Monday is Coming
It's Sunday afternoon and you're on your way home from church. Your heart is full of the blessings of worship. Your kids are excited about what they were taught. Then, out of nowhere, like a wave of nausea, the reality of the following day hits you. Monday is coming.
It's back to the grind of everyday life. You ask yourself the same question you ask every Sunday, "Why can't I hold on to this feeling throughout the week?"
Does this sound familiar? Is this you? I know it's me some (if not most) weeks. Guess what. It's the same for your kids. How do we hold on to that Sunday feeling throughout the week? And maybe more importantly, how do we pass it on to our kids? How do we teach our kids to value and treasure the gospel when Monday comes?
There's a secret you need to understand and come to terms with before effective gospel teaching will occur at home. The gospel needs to be an all-the-time, everyday rhythm of your house. It can't be an occasional add-on you bring up when it's convenient. This starts with you. It has to be your rhythm before it will ever be theirs.
The gospel is more caught than taught. What I mean is your kids will copy what you do and value more than they will listen to your instruction. If you think it's valuable, so will they. If they see you spending time pursuing it, they will too (if for no other reason than to be close and spend time with you).
Here are four things you can do on Monday to model a gospel walk for your kids:
Bible reading. Your family needs to see you reading your Bible. They need to see how you do it and understand why you do it. They need to hear you talk about what you read. Having a passion for the word is the first step toward passing on a passion for the word. It starts with you. If you value it, they will as well.
Prayer. Your family needs to see and hear you pray as well. They need to see it often. They need to hear you praise God. They need to hear you cry out to God. They need to hear you trust and rely on God. If the only time you are praying as a family is at dinner or bedtime, you are giving your family a small view of what God is capable of doing.
Confession. Along with reading the Bible and prayer, our kids need to see us confessing sin. We especially need to confess our sin when it is against our kids. We all need confession modeled for us. Kids are no exception. In showing our families that confession is required, we are demonstrating that sin is not only real, but bad. We are also showing them that God is bigger, stronger, and loving.
Worship. Finally, our families need to see us worshipping. This worship needs to take place at home as well as church. It should be daily. Our families need to be reminded of just how valuable God is.
Feeling defeated yet? Maybe just a tad guilty that this isn't consistently true of you? Don't. Remember a couple of things as it relates to results.
First, God isn't looking to you for results. He's looking to you to be faithful. This difference is critical. Your faithfulness (or lack thereof) to God will show itself in your family (for good or bad). Be faithful. Show your family how to be faithful. Second, trust the results to the Holy Spirit. He's the only one who can change, strengthen, grow, and mature them anyway. That's His job.
Getting the gospel at home isn't hard, but it is hard work. It will take intentionality, persistence, and patience; as well as bold creativity. It's about taking the everyday events of life and showing our families how the Gospel ties in. It's about using the teachable moments that God gives you and using them for His glory. It's about living out Deuteronomy 6.
What kinds of things help you hold onto Jesus on Mondays?