One of the most requested topics this year on my speaking circuit has been a lesson in which I list a hundred ideas for training our kids to be servants. Service oriented kids grow up to be productive adult servants in the kingdom and it’s those people to whom the Lord will say, “Come ye blessed of my Father,” according to Matthew 25. So it matters if I’m making a real effort, as a mom, to put the heart of a servant in my child. For this reason, I’ve decided to devote a post, every now and then, to a service suggestion—a simple idea for moms to make their homes busy service centers for young hearts and hands. I’d love to hear from those of you who try them. So here goes:
Bible Study Helpers
All of us should be actively pursuing at least one person…not in the sense of dating him/her, but in the sense of rescuing from him/her from hell. That there is a soul-winning aspect of every Christian mother’s life is assumed in this article. This suggestion has to do with involving our kids in our personal evangelism. Once, when my kids were very small, Glenn and I were having a family over, In this particular case the mom, Donna Black, was a wayward member of the Lord’s church. The father, Sam, was a non-Christian. They were visiting our worship services. Our sole purpose for having them over was the opportunity that dinner at our house would present for evangelism. My kids were grumbling about having to take a break from play to go and straighten their rooms. I think their ages were about 6 and 3, at the time. “Why are we even having these people to eat with us? We don’t even know them.” At that point I realized that, in my stress and haste, I was about to miss a great opportunity for their involvement in evangelism. I stopped and got down on their eye level and explained to them that these people did not have God in their lives. They could not pray. They did not have any hope of going to heaven. I told them that maybe that very night, around the supper table, we would have a chance to remind the mom and teach the dad how precious these things are. “Just maybe, because we are willing to do a little work this afternoon, they might get to go to heaven one day and live with God forever. If they do, then I think we will see them there and we might just remember this day.” My children stopped complaining and started complying with hope in their little voices. Soon this family was at work in the Lord with His people in our city. My children could see tangible rewards of their chores that day.
From then on, I tried to remind myself often of the importance of their involvement in our work of evangelism. Hannah grew into the one who made sure tea glasses were full during our home Bible studies. She would run and get coasters for our drinks and take young children to the bathroom, so their moms could study without interruption. Caleb became very adept at entertaining young children, too, so that Bible studies or teaching videos were uninterrupted by crying toddlers or bored children. They both came to know that almost any activity in which we, as a family, were involved would be quickly interrupted if we were presented with an unexpected opportunity to influence a soul for heaven. Before I knew it, they were asking people to study with them or with our family.
Just in case anyone thinks I have any delusions about ALWAYS seeing the opportunities and always reaching the teachable souls around me, may I just tell you up front that I often failed. Still do. But may I also say that both of my children are, while imperfect people, diligent soul-winners for Him. I often think back about the opportunity that day with the Blacks. I am very glad for that light bulb moment and all of the other moments when the kids had chances to pursue souls. God is good.
