FAMILY WORSHIP GUIDE

FAMILY WORSHIP GUIDE

It Hasn't Always Been This Way The home was a primary place of spiritual instruction in the Bible, Early Church, and the Church in America. Family Worship in the Old testament Gen. 18:18-19, Gen. 22:1-14, Ex. 13:3-16, 1 Sam. 1:3-20, Ps. 78. Family Worship in the New testament Acts 10:1-4, Eph. 6:1-4, 1 Tim 3:4-5, 2 Tim. 1:5 Historian Lyman Coleman described the practices of the early church like this: At an early hour in the morning the family was assembled and a portion of Scripture was read from the Old Testament, which was followed by a hymn and a prayer... In the evening, before retiring to rest, the family again assembled for worship. (Lyman Coleman, The Antiquities of the Christian Church) Abraham had in his tent a house of God and a church, just as today any godly and pious head of a household instructs his children... in godliness. Therefore, such a house is actually a school and church, and the head of the household is a bishop and a priest in his house. - Martin Luther (Martin Luther, Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 21-25 in Luther s Works, ed. Jaroslav Pelikan) God is to be worshipped everywhere in spirit and in truth; as in private families daily, and in secret each one by himself. -Westminster Confession of Faith and the Second London Confession of 1689 (Section 22.6 in the WCF; 21.6 in the LCF of 1689) If we want to bring up a godly family, who shall be a seed to serve God when our heads are under the clouds of the valley, let us seek to train them up in the fear of God by meeting together as a family for worship. - Charles Spurgeon (C.H. Spurgeon, A Pastoral Visit ) In the full scope of church history, we are the weird ones for not regularly worshipping in our homes.

Every Christian family ought to be, as it were, a little church. - Jonathan Edwards What Changed? In the modern church, ministry became centered on programs and buildings. This has had the unintended consequence of separating spiritual life from everyday life. The HOME is Essential to Discipleship God is worthy of daily worship. God designed you to be the primary discipler of your kids. Deut. 6:4-9, 20-25; Psalm 78 God gave you the Bible, the Holy Spirit, and the church as your primary resources. Eph. 4:11-16; 1 Peter 4:1-11; 1 Cor. 12:12-31 Our children are impacted most when the church and the home speak with one voice. You are only a steward of your children. They were created to worship God for eternity. You have their first 18 years to lead them. You are already worshipping something in your home.

How do we start regularly talking about Jesus in our home? Family Worship Family worship has three parts: Read the Bible Don t just give information or teach morals. Tell stories! Read with enthusiasm and energy. Use the me 1, you 1, approach. Say, After we read, I m going to explain a verse, and I want you to explain a verse. Or, I get to ask you a question, and you get to ask me a question. Ask questions. Get your kids talking. You can use the sample questions in the back of this book. Pray Don t just pray the same thing every time. Pray about what you just read. Take prayer requests from one another. Follow the Acts 1:8 model - pray for neighborhood, city, country, and the world. Use the A.C.T.S. model. Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication. Pray the Lord s Prayer. Sing This may be the most awkward for you but the most fun for your kids. Use an ipod or Spotify. You can follow bethelkidssouth on Spotify and use the family worship playlist. Listen to music in the car so your kids know the songs. Consistently explaining and modeling truth principles for young people is the most critical factor in their spiritual development. - Barna Research Group, Evangelism is Most Effective Among Kids

Tips Pick a time that fits and stick to it. Depend on consistency more than length or profoundness. Remember that your tone matters. Aim for focused, fun, and natural. Be flexible. Your family worship will never be perfect. When its awkward or intimidating, do it anyway. Use the material we send home with your kids every week. Oops! We Haven t Done Family Worship in six Months! Don t let guilt win. Pick it back up. Remember that family worship is a means of grace, not a burden. Remember that God is worthy of our regular worship. The Blessings of Family Worship It will make you dependent on God. You can have a greater impact in your home than you can anywhere else in your life. It will bridge the divides in your family. You will find out what God is doing in your child s life. You can change your family legacy.

