Tag: Marriage and Family Life Reading Plan

‘Then your children will ask, ‘What does this ceremony mean?’ ‘ Exodus 12:26(NLT)

‘When I was a child, I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child. But when I grew up, I put away childish things. ‘ 1 Corinthians 13:11(NLT)

‘Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger by the way you treat them. Rather, bring them up with the discipline and instruction that comes from the Lord.’ Ephesians 6:4(NLT)

One day I asked the students in my sixth grade Sunday school class, “Do you guys know what a clean kitchen looks like?” They all started laughing and said, “Yeah, we know what it looks like.”

“So” I said, “Why don’t you do it?”

They all replied, “We like to aggravate you guys. We like to get to you.” It is fascinating that by age twelve our children know what they ought to do, but they try to be obstinate. They may begin to look something like adults, but they’re not. We have to remember we’re raising children, so we shouldn’t be surprised when they act childishly. They have to be taught the significance of important things, because they won’t get it on their own.

First Corinthians 13:11 says that maturity involves putting away childish things. As parents, we need to first teach our children basic life skills, and then train them through demonstration and practice. If they get something wrong, we gently correct them. But if they are stubborn or rebellious, we may need to discipline them while making sure we are not provoking them to anger (Eph. 6:4).

When we assign chores and then follow up to make sure they’ve been completed, we need to inspect what we expect. We also want to make sure we don’t lose our relationship with our child. If we get so angry that we begin to sever that relationship, then we, as the adults, need to remind ourselves of what’s really important.

from Marriage and Family Life Reading Plan

‘Once again you will have compassion on us. You will trample our sins under your feet and throw them into the depths of the ocean!’ Micah 7:19(NLT)

If you accept your mate only in part, you can love him or her only in part. That’s why unconditionally accepting your mate is so important.

While serving aboard a gunboat in Vietnam, Dave Roever was holding a phosphorus grenade some six inches from his face when a sniper’s bullet ignited the explosive. The first time he saw himself after the explosion, he says he saw a monster, not a human being.“ I was alone in the way the souls in hell must feel alone,” he wrote.

When he returned to the states, he feared how his young bride, Brenda, would react. He had just watched a wife tell another burn victim that she wanted a divorce. But when Brenda walked in, she kissed him on what was left of his face, smiled, and said, “Welcome home,

Davey! I love you.”

That’s what marriage is all about. Marriage is another person being committed enough to you to accept the real you, scars and all. It means two people working together to heal their deepest wounds. It means following the example of God in our marriage, “He will again have compassion on us, and will subdue our iniquities. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.”

from Marriage and Family Life Reading Plan

‘“The Lord has gifted Bezalel, Oholiab, and the other skilled craftsmen with wisdom and ability to perform any task involved in building the sanctuary. Let them construct and furnish the Tabernacle, just as the Lord has commanded.”’ Exodus 36:1(NLT)

‘Unless the Lord builds a house, the work of the builders is wasted. Unless the Lord protects a city, guarding it with sentries will do no good.’ Psalms 127:1(NLT)

The dictionary traditionally defines understanding as “the faculty of the human mind by which it . . . comprehends the ideas which others express and intend to communicate.” Yet in the Bible, understanding is not just a transfer of information, but empathy for the other person.

Consider Exodus 36:1, which tells how two craftsmen named Bezalel and Aholiab were given divine wisdom and understanding, “to know how to do all manner of work for the service of the sanctuary,” so that they could “do according to all that the LORD has commanded.”

This is a scriptural example of what the Bible refers to as “understanding.” These men, and the other artisans working under their supervision, were given the divine ability not only to know how to work their magic with gold and silver and leather and beautiful fabrics and thread, but also how to communicate with one another in a way that would move their assignment forward.

We have found that this kind of understanding—the kind that goes beyond mere facts to empathize with the other—is essential in building our relationship and family. When I know that she tries to understand some situation from my perspective (and vice versa), it’s amazing how problems dissipate. As we make Jesus Christ the Builder of our homes (Psalm 127:1), we can begin to see our relationships reflect God’s character.

from Marriage and Family Life Reading Plan

‘Jehoshaphat was terrified by this news and begged the Lord for guidance. He also ordered everyone in Judah to begin fasting. ‘ 2 Chronicles 20:3(NLT)

‘“Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing. ‘ John 15:5(NLT)

‘And you should imitate me, just as I imitate Christ’. 1 Corinthians 11(NLT)

Children need the prayers of their parents. Why does it so often take a crisis, like the one that faced ancient Judah, for us to come before the Lord? “Now all Judah, with their little ones, their wives, and their children, stood before the LORD.”

We must not allow ourselves to be deterred or discouraged in this process. Here are two suggestions to help you pray for your children with both effectiveness and power.

1. Acknowledge that your children belong first to God, then to you. Acknowledge that His love for them is even greater than your love for them. Acknowledge that He can and does influence them more than you do. Acknowledge your own dependence upon Him to fulfill the calling He’s given you as a parent (see John 15:5).
2. Be an example of Christian integrity for your children. Don’t be their excuse for not living as they ought. Be available to pray with, and not just for, your children. Be trustworthy as a model of Christlikeness.

Recall what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 11:1, “Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ.” Your divine calling is to be what you desire them to be.

from Marriage and Family Life Reading Plan