that is going to change today. Today, you are going to do something to take that first step. It will be small, but it will be the first step on a new never ending journey with your family.
Choose a time: That is the first step. It can be any time and you don't all need to be together every day either. For my family right now it is at bed time with my children individually and sometimes together. For others it's meal time. Yet others find mornings work well. You need to find a time that will work for you. If the same time isn't consistent day to day, then find times that will work for each specific day. My work schedule means I don't see my children on Mondays right now. But we don't quit everything because of that. I encourage them to read their Bibles without me, and even if they don't we pick up where we left off. On weekends we do more and we do more together. Life happens and Godly instruction can occur throughout, but more on that in future months. For now, let's get a time or times put down and when life happens, we adjust or pick-up where we left off. The only thing that can not occur anymore is quitting.
What to do? Okay, I said one thing, pick a time. But you do need something to do during that time so I will give you two simple options.
- If you already have the Bible Bookmarks, read the Text for each day. It takes 1-3 minutes not including any discussions afterward. See the rest of this newsletter for tips on the upcoming topics.
- If you don't have the Bible Bookmarks, read the Bible or a Bible Story book that you do have. Start at Genesis 1 and read short sections (skip genealogies). If your kids ask for you to keep going, that's a good sign you stopped where you should. Leave them wanting more. If they are distractible and bored, stop. That is okay. Not every time will be a magical moment. Just pick it up again the next day.
Next month we will cover how to talk with your children about what you are reading. For now, let us see how you do at step one. Find a time plan and stick to it. If you forget or if life happens, pick it up the next day or the next opportunity.
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 Character Back to top
What is Biblical character and what does it look like? Our children can read the descriptive words, but seeing is understanding when it comes to character. Unfortunately, the true lesson is learned not in a moment or in a conversation, but over a lifetime.
Your children, if everything goes according to the norm, will be with you for about 18 years. You have that period of time to demonstrate Biblical character within your family. It is you they will be watching!
What else will they be seeing? This is crucial, because while you may be demonstrating Biblical character, it's possible that they are exposed to a skewed worldly character based not on the principles of the Kingdom of God but based on the Kingdom of this world. The most obvious is television, the Internet and friends or school mates.
What can you do this week? Play a game! Kids love to play games, and here is your chance to demonstrate your proclivity towards the lighter side of life. After all, when kids are usually taught about "character" they get the long winded lecture on the subject. It is usually ultra serious. Why not try something new and light hearted...yet still very serious.
Put two large jars in a place accessible to everyone. On the first, write "Godly Character" and on the second write "un-Godly Character." The job for each family member this week is to catch each other demonstrating "Godly Character." When you see someone in the family demonstrate Godly character, you write on a piece of paper the family members name who exhibited good character, the character (it can be one word or even a picture), and who caught it. Then you place that paper in the "Godly Character" jar.
Second, if you catch someone NOT in the family demonstrating un-godly character, you write on a slip of paper the name of who found it, what it was, and where they saw it. This paper going into the "Un-godly Character" jar. It is important that the family does not "catch" un-Godly character within the family unit. Instead, if you see ungodly character within the family, look for the Godly character that hopefully follows. Example: Suzy steals Jimmy's toy; Jimmy hits Suzy. There is a fight. Mom comes in and helps resolve said issue. They apologize (caught Godly character), they begin to share (caught Godly character). So the focus is always on the positive within the family this week!
To find un-Godly character we need to be careful not to gossip. Gossip isn't Godly Character. When we find it, hopefully on TV or in a book, we can write it down. If we catch it in public by, let's say someone in the check out line, we don't announce it to the whole store. And we always look for a good godly character that we can demonstrate in reaction.
Should everything seem to fall apart with accusations flying everywhere, we need to have a family meeting when all is calm again. Take out the containers and remind everyone of the purpose. It's to have fun finding each other doing things right, not in judging one another. Let's see who can find the most GOOD character.
Certainly there are multiple "teachable moments" available in this week's long exercise. Be ready to turn a bad situation around to something good. And when you too make a mistake, do the Godly character thing and admit it, ask for forgiveness, and restore the relationship.
At the end: you can count to see who found the most. Also, you can find where most of the good or bad character was found. Where do we see bad examples the most? TV? Should we make a change in what or with whom we interact? What things did we learn? Did you enjoy it when others caught you doing the right things? Was is difficult at first to find good instead of bad? Did it get easier? . . .
Have fun.
Be aware as a parent if one child is being "caught" doing Godly character much more than another child. We are not counting to see which child is the "best." But if it becomes obvious, you may need to find a way to help and encourage the child who needs it. It is very important to stay positive, loving, and encouraging...which are all Godly characters :-)
Here is a sample list of Godly Character. You might write these on the "Godly Character" jar, or place them on the fridge:
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 Governments Back to Top
In many countries today, we hold elections to choose who will lead our governments, but the history of the world is made up of primarily tyranny and dictatorships. The Bible has a lot of say about our relationship to the governing authorities.
