Teaching Intentionally

This is an entry from my daughter’s blog (http://ninjawifery.blogspot.com/) from late June: 

‘This morning Stella came in my room, sat down on my bed with her Bible and said “Lesson 31. Your God’s in the heavens, the strength of God, the power of Jesus, and the goodness of the Holy Spirit.” I love that that is how she thinks and what she knows.’ 

Stella is my four year old granddaughter. I, too, love that she is already thinking of God as strong, Jesus as powerful, and the Holy Spirit as good. What great truths to have well established at an early age. This knowledge has not come without a cost – not to me – but to her parents.  

What cost? Time, energy, and intentional teaching. Sunday School and church are routine for Stella. She has been there almost every week since she was born. There is no talk of what they feel like doing on Sunday morning – they go to church. Stella already knows and loves this habit. She has relationships with friends and with adults who teach her there. She tells us what she learns each week, or at least most weeks.  

Devotions with Mom and Dad – every night Bible reading before bed. It takes discipline on the part of a parent to consistently do this. I’m sure they miss nights – like the late ones when the children are so tired they can’t understand it. Stella also has started to learn, with her little brother, what the Bible expects of them. They know and understand the words kindness, sin, respect, obey, and joy. This is intentional on the part of her parents. They deliberately use the words the Bible does so they will be familiar to them. 

In Deuteronomy 6:6-8 God instructs us like this: 

And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. 

This is huge responsibility to our children. If we are not intentional about learning the laws of God, teaching them diligently, including talking about them all the time, we will not be raising children who will love and serve the Lord.  

Often we let the things of the world get in the way of teaching the essential truths of the gospel to our kids. Many children can tell us much more about soccer or baseball than they can the Bible. They can name all 27 children in their homeroom but not the twelve disciples. They know every rule of play on their video games but can’t quote two of the Ten Commandments. What is wrong with this picture?  

As parents we are responsible – not for their salvation – but for their upbringing. Ephesians  6:4  speaks directly to fathers, “Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.” The discipline and instruction of the Lord is a tall order, God has high expectations of Christian parents. Moms are not off the hook. If we look at the Proverbs 31 woman she is a God fearing, hard working woman whose children rise up and call her blessed. She is the example we women are to follow.  

My granddaughter thinks and knows about the Lord because she has been intentionally taught. They cannot stop now. There is so much more growth to encourage, a heart that needs to turn from sin, and eyes that need to see more of the strength, the power and the goodness that God has extended to us in the Trinity. She has, by no means, “arrived”. There will need to be more diligence, more talking, and more intentionality about the teaching of God’s Word and about His ways before her parents can rest.   

But… does any adult ever get to rest from the Deuteronomy mandate to teach God’s law to the next generation? Just when you think it’s over, your children have children, or the neighbors’ kids are watching, or the children we teach in Sunday School are paying attention. It seems Christians should just get used to diligently teaching and talking about the Law of God. We can do it in the strength of God, with the power of Jesus, and the goodness of the Holy Spirit.  

God is very intentional with what He has done and continues to do for us.  As our heavenly Father he provides the very best example of parenting and teaching intentionally.