It takes Intentionality

“These commandments I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up."

Deuteronomy 6:6-7

What Helps Shape Us?

Noise and chaos abound today. Views, opinions, and propaganda infiltrate every conversation and airway, don’t they? Are you right-wing or left-wing, conservative or liberal, dogmatic or passive? We would be better served to analyze if we are an Image-Bearer of the King or anything else. Much of our present thinking comes from our background rooted in family dynamics. Whether functional or dysfunctional, family has shaped us.

Deuteronomy 6:6-7 states, “These commandments I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.”

Intentionality Matters

Strong foundations don’t just happen. They need to be clearly communicated, repeated, and valued. How are we doing with that? Do we intentionally plan for those seeds to take root, or hope that they fall into place like a jigsaw puzzle tossed into the air?

A Refreshing Example

While dining at a local restaurant recently, it was refreshing to observe a young family with two preschoolers. Both parents were naturally engaged with each other and their kids: conversation, coloring books, and teachable moments. No screens were used! The atmosphere clearly stated, “We are here for each other, and you have my full attention!” There was no overreacting or shaming when a drink was toppled. It only took a gentle, “Dude, pay attention,” from dad for a course correction. Sadly, that’s not the norm these days.

The Sad Facts

Presently, family life certainly can be marked by challenges and opportunities. Diverse family structures, increased screen time, and lack of supervision have increased mental health concerns among kids and spouses at record rates. Add to that the decrease in church attendance, little intentionality toward discipleship, and fewer fathers in the home, and you begin to see a growing recipe replacing the traditional nuclear family with the stale leftovers. Augustine wrote, “Peace in society depends upon peace in the family.”

Our Choices Matter

Our time is limited to make a difference in the ones God has entrusted to us as family. Lee Iacocca rightly believed, “No matter what you've done for yourself or for humanity, if you can't look back on having given love and attention to your own family, what have you really accomplished?”

Reject Passivity!

As MD5 instructs, reject passivity. We are the change-makers in our time and for our faith and families. May it be said of us that we are active characters in God’s story. Don’t miss your highest calling to shepherd your family and to set them on a clear path to their heavenly Father.

Mark Stitch

MD5 Facilitator