The Bible, the Bee, and the Family
If Christ holds the universe together by the Word of his power, why would we think it takes anything less to hold a family together? And even if Christian families know that only God's grace can make them effective as an embassy for Christ, are Christian families in the Word together and in prayer together to make their embassy vision a practical reality?
Learning to live as ambassadors of Christ is a life-long pursuit. As long as we're on earth, our mission is to "make disciples of all nations" (Matthew 28:19). Discipleship doesn't end with the family, but it does start there. Parents, particularly fathers, are instructed to bring their children up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord (Ephesians 6:4).
No matter where you are in life, I hope that you see the significance of the Christian family and the importance of helping families — not only our own, but also others — grow in the grace of God through the Word of God.
As I think about parents discipling their children, I think about the 2012 National Bible Bee. My favorite feature of this year's program is that there will "only" be two verse cards per week and approximately twenty minutes of planned Bible study per day. There are less verses over the summer than in years past. But I think the principle of "less is more" may prove true here: With less verses to memorize, there is more time to meditate. More families — really all families — can have a structured time for family discipleship through the Bible Bee, memorizing Scripture, praying together, and studying the Bible.
I encourage you to watch the video below and then pray about how you can encourage family discipleship in your family and your local church. I see several big opportunities:
- Parents using the Bible Bee as a tool to disciple their children. You can learn more about that on the Bible Bee's homepage — they have a nice overview of the program this year.
- Local churches and other ministries hosting a Bible Bee. More hosts are needed to enable more families to participate. To learn about what hosting entails, you can click here.
- Volunteers helping to host a local Bee.
- Prayer supporters: "Unless the LORD builds the house, those who build it labor in vain." (Psalm 127:1, ESV)
- Donors who believe that investing financially in the Bible Bee is a wise use of God's resources.
Again, the Bible Bee has a great website which you can visit to register now or learn more: www.BibleBee.org.
Churches and Groups
family discipleship