Samples and Guides Sample Family Worship 1. READ: 1 John 3:11-24. Ask your kids, What do you think v. 16 means? Then invite them to ask you to explain a verse. SING: One Thing Remains or let your kids pick their favorite songs. PRAY: Take prayer requests and have each person pray for the person on their right. 2. READ: 2 Cor. 4:7-18 SING: The Doxology PRAY: Have each person pray one part of the A.C.T.S. (adoration, confession, thanksgiving, supplication) Sample questions for Bible Reading Questions for pre-schoolers: 1. What person/people did we read about? 2. What did the person do? 3. Was God or Jesus in our passage? 4. What did God or Jesus do? 5. Can you draw a picture about what we read? Questions for elementary: 1. What was our passage about? 2. Did God speak or do anything in our passage? 3. Why did God/Christ say or do that? 4. Why do you think God put this passage in the Bible? Questions for teenagers: 1. What does this passage tell us we should believe about God? 2. What does this passage tell us about ourselves? 3. What does this passage tell us about what God desires from us? 4. How does this passage point us to Christ?

Additional Ideas If you would like to build on to your family worship, try these: Catechisms Catechisms are great instructional tools that have been used by the church for hundreds of years. Google these to find free catechism resources to use in your home: The North Star Sojourn Catechism for Kids by Sojourn Church The New City Catechism (this one has an interactive app and website!) The Catechism for Young Children Westminster Shorter Catechism Creeds You can recite these as a family to begin or conclude your family worship. Or try reciting them at dinner or bedtime. The Apostles Creed I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to hell. The third day he rose again from the dead. He ascended to heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty. From there he will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

The Nicene Creed We believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, begotten from the Father before all ages, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made; of the same essence as the Father. Through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven; he became incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the virgin Mary, and was made human. He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate; he suffered and was buried. The third day he rose again, according to the Scriptures. He ascended to heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again with glory to judge the living and the dead. His kingdom will never end. And we believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life. He proceeds from the Father and the Son, and with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified. He spoke through the prophets. We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic church. We affirm one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look forward to the resurrection of the dead, and to life in the world to come. Amen. Memorization Create a memorization board or find creative ways to put up Bible verses in your home. Pinterest is full of ideas! Hand motions are also very helpful for teaching memory verses to kids. You can make them up or google ideas. Finally, we recommend using the verses we send home on Sundays. This way the whole family will be learning the same verses we are teaching about at church.

Resources Follow the Family Worship playlist from bethelkidssouth on Spotify Use the parent sheets we send home with your kids form our Sunday curriculum Family Worship by Donald S. Whitney The Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones The Sticky Faith Guide for Your Family by Dr. Kara E. Powell Big Truths for Little Kids by Susan Hunt & Richie Hunt Old Story New by Marty Machowski A Neglected Grace by Jason Helopoulus Thoughts to Make Your Heart Sing by Sally Lloyd-Jones Everything a Child Should Know About God by Kenneth N. Taylor Family Worship by Joel R. Beeke Pass it On by Jim Burns & Jeremy Lee Resources Used The following resources were used with permission: Family Worship by Donald S. Whitney A Neglected Grace by Jason Helopoulus The Family Worship Book by Terry L. Johnson Family Worship by Joel R. Beeke

Dear Parents, Thank you for picking up a copy of our Family Worship Guide. At Bethel it is our privilege to partner with you in the discipleship of your children. We hope this guide will prove to be a blessing and a valuable resource in the days ahead. If there are any ways we can be of service we would love to connect with you. More information about our various campuses and age-group ministries can be found at www.bethelbible.com. Or, we can be reached by phone or email using the contact info below: Church office - 903-839-507 South Campus - clint@bethelbible.com Downtown Campus - mike@bethelbible.com Whitehouse Campus - mark@bethelbible.com

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