Daily Devotion

 

Family Strong

by | Feb 1, 2023 | Daily Devotion, Family Strong | 0 comments

Moms, Dads, grandparents—our families are under attack! Our kids are growing up in a woke society where right is made to seem wrong, and wrong is made to seem right. We live in a culture where truth can be canceled, and the underpinnings of society are mocked as outdated ideas. While Christian parents know what’s at stake, we also know that the culture subtly rubs off on our children. So how can we protect and guard our homes? How can we stay family strong?

Let’s start with an Old Testament passage called the Shema, named after the first word of the passage, which means “hear.”

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.

I am pretty sure I don’t need to cite examples from culture to show that the family is under attack. It’s easy to respond with a roll of our eyes and long sighs and ask, “What is this world coming to?” But it’s much harder to actually do something about it.

God’s call to action is very clear. Quit philosophizing about the state of the world and do something about the state of your heart and the hearts of your family. Today’s passage is a call to arms, a call to action. Israelites that were serious about their relationship with God recited this passage daily. Over the next few days, let’s consider this as a personal and family confession of faith. Today, our focus is on the first line.

Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. A life that counts for eternity begins with a personal relationship with our personal Father. With him, there is no competition. We cannot put other “gods” before our God. We must demonstrate to our spouse and children that our god is not our home, car, recreation, career, or ourselves. We must show that the Lord is our God and that he is the focus of our lives. Teaching our children is show and tell. What decisions will you make today to prove that other “gods” are not competing with the Lord?

Father, talk is cheap. Waxing eloquently about the state of the world requires no action or personal change. Wake us up! You desire demonstrated obedience. Help us prove by our actions that you are God alone and there is no competition. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

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