Building great family culture starts with stories.
Brad Grey of Walking the Text teaches a simple truth: in Jewish families, from birth to about age 5, parents sought to taught their children two things.
First, they taught the Shema: Hear O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is one. And as for you, you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.
Think of the Shema as foundational to the life of the individual and the life of the family. The Lord is our God. It’s not about me. It’s about God. Therefore, we should love him with all that we are.
The second big area of teaching for children was to focus on teaching Bible stories. These would be the baseline stories of creation, Noah and the flood, Abraham going out to the promised land, Abraham & Isaac, Jacob & Esau, Joseph and his brothers, Slavery in Egypt, the Passover. These stories helped children understand they were part of a bigger story—life was not just about themselves.
As we know and discover our stories—the stories from the Bible and the family stories—we find our family culture, the connection to our bigger story.
by Bill High, ©2023
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The post Start with your Family Stories appeared first on Focus on the Family.
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Brad Grey of Walking the Text teaches a simple truth: in Jewish families, from birth to about age 5, parents sought to taught their children two things.
First, they taught the Shema: Hear O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is one. And as for you, you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.
Think of the Shema as foundational to the life of the individual and the life of the family. The Lord is our God. It’s not about me. It’s about God. Therefore, we should love him with all that we are.
The second big area of teaching for children was to focus on teaching Bible stories. These would be the baseline stories of creation, Noah and the flood, Abraham going out to the promised land, Abraham & Isaac, Jacob & Esau, Joseph and his brothers, Slavery in Egypt, the Passover. These stories helped children understand they were part of a bigger story—life was not just about themselves.
As we know and discover our stories—the stories from the Bible and the family stories—we find our family culture, the connection to our bigger story.
by Bill High, ©2023
Back
Next
The post Start with your Family Stories appeared first on Focus on the Family.
Continue reading...