The pace of our modern life is so frantic! Between work, school, church, housework, errands, homework, sports, iPad, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, Facebook, Netflix, etc., there isn't always a lot of time left to have great family conversations. Monday through Sunday, life runs at a hundred miles an hour, and too often we stick to superficial discussions with our family that sound like “Tidy up your room.”
Let’s reserve quality time to listen and talk with our loved ones. During all the days of our lives, let us give the gift of availability to our spouses and children. Scripture says, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up” (Deuteronomy 6:5-7, NIV).
If I had a time machine, I would go back to the days when my children were still young and intentionally have deeper conversations with them. I would talk more with them about the following:
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• The ravages of drugs and all other forms of addiction, and how God has delivered me from them and can protect them.
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• The different forms of temptation they will have to face and how God will give them strength and grace to resist.
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• The value of hard work, honesty and forgiveness.
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• The Biblical perspective I’ve learned to have on the issues they hear about every day in school from their teachers or friends.
I would take the initiative to broach sensitive topics. I would tell them more about the Kingdom of God, his plans, his grace, his fidelity. Too often, while instilling God's commandments in our children, our approach boils down to a list of guidelines and prohibitions.
After over thirty-five years of full-time pastoral ministry in which I have brought the Word thousands of times to over fifty countries around the world by the grace of God, what my children (now all grown up) remember most are not my teachings and my words as a pastor. What they remember most is the time spent together, treating each other like a gift from the Lord. Keep in mind that what your loved ones are looking for, above all else, is you.
Claude Houde is the lead pastor of Eglise Nouvelle Vie (New Life Church) in Montreal, Canada. Under his leadership New Life Church has grown from a handful of people to more than 3500 in a part of Canada with few successful Protestant churches.