God recently moved from what was previous a whisper to a shouting in our hearts. We've always known God had something special for our family but we are now confirmed in this truth. From the beginning we have been walking a road unlike so many others. I hope to inspire others towards the same greatness God has to offer.
Justin spent many hours listening to Voddie discuss the rewards and commands that come to and from a Father who leads, teaches, and trains his children in the home and takes responsibility for that training throughout the course of a child's day, week, year. The spirit moved in Justin's heard as he held his hands raised high, open beckoning the Lord to cover his family with power, prayer and protection. He begged God to provide a path.
The task of bringing up children to know Jesus ought not be left to the, although most often caring and loving hands, of Sunday School volunteers. The task is not that of the mother's alone. It cannot be done sufficiently by a grandmother or grandfather who are filling in for the living, available parents. We felt challenged to take the training of our children VERY SERIOUSLY. Still trying to see what that would look like and how it would unfold.
The icing to what had become a loud calling by God were the statistics regarding children being raised in Christian homes in our current culture. Here are just a few:
taken from Voddie's Centrality of the Home:
We are losing a generation. We are losing 75-88% percent of young Christian Believers before the end of their Freshman year in College.
In our culture our birth rate (Christians) is below replacement rate. Replacement rate is 2.1 children per family, we are at 1.9. We are not having enough children for our Christian culture to continue to survive.
In France, Muslims are reproducing at about 6 children per family and in two generations France will be a Muslim country by numbers alone.
We are losing 75% of Christians in college, at 2 children per family, it takes two Christian families to get 1 Christian out of the mix.
There are 16 million Southern Baptists, as an example, by these numbers next generation 4 millions, third generation, 1 million, fourth generation 250,000.
In order to replenish the numbers through evangelism alone, we would have to reach 3 lost persons per 1 Christian. Currently we only reach 1 lost person for every 43 Christians.
Christianity in America is dying one generation at a time. 1 HOME at a time.
Over the last 30 years we have seen the largest increase in professional youth ministers and para church organizations trying to reach youth but the greatest decline in Youth baptisms EVER. Our current approach to Youth Ministry is unbiblical and antithetical to the biblical model and it doesn't work.
Ephesians Chapter 6:1-4
Whose job is it to evangelize and disciple our children?
Children obey...
Father's...bring them up in the instruction of the Lord.
The home is CENTRAL!!!
Just these simple facts, coupled with our experience at the Home school convention and the moving of the spirit in our hearts regarding our children caused our entire focus as a couple, parents and children of God to change.
And so, the slow process of redefining what our home would look like as Christians and followers of Jesus. We began with planning Family Worship. We then made the final decision to Home School and began preparations to do so. Then, again, Justin searched for a local Family Integrated Church that we might attend as we seek to teach and train our children to follow Jesus. What seemed to be a miracle one Sunday morning as Justin felt called to try something else, he found a local, nearby Family Integrated Church. They were meeting right down the street from our house. God has grace.
And so, we gathered our children and attended Family of Faith for the first time. Only about 12 families attend the church and everyone stays together for teaching and worship. There is no Sunday school. We LOVED it!
It is made up of home schooling families, people who value and cherish children and many families who have an abundance of them, along with strong male headship and a passion for a biblical rooted family.
It is simple. It is about Jesus. It is about training up children and being the church. God's whisper became a loud calling we pray we have responded in a way that pleases Him. We are blessed to be where we are. May God's mercy continue to bring us Closer to Him!
References for Male headship:
Genesis chapter 2:18
It is not good that the man should be alone!
I will make him a helper fit for him. (suitable helper-helpmeet)
Out of the ground the Lord God had formed everything...Adam names the creatures.
God creates Eve from Adam's rib.
"This is at last bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh." One Flesh.
God invents marriage.
The sanctity of marriage is authored by God. -Calvin
1 Tim. 2:12
Women not to have authority over a man
Women not to teach
Adam made first then Eve, women deceived
Woman made for the man, from the man
Timeless principle not specific to Corinth
Equality of the woman-not from the ground but from the man -completely equal to the man
from Biblical Headship by Voddie
What happens when we get marital headship wrong (sexual identity problems):
-Marriage Patterns that do not portray the correct relationship between Christ and the Church. (Eph. 5)
-Parenting practices that do not train boys to be masculine and girls to feminine. (sexual confusion)
-Homosexual tendencies and an increasing attempts to justify homosexual alliances.
-Patterns of unbiblical female leadership in the church that reflect and promote the confusion over the true meaning of manhood and womanhood.
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