When your wife, daughter, and son are all high school teachers, and your son-in-law is serving as a
children’s pastor, you get plenty of opportunities to talk to kids. And I can’t imagine what life would be like without that privilege.
I like the process of gaining young people’s trust and building a relationship with them. They crack the door and begin to let you see glimpses into what they’re thinking. Then they gradually open the door wider, and before they even realize it, they’re sharing their full perspective about the world around them.
As I’ve talked to them lately, I’m puzzled by a prevailing theme. I’m amazed, that in this world of exploding technology and unending entertainment venues, they tell me they’re bored. They want to find something new, something different to engage them.
I’m afraid that that’s what happening in the church in America too. According to a LifeWay Research study, 70 percent of young adults ages 23–30 stopped attending church services regularly for at least a year between ages 18–22. Research indicates some of these people will later return to regular involvement with a church body. Some will not.
As parents, we could point fingers at the church’s shortcomings and try to place the blame somewhere else. But, honestly, making our faith alive and relevant to our kids begins right in our own homes. At some point we’ve settled for the ordinary and obligatory. Worshipping God, pointing our kids to Christ, has become safe and comfortable. We have not passed down a vibrant legacy of faith.
We don’t need to invent something new to make our family’s worship attractive. I have a friend, Fletch Wiley, who is one of the most incredible musicians I have ever known. He once told me about music, “Everything that can be done, has been done. We just need to go back to the things that work and use them to make good music.” To make our worship compelling, we only need to go back to what the Book of Psalms says about it.
Shout with joy to the Lord, all the earth!
Worship the Lord with gladness.
Come before him, singing with joy.
Acknowledge that the Lord is God!
He made us, and we are his.
We are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving;
go into his courts with praise.
Give thanks to him and praise his name.
For the Lord is good.
His unfailing love continues forever,
and his faithfulness continues to each generation.—Psalm 100 (NLT)
That’s not quiet, boring stuff. Even though it’s not a new concept, Psalm 100 worship requires that our faith be alive today, this moment.
In writing Setting Up Stones, my wife, Martha, and I wanted to encourage the reader to “turn the daily into the divine”—finding a loving, powerful God at work even in the most ordinary aspects of our lives. Maybe we need to personally rediscover the things that can make our faith vital and attractive to everyone around us. We need to be intentional about breaking the mold that limits our faith and restricts the expression of our love of God.
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Worship that will connect with your kids, like Psalm 100 describes, is engaging and relevant. Point out to your family an amazing Father who is at work even in life’s everyday happenings. Don’t be afraid to live out before them a relationship with Him that is current and alive. Be aware of God’s presence right now, at this moment. Be thankful! Be joyful! Be bold! Sing! Shout!
Martha and Greg Singleton have, for more than 30 years, met the challenges of balancing successful professional careers in journalism and marketing while raising a faith-filled family (a son, Matt, and a daughter, Annie). Together, they creatively share their experiences and insights on family life at conferences, seminars, workshops, churches of various denominations, schools, and businesses. They live in San Antonio, Texas.
Scripture quoted from the New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