It's difficult for us at times to respect those in authority, but for those living in first century Israel, the difficulty must have been 100 fold. The Texts on this bookmark are some of the simpler ones to discuss. There certainly could be more. While Paul speaks of respecting leaders, he is also in their prison. While John talks about living the way of Jesus in love, he also uses some not-so-cryptic language from the island of Patmos.
I've chosen to leave this topic short on words because it's frought with potential current political issues that may muddle the purpose. But as a parent, you need not be silent nor should you. Help your children understand their govenment, their role within it, and how a believer in the Kingdom of God might respond to it. |
 Blessings Back to Top
This week's topic on "Blessings" is about blessings given by God to us. Either blessings that come from obedience from blessings that come by being in the family of God.
One could also read about being a blessing to others, but that shall be for another week.
I love to study first century history, particularly the Jewish history in which Jesus and the Apostles would have been immersed. It was common for Jews to offer blessings to God multiple times a day. For example: Deut. 8:10 says "And you shall eat and be full, and you shall bless the LORD your God for the good land he has given you." As Christians we often bless the food; but in thinking about this closely, we realize that the food, by virtue of it being set before us, has already been blessed. Jesus in the breaking of the bread to feed the 5,000, might have said something like this, "Blessed are you, Lord our God, King of the universe who brings forth bread from the land."
But to bless God you ask? That seems odd? Granted, when you are not acquainted with the idea, it does seem odd to our ears. But read the Psalms. How often does the Psalmist "bless God"?
However, if saying "bless God" seems too odd for your ears, simply substitute the phrase "praise God."
In Jesus day, it may have been common practice to "bless God" at least 100 times a day. To "bless God" is a short payer such as, "Blessed be God for the rain to nourish the soil." Or, "Bless God for the health of my child." This continual praying and blessing God for the good things he provides keeps Him at the front of our minds always.
This week see how many things you can find throughout your day for which to bless (or praise) God. Start your morning blessing Him for a new day, for a restfull night, for a comfortable home, for family, for the pet, for warm socks on a cold floor. Are we sounding like a child's prayer? Yet, all good things come from the Lord.
Deuteronomy 8 is all about "Do not forget the LORD"
Deut 8:11 "Be careful that you do not forget the LORD your God...Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down...then your heart will become proud and you will forget the LORD your God...You might say to yourself, 'My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.' "
In the desert, Israel relied on the LORD for daily manna and water. Now they would be living in a great land with great blessings. Yet, if they forgot the LORD and that all good things come from Him, they would turn away and trust in themselves or in false gods.
Be poor in spirit. You may be very wealthy, at least compared to the rest of the world's populations, but are you poor in spirit? Do you recognize all good things come from God and put your trust in Him as a truly poor person must do, or do you trust in your own strength and ability?
By blessing God continually for every good thing, we protect ourselves from falling prey to the sin of forgetting the LORD our God. |
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"Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
and his courts with praise!
Give thanks to him; bless his name!" Psalm 100:4
For most of you, this is a holiday week. May your focus be on all that for which you can give thanks to God. In all the hooplah, it's easy to lose focus on your family time with God. Keep the walk going, but if you faulter, get back on the path again. Just don't stop walking. |
 God's Prophets Back to Top
Numbers 12:1-13: We see that God Himself shows up to declair that He speaks to Moses as a man speaks to a man and not in hidden sayings or visions. Anyone who opposes Moses, therefore also opposes the One who speaks to him.
Also, one like Moses was to come: Deuternomy 18:18-19 "I will raise up for them a prophet like you [Moses] from among their brothers; I will put my words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I command him. If anyone does not listen to my words that the prophet speaks in my name, I myself will call him to account."
If Mariam and Aaron are not found guiltless when they speak against Moses, how much more those who do not listen to the Prophet like Moses; Jesus?
"I [Jesus] tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished." Matthew 5:18
Isaiah 6:1-10: When God calls us, are we also willing to say, "Here am I, send me?" Or, even like young Samuel in 1 Samuel 3:10 "Speak, for your servant hears?"
Yet, we do hear from God through His Word. Let us not simply wait for a vision when the very Words of God are before our eyes.
Isaiah 9:6-7: For unto us a child is born... Things are crazy this time of year. Take time to focus on the birth of our Messiah. Next month will begin with "Prophesies come True."
2 Kings 2:9-18: Passing the torch. Elijah passes his ministry on to Elisha. We are all called to raise up, not just new believers but new disciples. We are to teach them and make disciples, and our children ought to be the first in line. Are we passing on a tourch of faith? (Matthew 28:19-20 "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you."
To learn what it meant to be a disciple in Jesus day
One of the best places I have found on the topic.
Matthew 13:53-58: Jesus is rejected in his own home town. | |
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