One of the characteristics of the believers of old was their devotion to their family altars or family devotions. This is a peculiar time set aside for all members of the family to sit down and look at God’s word together. At such moments, Bibles will be read, songs will be sung, memory verses may be recited, hymns may be learnt etc.
It is quite sad that many of our Christian homes have lost or are losing this great treasure that God gave to the family. Even Jesus throughout His earthly ministry meets regularly with His disciples in the context of home. If we are going to raise godly children for the years to come, we cannot omit or discard family devotion.
We live in a very busy and very occupied world, we have so much to meet up with, there are so many demands to deliver, yet, these businesses, as good as some of them may be, must not replace our family devotions.
We can always arrange our family devotions to suit our family needs. I do not think there is a fixed way to conduct family devotions, but what matters is that we congregate together under the umbrella of family service in our homes. To some, this is done in the morning, while to others it is best done in the afternoon, and for some it is evening. Whatever time your family agrees to meet for fellowship is perfect as long as you all meet to share the love of Christ in His word.
Another key thing is that a family devotion does not necessarily have to be long, it can be short and simple.
As I look in the Bible, I believe one of the treasures that needs to be restored back to our Christian homes is the putting back of God to our family life. How can we go on as a family and not have a time of fellowship together before God?
How can you incorporate family devotion in to your family life?
- Pray and ask God to put the desire for having family devotion in your heart and the hearts of everyone in your family.
- Choose a time of the day that suits everyone in your family.
- Choose a book of the Bible to work through or you may use a study guide if you are just getting into this type of routine.
- Another thing is you may use your family devotion as a time to choose a memory verse for everyone to memorise and then discuss.
Like I said earlier on, I do not think there is a one size fits all, seek God’s face for your household and I am sure He will show you what to do.
The benefits of Family devotions are vast, but here are some:
- It binds us together as a family
- We remain committed to the Lord as individuals and as a family
- We keep account of each other’s journey of faith
- It promotes accountability
- It enhances family relationship
A family that prays together, stays together.