IN the 21st Century, in order to fortify Christian values at home and to pass Christian faith from generation to generation, parents continue to play an important role.
To achieve this end “So that you, your children and their children will fear the Lord, obey His commands and decrees” (Deu 6:2), parents should be determined to dedicate their family to Jesus Christ and to build a family that glorifies God. As parents, we have a responsibility to help our children to be rooted in the word of God, so that they will not stray from the truth and will be faithful disciples of Christ all their lives.
Sunday Schools which help nurture our children once a week are considered as supplementary spiritual sources. In just a short span of one or two hours per week, children may not be able to receive adequate teaching and may not have true understanding of the faith unless the Christian teachings are seen and put into practice in their own daily lives. Thus what is more important is the home where we practise the faith, the Word and the love of God.
How then do we implement spiritual faith at home?
1. Spend time together:
let your life be influential
In the busyness of our daily routine, we need to find time for our children. Companionship and understanding the needs of our children show a parents’ love. Love is not about materialistic things. Through spending time together, we demonstrate our love, faith and hope. We become a model for them to emulate in our walk of faith.
2. Spend time together:
mould them with God’s Word
Spending time together including reading and reflecting on the Bible together. This will help our children to thirst for the words of God and to experience the power of God’s words. If they are rooted in the words of God, they will be empowered and strengthened to cope with every situation in their lives. On top of this, they will be moulded to be like Jesus, leading an obedient and devoted life.
Thus, it is important to make time to read the Bible together at home, to practise it together so that our faith will grow to maturity and forging a home that glorifies our Lord’s name.
3. Spend time together:
pray to face adversity
Parents should teach their children how to pray and pray together from childhood through adulthood. They should pray for their children on all occasions. No matter in joy, anger, sadness, happiness, difficulties, grief, disappointment, dejection, or failures, parents should be the best prayer partners to support them with prayers, telling them that they are always on the lookout for them. When the children know how to seek God for His guidance, help and strength to cope with difficulties, they will develop a habit of trusting the Lord and their faith will grow as well.
Once I came across a statement in an article “Home Spiritual Education”. It said, “prayerful living is leading a life in relationship with the salvation grace of Jesus Christ and the will of God as a foundation of our life. Through prayers, the teaching of God and His saving grace become human.” Therefore, let us help our children build a prayerful life to relate closely with Christ, so that they can courageously encounter any adversity in life and be strengthened.
I hereby strongly encourage parents to pay more attention to fortifying spirituality in our children in order to bring about family and church revival. Amen.