I was at a concert a few weeks back for the group Acapella, and I was flooded with emotions as I listened to their songs. I remembered how my family listened to and sang these songs together while my kids were growing up. We adored our great God as we sang. We had good days and bad days together, but God got into our hearts through music, prayers, worship and reading the scriptures. What strikes me is how God has to keep getting into our hearts someway, somehow.
When I think of how vast our God is – how he is more than we can comprehend or imagine – I wonder how we can effectively pass Him on to future generations, and also keep him fresh on our own hearts.
How does God get into your heart? What is working for you and your children? Sometimes family devotionals work great, other times it is a talk you have as you run them to their next event. I remember a time when I was a child and my father was out of work. My whole family prayed together that he would get a job – and we all promised that if he got the job, he would go to seminary after a year. He got the job and then went to seminary to become a missionary. We celebrated God and how he worked in our life at that time.
What are your family stories?
Deuteronomy 30:6 The Lord your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descendants, so that you may love him with all your heart and with all your soul and live.
Wow! Isn’t that what we all want? There are so many times I can look back and know I messed up as a parent. But even imperfect parents can encourage their children to celebrate the perfect parent, God.
Deuteronomy 31:12-Assemble the people-men, women and children and the aliens living in your towns-so they can listen and learn to fear the Lord your God and follow carefully all the words of this law. Their children, who do not know this law, must hear it and learn to fear the Lord your God as long as you live in the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess.
Our kids and grandkids won’t know God unless we are diligent about teaching them. For example, my three year-old granddaughter was visiting me once while it was raining. I told her that God was watering the plants, but she said that he wasn’t because she couldn’t see him. Another little boy was told to be kind like Jesus and he responded, “I don’t like Jesus.”
It’s obvious to me that we live in a wicked world that tries to yank God away from us. We need to celebrate God and show our children and others that he is great. We need to continue to find ways to allow God into our hearts, and to help our future generations do the same.
Cindy Wilkinson, Texas.
