We have been reading through the book of Exodus together. Today we come to the part where Pharaoh is just about ready to let the people go. He asks Moses who exactly is going to be going to worship the LORD. When Pharaoh found out that Moses wanted whole families to go out together to worship the LORD Pharaoh banished Moses from his presence.
Pharaoh said it was evil in the mind of Moses and the people to take the children out to worship. You see if we can teach the children to worship then the enemy has lost, but if we can keep the children in bondage to "Egypt" then the enemy wins. It is no different in our day and age. We must be intentional about teaching our children to worship the LORD, not just at church, but all week long.
We must get them away from "Egypt" i.e., the world (the TV, movies, video games, the fairy tale bedtime stories, commercialism and materialism, etc.) and spend time reading the Bible together, singing praises to God in our home, praying together, talking about things of the LORD and teaching them about God's happily ever after (he is coming again :)
Deuteronomy 6:4 “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one![b] 5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. 6 “And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. 7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.
Am I suggesting no more TV or movies or video games? No we like those things in our family too, but what I am questioning for myself is, "Do we like those things more?" How much time do we spend watching TV or movies? Am I too tired at the end of the day to spend even 10-15 minutes reading out of my children's Bible or do we make it a priority for them? Do we show them that God is important and more important than anything else? It is not enough to worship God privately and study the Bible for yourself, WE MUST TEACH THE CHILDREN AND INVOLVE THEM IN TIMES OF WORSHIP THROUGHOUT THE DAY!
I had lots of intentional plans for the summer for lots of things, but especially to take one book of the Bible, the Book of John, and read through it with my kids this summer. We started, but I have to say I did not complete it (I have one week left before school starts ...)
I want to say like Moses, "We shall go with our young and our old; with our sons and our daughters ... not [even] a hoof shall be left behind ..."
In the midst of your to-do lists (Michelle) and the laundry and the dishes and the mopping and the cleaning how will you (I ask myself) be intentional to teach your children the eternal things today? How will you intersperse teaching Biblical truth when you sit down and rise up and walk along the way?
Don't leave the children behind ... teach them to worship :)
Here is a favorite picture I have of my girls. I looked out the window last November (2012) and saw my girls bowing down on the trampoline praying ... I want to have more of these moments, seeing my children worship and being involved in worshipping with them!
Blessings Abundant,
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