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Parents have been given primary responsibility for the spiritual training of their children (Balswick & Balswick, 2014). This is Scriptural as found in Proverbs 22:6: Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it (New International Version). Even though we are flawed individuals, it is important for parents to live out their faith every moment of every day (Dobson, 2000). Balswick suggests that parents need to take advantage of both natural opportunities and intentional practices. In other words, we teach our children through spontaneous moments in the day-to-day as well as planned activities. I am thankful to have grown up with parents that did this. My parents spent each morning in devotions and prayer. As an early riser, I often saw my father still in his chair with his Bible in front of him. Prayer in our home was not just reserved for mealtimes and bedtimes but was an important spiritual discipline that was used spontaneously as praises or requests arose. Family devotions, while at times feeling legalistic, were an important part of our family routine. Scripture memorization was encouraged and I remember many evenings where my mother and I worked together on a specific passage. Those passages are with me to this day. These are all practices which my husband and I have brought into our family.
Dobson (2000) says that the home is where we develop an understanding of the nature of God. The way that our parents model love and justice will be the framework through which we think of God (Dobson, 2000). In my family of origin, justice was modeled more frequently than love. As an adult, I recognized that I had a flawed understanding of God; I saw him as always looking down at me, waiting for me to make a mistake so he could pounce and administer justice. I realized that while this was a representation of my parents, it was not the true nature of God. Because of that, I made a conscious effort to model both justice and love with my children. I am thankful for a spouse who gives grace easily and who has helped me see when I am placing too high a value on justice.
Balswick speaks to the importance of families serving others, suggesting that ministering to others can be the greatest testament of their spirituality (2014). My parents, extended family, and church all modeled servanthood well. My parents were very open in welcoming people into our home who needed a place to stay. We often served the elderly or sick with visits and meals. As a family we would purchase and create packages of supplies for those in need internationally and at home. As parents, my husband and I continue to model and teach servanthood with our children. We did not want it to become legalistic or a works-based religion, however, so we were careful to maintain boundaries. As a family, we decided to focus our serving on “orphans and widows” as outlined in James 1:27: Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world (New International Version). We have been foster parents for over 25 years and have welcomed a number of children into our home. All of the children play string instruments and through the years we have performed many concerts for the elderly, either through formal performances at retirement communities or spontaneous visits with individuals. As some of the children have now married and moved away, it is a joy to see them finding their own ways of serving as Jesus served.
References
Balswick, J.O, & Balswick, J.K. (2014). The family: A Christian perspective on the contemporary home, (4th ed.) Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.
Dobson, J. (2000). Complete marriage and family home reference guide, Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers.
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