The Most Important Thing My Parents Did
What was true of my family was true of many of my friends’ families. They, too, grew up around churches and catechisms and rigid family devotions. In fact, in all the times I visited their homes, I don’t think I ever witnessed a family skip over their devotions. It was the custom, it was the expectation, and it was good. Our church had near 100% attendance on Sunday morning and near 100% attendance on Sunday evening. It was just what we did.
But despite all of the advantages, many of the people I befriended as a child have since left the faith. Some have sprinted away, but many more have simply meandered away, so that an occasionally missed Sunday eventually became a missed month and a missed year. Not all of them, of course. Many are now fine believers, who are serving in their churches and even leading them. But a lot—too many—are gone.
Why? I ask the question from time-to-time. Why are all five of my parents’ kids following the Lord, while so many of our friends and their families are not? Obviously I have no ability to peer into God’s sovereignty and come to any firm conclusions. But as I think back, I can think of one great difference between my home and my friends’ homes—at least the homes of my friends who have since walked away from the Lord and his church. Though it is not universally true, it is generally true. Here’s the difference: I saw my parents living out their faith even when I wasn’t supposed to be watching.
I had the rock-solid assurance that my parents believed and practiced what they preached.
When I tiptoed down the stairs in the morning, I would find my dad in
the family room with his Bible open on his lap. Every time I picked up
my mom’s old NIV Study Bible it was a
little more wrecked than the time before, I would find a little more
ink on the pages, and a few more pieces of tape trying desperately to
hold together the worn binding. When life was tough, I heard my parents
reason from the Bible and I saw them pray together. They weren’t doing
these things for us. They weren’t doing them to be seen. They were doing
these things because they loved the Lord and loved to spend time with
him, and that spoke volumes to me. I had the rock-solid assurance that my parents believed and practiced what they preached. I
knew they actually considered God’s Word trustworthy, because they
began every day with it. I knew that they believed God was really there
and really listening, because they got alone with him each morning to
pray for themselves and for their kids. I saw that their faith was not
only formal and public, but also intimate and private.Here is one thing I learned from my parents: Nothing can take the place of simply living as a Christian in view of my children. No amount of formal theological training, church attendance, or family devotions will make up for a general apathy about the things of the Lord. I can catechize my children all day and every day, but if I have no joy and no delight in the Lord, and if I am not living out my faith, my children will see it and know it.
For all the good things my parents did for me, I believe that the most important was simply living as Christians before me. I don’t think anything shaped or challenged me more than that.
Tim Challies, a
self-employed web designer, is a pioneer in the Christian blogosphere,
having one of the most widely read and recognized Christian blogs. He is
also editor of Discerning Reader, a site dedicated to offering
thoughtful reviews of books that are of interest to Christians.
More from Tim Challies or visit Tim at http://www.challies.com/
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