“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And 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”
Deuteronomy 6:4–7
Family Worship
“Families are spending little over half an hour quality time together during the week because of the demands of modern life … And even when families do get together seven in ten parents say the time is spent in silence in front of the TV because they are busy reading, playing computer games or simply too tired to talk.”[1] The modern American culture devours time like a ravenous toddler with free reign over the cookie jar, our culture eats more and more time and doesn’t stop until we get sick. If it consumed time in all the right places, there wouldn’t be much of a problem. Unfortunately, it doesn’t always direct us right and an area that is all too often neglected is the family.
The book of Deuteronomy begins after Israel escapes from slavery in Egypt. They are given an opportunity to enter into the promised land and they refuse to go for fear of those who inhabited it. Thus, they begin 40 years of wandering in the desert. As they wander, God imparts to them His law that they may be set apart as a holy nation. Right after giving the greatest commandment, He commands the Israelites to pass his laws down generation to generation. This was not to be a one-time event in the life of a child, but a daily instruction that takes place throughout life.
This command is as important today as when it was first given thousands of years ago. Are we heading this command? Are we “diligently teaching” our children the truth of God not just on Sundays, but every day of the week. What does that look like in your life?
If you are a parent with children at home, do you have a time each day when you pray with your family and teach from the Bible? If you no longer have children at home, do you continue to invest in your children and Grandchildren on a regular basis? If you do not have any children, are you connected with a small group, brothers and sisters in Christ, where you can encourage and equip one another to follow Jesus?
In a culture that demands every moment of our time and more, are we keeping God as our first love and primary commitment? Make sure that you are diligent in teaching your family the truth of God each day.