Family Ministries Blog

 

“What should I be doing for my family Bible study?” I get this question a lot, and to be honest, I ask this question a lot also! If you google "Family Bible Study” you only get about 155 million results, but who has the time to look through all of that? That’s the point and the problem, right? NO TIME!
 
If you are looking for a way to study God’s Word for your family consider this simple guide from Minno-Church at Home. Minno’s mission is to provide stories that kids love with values that parents trust. On their website, under their Bible + Faith section, there are lots of fun, creative, and thoughtful ideas for family devotion and discipleship. The main idea is to keep things simple! Your family is busy so finding time to study the scriptures shouldn’t be burdensome, but beneficial.
 
In this particular family Bible study plan, five simple steps are presented that take about 10 minutes per day to P.L.A.N.T. God’s word in your children’s hearts. You can spend this time around the dinner table while you have everyone together already or around the living room floor or even in the car if it’s the only time you can all be together. Here’s how it works.

STEP 1: Prepare Your Heart

Put away distractions and pray, “God show us something new today.”

STEP 2: Learn from the Word

Choose a Bible verse or passage of scripture and post it in your home where everyone will see it. Maybe the kitchen refrigerator.

STEP 3: Ask Questions

Discuss the verse together as a family. For context, add new surrounding verses daily. This can help your discussion time become more robust.

STEP 4: Name the Truth

Discover the truth that God wants you to take away. Think exegesis (critical explanation or interpretation of scripture) and not eisegesis (the interpretation of a text by reading into it one's own ideas). Help your kids learn the truth in God’s word, and not an idea based on their feelings or opinion.

STEP 5: Take Action

Think of ways you can put God’s truth into action. As a family, talk about next steps with the information you’ve talked about all week. Have fun practicing your faith together!

And that’s it! Simple and to the point and it establishes a Bible devotion routine that will work in any family. And if you want to dig a little deeper there are a few things you can add to this simple plan.

• Add a goal to memorize scripture.
• Create a prayer log and keep up with what your family prays for.
• Add in a family service project once per month to take that action step to the next level.

Just pray and ask the good Lord what is best for your family. The most important thing is that you have a time to study the scriptures together as a family. Whether it’s this plan or another, dig into God’s word!
 
One more thing…I want to hear what God is doing in your family through your devotion time. If you have an encouraging story about how the Lord’s hand is moving through your life in this way please consider sharing it with me so I can encourage other Cornerstone families. God moments can change a family and impact a community so let’s celebrate