It’s the most wonderful time of the year! No, it’s not Christmas, it’s football season. I love watching my favorite teams play each weekend and cheering them on. My teams win some games, and they lose some games, but I always come back each season loyal as ever.
Being the Faith Builder and parent in the home reminds me a lot of football. You get to be the coach and follow Deuteronomy 6:6-7 which tells us, “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.” You get to coach and teach them about God and His word. You get to bring them to church so we can join you on the sidelines and teach them too. You get to take on the role of referee through sibling squabbles and the penalties for their bad choices. You are your children’s trainer as you follow Proverbs 22:6 which says, “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.” You are the cheerleader as you love, support, encourage and pray for them. You are the team manager. You set the tone and schedules. You get to set apart Sundays and Wednesdays for church. You get to be the example of how to spend time with God daily. You get to show them what a Christ follower looks like.
This could be an overwhelming task, except God has given you everything you need for this. He has given you the best playbook, which is the Bible. He has provided the perfect uniform for you with the armor of God. He has given you a stadium full of people to help you through life here at CrossRidge Church. He has given you Jesus. Lean on Jesus when the teaching gets hard. Lean on Jesus when the squabbling is too much. Lean on Jesus when the schedules seem too busy. Lean on Jesus each and every day.
Resources
For families with preschoolers and school aged children:
Parents, as the Faith Builders in the home, you can start here:
For a complete Bible story worship experience with your child, please go to ministrygrid.lifeway.com and create or log in to your free account. Then follow this link for this week’s lesson: Jesus and the Paralyzed Man.