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Hollie Atkinson's column appears in the
Marshall
News Messenger every Saturday morning.
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Which was the first the religious institution established by God: ( ) Church, (
) Synagogue, ( ) Temple, ( ) None of these. If you answered "None of these,"
you answered correctly. Actually THE HOME was the first religious institution
established by God. Long before the giving of the Law to Moses, God established
the home with the father as the priest that taught the children about God and
led them in worship. The story of Job has this time as a backdrop - (Job 1:5).
The home that speaks most effectively about God manages to do so in the context
of speaking to Him. When parents focus on practicing their relationship with
God in the home, they are likely to do their best job of speaking about the God
who is loving, caring, forgiving, and wanting the best for His creation.
In some homes, worship becomes an act done to please God. It is often feels
forced. It becomes rigid and wooden. When this happens, the message that comes
through is that God is hard, condemning, slow to forgive.
If you would like for your home to be a place where children and grandchildren
are spoken to effectively about God, you may find the following principles
helpful.
FIRST...Recognize the opportunities and the limitations imposed by the age of
the children. Younger children are not able to understand adult terminology and
their attention span is shorter. They have lots of time, however, to be with
you. Teens can understand more and their attention span is longer, but catching
them with their busy schedules is a problem. The more you can practice your
relationship with God taking into consideration the limitations and the assets
presented by their ages, the more successful you will be.
SECOND...Make the most of rituals. Do not let them become meaningless
ceremonies. Fill them with dynamic meaning. In stead of saying to a younger
child, "Let me hear your prayers," try "I would like for us to talk together
about our day and then talk to God before we go to bed.” At the meal time
(every family needs to sit down at the table for at least one meal together
each day), don't allow the saying of grace to become a formal ritual. Something
could be said like: "Before we thank God for his material blessings, let's
check in with each other. Has anyone had anything especially good happen for
which we need to thank God? Does anyone have a fear or problem about which the
family needs to pray?" Find opportunities to use the established rituals of the
family in dynamic ways.
THIRD...Look for opportunities to "walk your faith" among the family and invite
the family to walk along with you---church attendance, special religious
events, Bible reading, doing acts of caring for others, sharing your faith with
someone.
Let your children/grandchildren observe you talking to God more than talking
about God. "The real things in life are more caught than taught" (Harry Emerson
Fosdick). When a parent or grandparent knows what it means to be accepted and
forgiven by God and acts out that sense of redemption before children, there is
the greatest likelihood that authentic messages about God will get through.
Don't worry about weaknesses, inconsistencies, need for forgiveness. If you
practice your relationship with God, the message will get through. God knows
that "...we have this treasure in earthen vessels..." (II Cor. 4:7).
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