Why Family Discipleship Matters.

Our third baby boy was a little closer than we had planned to the middle brother ahead of him. I remember bringing him home from the hospital. It was the first time we packed up our van with our three-year-old, one-year-old, and newborn. On the way home my husband ran into the pharmacy to pick up prescriptions, and that romantic moment came to a halt when everyone started to cry. Out of sheer desperation in an attempt to distract them, I found myself singing, “I’ve got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart.”

I didn’t feel the joy.

Actually, at that moment, I felt intense inadequacy. What was actually going on my head was, “What did we get ourselves into?” I will never forget that moment. I was faced with the reality that these little lives were looking to me for guidance and comfort. The truth of that enormous responsibility should have crushed me, but God met me in our minivan.

As we turned our hearts towards the worship of Jesus, the bigness and love of Jesus washed over me. The cry of my heart was worship for Jesus, and the truth was that was the cry of His heart was to meet with us too. What incredible comfort and peace we can experience when we comprehend that we worship a God who has made a way for us to be close to him.

It was during that first week home that an older woman encouraged me to pass those long hard days at home with teachings about the Bible and Jesus. It seemed so simple, but God used these moments to fill my heart with direction and purpose as a parent. God was calling me to family discipleship.

Family discipleship is using intentional and organic moments to teach your children to be followers of Jesus. It means making the most important thing, in your life and in the life of your family, Jesus. Family discipleship is perhaps the greatest opportunity parents have to fulfill The Great Commission found in Matthew 28:19,
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations.”

Family discipleship is organic because it happens as children follow your worship of Jesus in moments of discipline, celebration, mess-ups, and decision-making. It’s intentional because we must make time to teach and pray and prioritize Jesus in a distracted and busy world. Family discipleship is making the decision to purposely neglect some things so that you spend time centering your family on Jesus. When Jesus called Simon Peter to be his disciple in Matthew 4, Simon Peter left everything and followed Jesus. Sometimes in our family, taking a moment to read God’s Word or do our Kids Faith Krate box means asking our Simon Peter (yes, we actually have one of those living in our house) to leave his toy cars behind and come worship Jesus at the table.

Family discipleship is important because in it we fulfill our call and purpose in life to be a part of the greatest story ever told. God’s rescue plan is unfolding in the world, and as parents get to be a part of the story that God is writing. Not only do we get to tap into our call as a Christian, but we also get to love and glorify God through how we raise our children. As we love and worship God with our lives, it is our prayer that we see our kids become followers of Jesus as well.

Kids Faith Krate is passionate about the importance of family discipleship. We think that family discipleship is one of the most meaningful things parents can do with their lives. We know from experience that access to solid and creative content is one of the biggest obstacles that families face in discipleship. We want to empower and equip parents with engaging lessons and crafts to teach their children through meaningful family discussions. We want to help parents be consistent by having the krates sent right to your door every month. We do this because we worship a God who came to us. We worship a God whose message of love is written all over our hearts. We worship a God who is consistently faithful to love us, even when we are drifting and distracted.

All of us at Kids Faith Krate want make disciples of all nations – starting with the little ones in our own homes.