An Essay for Pastors, Church Leaders, and Parents
Before reading this, view the 16 minute “Fixing A National Crisis Video” on this Blog. That will give you the larger context for this essay.
We have a huge silent Crisis in our Nation. Our once Godly nation is no longer seeing the numbers of men and women of integrity and Godly character coming into our workplaces from our families through our high schools and universities as are needed to keep our focus on God and His Glory, and to run the affairs of the nation in a routinely honorable manner, according to the tenets of Scripture and our US Constitution. We have people who now seem to be more interested in their own glory and not God’s or the Nation’s. How has this happened?
One of the biggest reasons is that the church universal in America has been trying valiantly to teach and train each person to be a good and Godly person, but it is a blunted teaching in many churches because we have forgotten to teach and train in the context of family. (Another reason, sad to say, is that some churches have caved in to the ways of the world and have left their first love, the Lord Jesus Christ. When salt loses its saltiness, as an apostate church has, it is of no more use than to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men [Matt 5:13].)
Family is God’s vehicle for ensuring that the teachings of the church, which ultimately should mean the teachings of Scripture, are made a permanent part of each young person’s life as they mature in a family and then launch out into the deep of their lives as solid, Godly citizens. So it goes beyond teaching and training – it goes directly to modeling. This old expression still has it right: ideas, behaviors, concepts are best caught, not taught. Our children need to see them in action in their parent’s lives before they will consider adopting such principles into their own lives. But today, not only are many parents not modeling, training and teaching their children to become responsible adults, they have, as almost a norm in many churches, “abandoned” their children to the “Youth Sector” of the church. More time is spent by their children with other children than with them. The results are obvious and are cascading in the wrong direction.
So, somehow we need to get the family once again directly involved in the teaching, training and modeling of Godly principles of right thinking, faith, and behavior in the lives of our children. Why? So the children will adopt them and become the men and women of integrity and Godly character our nation so desperately needs to have in quantity again throughout the Government, Business, Education, Church, and in every other area of our society.
Dads/Moms must be taught to
teach/train & model righteous living
so their Sons & Daughters
become strong, mature, Men & Women
of Integrity and Godly Character…
so that this internal Family dynamic can be restarted.
Then their children can teach and train
their children…and on and on
to the Glory of God alone!
Let me suggest to you that the first thing you, as the Pastor of your church, do before you tell anyone else in your church about this approach to “doing Church” – is get on your own face before God Almighty and tell him you’re in on this deal – but that you want him to guide you the whole way.
Then and only then, get your elders and other senior staff members together to tell them what you’re up to, by the grace of God alone and for the glory of God alone.
At that point, you’ll be ready to begin to construct this God-sized thing the right way for your church. Here are some hints…
Knowing in general where you are going, start by reviewing all that you’re doing now. Probably much of what you are doing is okay, but some of it will need to be reoriented – to do it in the context of family.
For example: the youth and children’s pastors will be reorienting their ministry to work with the dads and moms about their young ones about 40-50% of their time, with the rest of their time coordinating with the other church staff leaders (about 10%) and dealing directly with the youth and children (about 40-50%).
Retaining ministries in other areas, such as Singles and those in Recovery, is necessary, too, most likely.
Done properly, this one process will not only accomplish the rebuilding of your church families, for this generation, and the next, and the next, but it will also accomplish all the other commands that Jesus gave us just before He ascended back to heaven, for example:
Love one another as He loves us…
and Go into all the world and make disciples…
Now – do you think you will need wisdom to mount such an effort correctly? Of course.
You know where to find this wisdom. Through both solitary prayer (first) and corporate prayer with your Leadership team (second), searching the bible, seeking much Godly counsel from others who have gone this way, and through the several good book resources, you will find the wisdom you will need – up front and along the way. A partial resource list is attached.
Probably, one of the first things you will want to do after you and your Leadership team have prayerfully structured your plan – is to call a holy huddle of every man in your Church. At that meeting you will present the plan and its rationale and ask for 100% commitment to it by every man, whether single, married, widowed, a father or not. Every man – because there is a job for every man, no matter his status. If this looks like I’m suggesting that men be “thrust” back into their God-ordained role of leading in the church and home, your perception is quite accurate.
Later a similar meeting with all the women.
Then the final introductory meeting could be with all the families of the church. This might be a good time to have dinner on the grounds as part of celebrating your new beginnings.
I wish you success in tackling this grand enterprise. The future of our nation depends on enough of God’s churches getting back into the holy business of building Godly families which will, in turn, produce enough men and women of integrity and Godly character to enter into the activities of our society and begin to turn us back to the God who made us and sustains us. That is, He sustains us as long as we are doing things His way… The alternative is unthinkable – and yet we have been experiencing some of that ugly alternative for the last several decades.
You might also read my blog post entitled “The Truth About America’s Only Hope” as a supporting adjunct to this paper. To God alone be the Glory!
Family Ministry Resources
American Family Association
Answers in Genesis
Book: Already Gone
Answers Bible Curriculum
Building a Godly Home
by William Gouge
Family Driven Faith: Doing What It Takes To Raise Sons & Daughters
by Voddie Baucham
Focus on the Family
Perspectives on Family Ministry
Edited by Timothy Paul Jones
Rite of Passage: A Father’s Blessing
by Jim McBride
Sheep to Shepherd – Become a Man of Integrity and Godly Character
by Tom McDonald
Shepherding A Child’s Heart
by Ted Tripp
Shift
by Bryan Haynes
