Summary of Family to Family
Pipes and Lee do an awesome job putting together resources not just for families
but for church leaders who are trying to not parter parents with skills that will impact the
kingdom significantly Inside of “Family to Family” we learn easy and practical tools
that will help the reader, share the Gospel, understand how God and why God created the
family unit. In a compact 121 pages Pipes and Lee take us on a journey by first breaking
down healthy families to understand what God's purpose for families was , followed by a
good conversation on how creating a missions statement can transform a family for
generations, next they equip readers with how to pass down faith to the next generation of
believers and the importance of this and lastly the spend the last chapters urging readers
to understand the importance not just working on christians to get this message down but
people outside the church. Pipes and Lee do a great job in the book giving readers a
manual in each chapter to make these big concepts easy to understand and live out daily
in their lives.
Strengths of Family to Family
Oh man! I am a huge fan and loved this book so much. First I was intrigued
deeply by the content of the book. A book on family and building the kingdom through
the family unit is brilliant. I enjoyed that at the end of each chapter there was almost
homework for the reader to do so that the information was just taught but caught. It
showed that Pipes and Lee were actually writing a book that was intended to be a
resource and helpful for people. I also enjoyed how easy this book was to read. Each
chapter was filled with great thoughts, research, and scripture to back all points. As
someone who is logical by nature, I never finished a chapter left thinking “ that sounds
good, but how do I do that” each chapter gave ABC formulas to accomplish the mission.
Lastly what I felt was the strongest part about this book was that Pipes and Lee gave a
resource for families to put together mission statements. In my opinion this could very
will be one of the most undervalued and talked about concepts in church right now. The
fact that Pipes and Lee were able to explain the way, give examples and then equip
readers on how they can create their own statement is worth the money the book was
alone.
Weaknesses of Family to Family
While this was a great book, it was highly repetitive . I felt like I understood the
book very early on. The examples provided were unnecessary and lacked creativity. It is
clear this book is talking to a specific gene or person. When reading“Family to Family” I
never got the impression that this book was as practical as it was going to reach or make
waves to anyone other than a suburban family. While this is okay, I felt like the examples
used to encourage discipleship inside the home were meant for people with homes, not
people with apartments. Lastly the flow of the book seemed uneven and as if the chapters
could have been exploded or broken up more into more clear thoughts. I know this
sounds critical but overall I really did enjoy this resource and would recommend it to
friends.
Favorite quotes from of Family to Family
●““The average Christian parent takes their children to the doors of the church and
deposits them and says, in effect, ‘We want you to lead them to Christ, teach them
the Word of God.’ Then, if the children stray, they have a convenient dumping
ground.”1
I believe this is a direct product of consumerism that has made its way
inside the church. Parents believe that it is the job of the Pastor or the
church to lead their children. This is wrong. The responsibility lies on the
1Pipes and Lee, Family to Family, (2018), 51
husband and on the family. Why are we so happy to teach our children
everything else but when it comes to God and eternity, we want to hand
off that responsibility. That makes no sense and the church should call this
behavior out.
●“What is a mentor? One who walks alongside another, sharing wisdom,
knowledge, and encouragement in a loving, transparent way. The purpose of
mentoring is to help bring a person to maturity in Christ.” 2
●“Paul Meier, Christian physician and psychiatrist, says, “I believe that some
children can understand enough during the latter part of their first six years to
know that they are frequently sinful, that they want God to forgive them, and that
they want to live forever in heaven—and they put their simple faith in Christ.” 3
I am highly intrigued by this thought because the age of accountability is
something that many non christians struggle with. I have never heard
anyone take a stance on an age before but after reading Meier stance on
six-years- old. I have found myself leaning the same way.
●“The second step in studying Family to Family is to discover adjustments through
prayer” 4
Prayer is not a suggestion, it is needed and without it we will perish from
God. After reading this book I believe two things. 1: God displays himself
powerfully through the family unit. 2: Prayer is misused, guided and
abused.
4Pipes and Lee, Family to Family, (2018), 39
3Pipes and Lee, Family to Family, (2018), 44
2Pipes and Lee, Family to Family, (2018), 50
●“This family will show love to each other through the traits of tenderness, mercy,
grace, forgiveness, and gentleness. Our words will be uplifting, our tone
encouraging. ” 5
As believers but reality as family we should choose to speak life and show
love. As we walk this is our daily lives, the children who we are raising
will see this, own it and walk in the same way. This is a Kingdom impact,
if we let it.
●“Jesus’ ultimate act of service was to give His perfect life for the filthy lives of
the rest of humanity,” 6
This book is filled with one liners like this that make you realize just how
broken we are and how much we need God. I think the books focus so
much on Jesus because as a parent your heart and actions are to be
selfless.
●“God is sovereign. Nothing you do and nothing that goes on around you surprises
Him. The circumstances you are in, and the circumstances of the people around
you, are opportunities for growth and ministry. Look. Listen. Pay careful attention
to see how God is working.”7
What would be your response to an all knowing God who still decides to
love you even when he knows your next steps. Hopefully it would involve
awe and wonder. To live in constant awe and wonder isn't tiring, it is
beautiful.
7Pipes and Lee, Family to Family, (2018), 16
6Pipes and Lee, Family to Family, (2018), 28
5Pipes and Lee, Family to Family, (2018), 36
●God invites your family to become involved with Him in His work” 8
This quote is the best reminder of the picture of the Gospel. What I love
most about it, is that it says he invites us and we are involved. Invites is
powerful because it implies we have a choice to deny or accept. Involved
is powerful because he wants to do work with us!
●“You must make major adjustments in your life to join God in what He is doing.”9
God is in control and we are not. To live in a way that we are submitting
our agendas, desires and future, is not just a good idea but a command. To
truly make God move in our lives we must make proper adjustments so
that we can get out of the way!
●“God is always at work around you.” 10
Trusting in God sounds great until your family begins to fall apart or your
children do not want to follow God anymore. This quote is a great
reminder that God is working behind the scenes even when I do not see
him.
Lessons learned from of Family to Family
1. I should share Jesus often and clearly
If I can apply not just telling others to share the Gospel but me sharing the
Gospel weekly, I am confident after this class and reading the assigned
10 Pipes and Lee, Family to Family, (2018), 10.
9Pipes and Lee, Family to Family, (2018), 15
8Pipes and Lee, Family to Family, (2018), 16
book my spiritual walk will grow! The story is simple, the hearts are hard
but the God we serve is powerful!
2. My responsibility as a man is to lead my family
1 Timothy 3 talks about how a man who wants to lead ought to lead his
family well first before he leads in church. If I love Jeus and claim to
follow him, the responsibility is not on my church or my wife to point my
children to Jesus. It is on me. I must teach them the ways of the Lord.
3. I need a mission statement
“Our family will share the love, grace, and mercy of Jesus Christ with
each other, our extended family, our neighbors, and our community as we
go through life.” I believe if every father sits down and creates a mission
statement for his household and for their life, when things go south this
mission statement should bring us to recenter us and bring us to him.
4. God is always at work around your family
How grateful can we be that we are in communion with a God that is not
just our creator but our father. Just as he cares for us we should care for
others. Specifically inside our family. Scripture shows us a picture that if
we model what God did for us we can love our families well.
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