I recently posted a list of resources we’ve used/are using in teaching the boys about Jesus. I’ve gotten requests to continue providing resources and so I thought I’d try to do a somewhat regular post about resources I’ve come across, teaching moments we’ve had, as well as general thoughts and challenges we’ve faced in bringing up our children “in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.”
One of the main passages in scripture that is always on my mind and heart is in Deuteronomy: “these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.” (6:6,7) When I think about what Moses is saying, I realize that I am to literally teach my kids about God and his plan of redemption continually. It’s an overwhelming thought as to how to always be directly turning the boys toward Christ.
But then I remember a quote from John Calvin in his commentary on Psalm 78: “The fathers, when they find that on the one hand they are the means of providing for the salvation of their children, should, by such a precious result of their labours, be the more powerfully stirred up to instruct their children. The children, on their part, being inflamed with greater zeal, should eagerly press forward in the acquisition of divine knowledge and not suffer their minds to wander in vain speculations, but should aim at, or keep their eyes directed to, the right mark. It is unhappy and wretched toil to be “ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.” (2 Tim 3:7).
God has chosen families as one of the primary ways in which children are taught about the Lord and we as parents have a very serious responsibility to instruct them in the Lord. While there is much for them to learn in scripture, two important areas are development of Christian character and teaching them the gospel. One way that we’ve been teaching Christian character in our home is through our “24 Family Ways.” I’ve referred to this before in previous posts. It is essentially our list of family rules of how we relate to God and to each other. I came across the 24 Family Ways from Clay Clarkson and decided I couldn’t improve on it and adopted it for our family. The Dugger’s (if anyone watched TLC you know who I’m talking about) have a there own list of family rules you can access in their book or better yet, you can even make your own. Our list came with a devotional book and a coloring book. During the school year we work on our catechism and the devotional that goes with that but during the summer we like to review our 24 Family Ways. One nice thing about having a list of family rules is that you can refer to it when you are addressing a problem. For example, if one of the boys is talking about wishing they had a similar toy that a friend has, we respond: “Remember our Fox Family Way? We are content with what we have, whether it is a little or a lot.”
Today we had a teaching moment come up which gave me the opportunity to teach more about forgiveness. Ethan was very upset about his brother taking a toy from him. He continued to be upset about it even after the situation had been resolved. He likes to have his back rubbed, so I rubbed him back to help him calm down and while I did that we talked about the scripture that teaches that if we do not forgive others when they sin against us, God will not forgive us our sins. I referred also to scripture about God putting our sins away as far as the east is from the west (and challenged him to figure out how far that is:). Since the God who created the universe, who created us and chose us as his children, who forgives us of each of our sins and who in fact dies for those sins, forgives us, shouldn’t we also forgive brothers when they sin against us?
Moses knew what he was talking about when he instructed parents to train their children in the word from the moment they get up until the moment they lay down because he knew that the teaching opportunities are endless and they keep coming:)
“If I say, “Yes, I forgive, but I cannot forget,” as though the God, who twice a day washes all the sands on the all the shores of all the world, could not wash such memories from my mind, then I know nothing of Calvary love.”
Amy Carmichael
