August 15 2011, 6:49 pm | Daniel Bollen
Deuteronomy 6:20-25
20"When your son asks you in time to come, 'What is the meaning of the testimonies and the statutes and the rules that the LORD our God has commanded you?' 21then you shall say to your son: ‘We were Pharaoh’s slaves in Egypt. And the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand. 22And the LORD showed signs and wonders, great and grievous, against Egypt and against Pharaoh and all his household, before our eyes. 23And he brought us out from there, that he might bring us in and give us the land that he swore to give to our fathers. 24And the LORD commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear the LORD our God, for our good always, that he might preserve us alive, as we are this day. 25And it will be righteousness for us, if we are careful to do all this commandment before the LORD our God, as he has commanded us.'”
I know that was a chunk of scripture to read at the beginning (especially since it was from Deuteronomy right?? That book just sounds intimidating…), but I promise I will try to keep it short (short being a relative term of course)... In verse 20, Moses begins by saying “WHEN your son asks you in time to come… you shall say…” This intro suggest that children will ask questions about their parent’s faith; not may ask questions, not could possibly ask questions, but WILL in fact ask questions “in time to come” about how their faith affects the way they live their life.
Parents (and future parents… anyone that doesn’t have kids right now will more than likely have some one day) be prepared to give an answer for the “testimonies and the statutes and the rules that the LORD our God has commanded…” Know why you do what you do and believe what you believe. One day your kids will ask questions that you need to be ready to answer… and I am not talking about questions pertaining to the birds and the bees (but that’s important too).
Here are 2 quick tips for how to answer your child “when your son asks you”:
1. When they ask, tell them where you came from (who you were before you knew Christ… don’t be afraid to tell your kids what God brought you out of) and who you are now because of Him. (vs. 21-23)
2. When they ask tell them why you live the way you do and believe the things you believe. (vs. 24-25) (This is all assuming you have a relationship with the Lord and are trying to abide and grow in Him daily)
Remember, few things are more powerful to a child than their parent’s testimony. Also, don’t think for a second that your story isn’t good enough if your story doesn’t include getting drunk on the weekends, sleeping with everyone in the world, being addicted to meth, or any other kind of *rock-star salvation experience. It was my dad’s testimony of faithfully serving the Lord from a young age that deeply impacted my life. I saw his example and truly listened when he answered the questions I asked him. In the end however, it wasn’t just my dad's story that encouraged spiritual growth in my life, it was the fact that he had answers when I came to him with questions. Are you prepared to answer the questions that you will be asked one day by your child?
*I mean absolutely no offense by the term rock-start salvation experience… I am merely addressing the fact that it is easy to feel your story is boring if it doesn’t include a chapter of some sort of dangerous/illegal/devious activity. Therefore, I am simply trying to encourage anyone that may not feel that their story of being saved at a young age, going to church all their lives, volunteering as a small group leader/Sunday school teacher/volunteer, etc, is good enough or cool enough to share with their child. . Christ didn’t hang on the cross a second longer for the people that have crazy stories because we were all equally separated from God, equally lost, and equally saved. Satan does like to lie to us sometimes and make us feel like one type of story is better than the other… when in reality, they are exactly the same. Again, no offense to anyone with a story including any of the scenarios I mentioned earlier.