As a mama, I had high hopes of my kids memorizing lots and lots of scripture. In the end, I don’t know how much they memorized, but I see the evidence of the Word in their lives. Maybe that’s what we really want to hope for as parents.
Instead of pushing knowledge, what if we gave our kids every day examples of how to live out the truth of God’s word in their daily lives.
Do the ways of Jesus infiltrate our lives in a way that is enthusiastically contagious?!
Are we calling a family Bible study around a table because it is what we think we need to do or are we talking about a verse and then trying to live it as a family?!
The first phrase of this verse I said to my kids almost every day they lived under our roof.
“Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the word of life. And then I will be able to boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain.” – Philippians 2:14-16
Today, they don’t (hardly ever!) complain or fight because we practiced that mandate every single day. We called it out. We fought against those easy traps. We refused to let it snare us. God taught us to look for the good, to consider what was true, to always be FOR each other, to find joy no matter what hard hit us in the face, and to shine like stars.
Guess what one of Denver Waltman’s favorite verses is… “Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” – Nehemiah 8:10
You would never know, but as a kid he went through a sad season where he quit smiling and we had to take pictures of him to show him what he looked like. Jason Waltman encouraged him to memorize that verse and Amelia Grace Waltman read him scripture every night to help him go to sleep. We fought for joy when joy didn’t come easy because the joy of the Lord is our strength. May His joy sustain them and us until we dance through the gates. He is worthy of it all!