Family Worship Workshop

Deuteronomy 6:4-9 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. 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.

Ephesians 5:25-27 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.

Ephesians 6:1-4 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. “Honor your father and mother” (this is the first commandment with a promise), “that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.” Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

Men’s Responsibility

Men have a responsibility to lead the Home.

You are family shepherds: Pastor Husband and Pastor Dad.

Head does not just = Authority. It = Responsibility.

As the Head of the Home, you are responsible for the spiritual well-being of your house.

God will hold you accountable and you have limited years.

Encouragement: Its not too late. You can start today and do what you can. This can also be transferred over to discipling your grandkids.

Family Shepherds: Calling and Equipping Men to Lead Their Homes by Voddie Baucham

Something Doable

You want to build a spiritual house. Make a plan you can actually do.

30 minutes a night sounds great but is it doable.

Build something that fits into the rhythm of your life.

That’s the goal here: what’s a doable plan so you can actually disciple your families along the way.

Family Worship

One thing I want you to take away is that Family Worship, building a spiritual home, is a lot more living and breathing than a special event once a week.

A spiritual focus and intentionality everyday in our homes not letting one day go by without glorifying Christ and discipling our family in Him.

The idea is being spiritually intentional everyday.

Blueprints for Building a Spiritual House

Two Encouragements:

Don’t Waste Your Rhythms

Mornings are good too, but if your like me stuff can get crazy.

Bedtime is a great marker most days to wind down and spend some intentional time in the Lord.

Build something that fits into the rhythm of your life.

You can do either one, two, or all three. For us its usually one or two. What do I want to be working on. Ideally it looks like a Bible story and then either catechism questions or scripture memorization:

Bible Reading with discussion

Catechism Questions - Truth and Grace

Scripture Memorization

Don’t need to do it at bedtime, but there should be a systematic routine for Catechism and Scripture Memory. Otherwise it will fall off to the side.

Prayer:

Lord teach us to pray.

Thank you prayer. Help me prayer.

I might be adding a third: A Worship Prayer because thank you prayers usually get focused on things God gives and not God Himself.

Then you pray.

Don’t Waste the Everyday

Always be looking for a spiritual conversation

Bleed the word.

Build everything in your family on the Word. Root your entire life in the Word.

Tie every situation, discussion, back to the Bible and offer to pray.

Pray all the time! Build your house on prayer. Something comes up pray.

What direction are you leading your home in the small moments?

Faithful in little - Faithful in much.

Three Pillars for Building a Spiritual House:

Family Table

Eat together. Build a home of love and fellowship.

Discipleship happens by life on life. Not by downloading theology.

Pray at meals. Teach kids to thank God for His good gifts.

Catechisms - I like to save the Truth and Grace ones for Memory and use Catechisms we won’t memorize treating them like a systematic guid through essential theology

Confessions

1689

Concise Theology books

RC Sproul Essential Truths of the Christian Faith

JI Packers Concise Theology

Many will have Scripture References you can even include

Summarize it and let it be a time of doctrinal instruction. Doing this will help you repeatedly visit the fundamentals of the faith.

Summarize and drive it home.

Family Worship

Read - Dad’s Bible

Family Worship Bible Guide

The younger the children the more basic the story/fundamentals of the Christian faith.

Lord’s Prayer.

Parables.

Miracles.

Gospels, and Big Acts and OT stories. Sometimes Psalms. Important passages - the Bible Memory ones.

Older kids work through the Bible - its ok to stick in the NT

Ask questions. Engage them.

What’s happening in the story.

What does this mean?

Basics of the faith. Are we saved by works?

How is someone saved? Believing what?

What was 1 thing that stood out:

Confusing

Convicting

Encouraging

Challenging

What does it teach you about Jesus and help you love Him more?

Pray

Don’t just do prayer request. Pray about what God said.

As children get older invite them to pray.

Sing

1 or 2 songs

Ask if anyone has a particular song they want to sing

Family Church

There’s a difference between going to church and going to worship.

Teach them who church is for: Not us but God.

Prioritize church

Over sports. Make gathering with God’s people a foundation for your home.

Its going to take two things:

Practice and Patience

The hope is to make them love the church not just go to church so that they continue in the faith when they get out of your house.

Discuss the Sermon:

What was 1 thing?

What did you learn about Jesus and how does it help you love Him more?

How do we apply it/live it out?

Summary

Build your house on the foundation of the word.

Talk of it when you sit in your house and when you way by the way and when you lie down and when you rise.

Build a spiritual house and shepherd your family.

