Do you schedule time with your family to talk to each other? If you don't, maybe you should. Our society is so bent on being busy all the time that we often busy ourselves right out of quality time with our family. I know, I know. I've been down this road in my blog before, but isn't it true? If you live in the same house, you should have time to talk to each other, right? Quality time shouldn't be defined as moments spoken in the car on your way to three different sports practices, nor should we live a lifestyle that causes us to feel like we have to play catch-up when it comes time for a vacation. Vacation should be bonus time together, not the only time we spend truly focused on being a family.
Six or seven months ago, we began doing a morning Bible study together. Previously, I always taught a Bible lesson during our school time, and Eric planned a devotional to do with us before bed. We still do a devotional before bed with the kids and spend time worshiping together through music during that time also, but we now do Bible study together in the morning before we start school and before Eric heads to work. We practice Bible memory work in the morning as well. Depending on what we're reading, this takes 20-30 minutes each morning, and our evening devotional probably takes 15-25 minutes. That doesn't sound like much, does it? I can't imagine any family not having time to spend together at one of these times of day.
On Saturday, we are blessed with the opportunity to spend a little extra time during Bible study. Today, we laughed and giggled and talked about all sorts of things that were sorta inspired by what we were reading in the Bible. Or not. John Glenn, seasonal allergies, red M&Ms, the upcoming primary and November elections...all topics that were mentioned during the hour we spent in our cozy living room enjoying each other and the Word. We're studying the book of Job right now, reading a chapter or two each morning, and we're memorizing scripture that coordinates with our evening devotional, Our 24 Family Ways, which we're wrapping up right now. Next, we'll be using the Duggar's Character Training spreadsheet (Scroll down and click on the box that says "Character Qualities") for Bible memory work and character training.
Simply put, if you don't do this, I think you should. I don't think you should dive in and do everything that we're doing all at once, but I think you should start somewhere. You have to find what works best for your family. If you're concerned about time, head to the Duggar's spreadsheet and just start spending 5 minutes each morning and/or evening memorizing scripture and talking about Biblical character together. Sing a worship song each night before bed and pray together. Don't try to be a hero; just start somewhere.
I cherish these moments together. Saturday is my favorite because we aren't rushing around (we purposefully waited until after Lukas' basketball game). We don't just do Bible study. We connect. We tune into each other. We hear each others' hearts. And the topics that I mentioned that came up today? Those aren't the only kinds of topics that come up. Last night, we spoke about being sad about things that are going on in our lives because one of our kids really wanted and needed to talk about that. While learning what the Bible says about honesty, we talked about people in our lives who haven't been honest with us and how that has hurt our family. Talking about the little things opens the door for your children to talk to you about big things. Don't buy into the world's belief that children don't talk to their parents. Your children not only will talk to you, but they want to talk to you. It is our job as godly parents to provide them with safe opportunities to do so.
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