There will be times when you ask what am I even doing. But stay faithful.

With young kids your building the foundation.

Its slow work but so is sanctification.

You got to be thinking long term: Building a legacy!

And most of all pray!

Pray God blesses your efforts. Gives you the wisdom to lead your family. And that the Spirit would be gracious enough to work in your family to build a family, a witness, and a legacy that honors the glory of Christ.

Psalm 127 Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain...Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.

Resources

Books on Family Spiritual Leadership and Family Worship

Family Shepherds: Calling and Equipping Men to Lead Their Homes by Voddie Baucham

Explains the duties and responsibility of men to lead their families as well as practical wisdom on how to lead as a family shepherd. How do you be Pastor Husband and Pastor Dad?

Family Worship by Donald S. Whitney

Explains explaining the need of family worship as well as practical instruction for how to carry it out: 1. Reading 2. Prayer 3. Singing

Equipping Father’s to Lead Family Worship by Ken Coley and Blair Robinson

Works through a biblical overview of the responsibility for fathers to lead family worship along with historical examples of family worship from our Christian forefathers. It also includes a practical description of the elements family worship and how men might be equipped to fulfill their God given responsibilities.

Parenting in the Pew: Guiding Your Children into the Joy of Worship by Robbie Castleman

How do you train your child to worship God and not just “go to church?”

Resources for Family Worship

Bible: Either ESV, LSB, CSB or NASB 95 Translation

Family Worship Bible Guide by Joel Beeke

A must have. Designed for family worship, this devotional works through all 1,189 chapters of the Bible explaining each one and offering helpful discussion questions for each one to promote spiritual discussion.

Truth and Grace Memory Book Set by Thomas Ascol

A must have. An extremely helpful book set that has catechism questions, Scripture Memory, Hymns, and biblical information to effectively raise our children from ages two to adulthood in the fear and admonition of the Lord. Also includes a workbook plan to help guide you year by year to keep you on track and complete the set. Book 1: Ages 2-9. Book 2: Ages 10-13. Book 3: Ages 14-17. Can be purchased at foundersministries.org.

The Biggest Story Bible Storybook by Kevin DeYoung

1. A storybook Bible from a reformed perspective focusing on how Christ is the whole message of the Bible. Includes illustrations and a helpful prayer at the end of each story. Good for young children and bedtime.

The Child’s Story Bible by Catherine Vos published by Banner of Truth

1. A robust story bible from a reformed perspective that works through most of the chapters of the Bible in story form while sticking rigorously close to Scripture. Preferable for older children. Geerhardus Vos, Catherine’s husband, was a theologian who wrote Reformed Dogmatics.

The Valley of Vision by Arthur Bennett

1. A collection of puritan prayers and devotions organized by topic to help guide your family prayer.

The 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith In Modern English by Founders Ministries

Our Historic Reformed Baptist Catechism of Faith

The Baptist Catechism by Benjamin Keach

A catechism from a Baptist perspective. http://baptiststudiesonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/02/keachs-catechism-of-1677.pdf

Spurgeon’s Catechism by Charles Spurgeon

Spurgeon’s catechism for training Christians in the faith also from a Baptist perspective

The Heidelberg Catechism

One of the earliest and most important Reformed catechisms written in 1563 and approved by the Synod of Dort 1619. Along with the “Canons of Dort” and the “Belgic Confession”, it belongs to the Three Forms of Unity - the doctrinal standards of the Dutch and German churches in the Reformed tradition .

Creeds, Confessions, and Catechisms: A Reader’s Edition by Chad Van Dixhoorn

Published by Crossway a collection of historic and reformed confessions of the Christian faith including: The Apostles’ Creed, The Nicene Creed, The Athanasian Creed, The Chalcedonian Definition, The Augsburg Confession, The Belgic Confession, The Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion, The Canons of Dort, The Westminster Confession of Faith, The London Baptist Confession, The Heidelberg Catechism, The Westminster Larger Catechism, and The Westminster Shorter Catechism.

Essential Truths of the Christian Faith by R.C. Sproul

A concise, systematic theology with each doctrine being 1-2 pages.

Concise Theology by J.I. Packer

A concise, systematic theology with each doctrine being 1-2 pages

Tinytheologians.shop

Good resources to help engage your kids in the basics of faith.

Hymnals

Hymns of Grace

A collection of Hymns from John MacArthur’s Grace Community Church.

Psalms of Grace

A collection of Psalms set to music from John MacArthur’s Grace Community Church.

Cantus Christi 2020

A collection of Psalms and Hymns published by Christ Church in Moscow Idaho.