All posts tagged Family ministry

Family to Family Critique

by Ryan Marcum on December 18, 2010 in Blog, Family with No comments

Bibliographical Entry
Pipes, Jerry & Lee, Victor. Family to Family. North American Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention, 1999.

Author Information
Dr. Jerry Pipes the Team Leader of Spiritual Awakening and Mass Evangelism at the North American Mission Board and is President of Jerry Pipes Productions. Jerry served as part of the former Bush Administration’s President’s War on Drugs in the early 1990’s and has been speaking to groups of students and parents around the world for more than 30 years. Dr. Pipes authored several books relating to the issues of personal growth and the family. He has authored Becoming Complete, Family to Family, and Building a Successful Family. Dr. Pipes completed his B.S. at Texas A & M University, his M.A. at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and his D. Min. at Luther Rice Seminary. Continue reading →

Family Discipleship – Action Steps

by Ryan Marcum on May 12, 2010 in Blog, Family with 1 Comment

I have been collaborating with Brian Smith , a friend and ministry peer, about what a discipleship plan could look like for families. Here are a list of action steps for beginning a family discipleship plan. Have more ideas? leave a comment.

Step one: Make it a priority.

If you never commit to making family discipleship a priority it will never be done. Pastors across the U.S. say, if you want to know where a family’s priorities are, take a look at the checkbook. This may or may not apply to all but it is a good place to start. Next would be to look at your family’s calendar. Are you spending time doing “life” or are you actively seeking ways to connect to God.

How do you make family discipleship a priority? Sit down with your family, and explain that from this day forward, discipleship will become a priority. Make it clear to your children, that although you are not perfect, God has a perfect plan for your family. Give your family ownership. Allow each child to be “in-charge” of an aspect of your family discipleship time. For example, one child could keep a list of prayer concerns, another child could be in-charge of reminding everyone the memory verse of the week etc. Family Discipleship is about guiding your family through the Spiritual Disciplines and other practices to equip and build up. (Ephesians 4)

Step Two: Schedule Discipleship

We have all been to a church that sticks to the bulletin! And every Sunday looks, feels and sounds the exact same. It’s boring, right! Your family discipleship time doesn’t have to be this way.

When talking about scheduling discipleship time I am talking about two things. First, have a set family time to meet as a group to go through a particular passage or topic that God has placed on your heart as parents/parent. Second, Make sure you take time throughout the day to address the little things of life. (Psalm 119)

Step Three: Apply things learned

During your family time take mental, or physical, notes on what was said by your family. Then apply things said, in discipleship time, to your family’s daily activities. For example, if a child or spouse brings up some type of outreach to your neighbors, then you could actually plan ways to share the love of God in your neighborhood. Children are creative; allow them to come up with “events” or service projects around the neighborhood. The things we learn in the classroom will never stick unless we practice them on a daily basis. Remember dissecting a frog? Have you done it lately? Remember talking about the Gospel in Sunday school? Ever share the Gospel to your next door neighbor? (James 1:22-25)

Step Four: Encourage

Everyone sins. We all make mistakes. Your family will not be the perfect family at all times. Instead of constantly reminding your family of failures, encourage your family to learn from mistakes. Focus on success more than failures in discipleship. Learn from mistakes, but do not dwell on them. God has taken our sins and thrown them as far as the east is from the west, treat your family the same. (Psalm 103:11–12)

Step Five: Disciple another Family

Yeah. One of the best ways to practice what you preach is to actually do it! Whatever family you find, through prayer, make sure they know your family isn’t perfect and that you wish to grow with others. Discipleship is usually talked about in a one on one context but what if a family could disciple other families? What would the church look like if families came together and spurred one another on towards good works? (Hebrews 10:23-25)

Again, fellow student pastor Brian Smith and I have been discussing creating a Family Discipleship Plan. He has added an action step called “seize God sightings, making time for Spiritual Conversations”
when it comes to building family discipleship into family life.

Have some ideas for family discipleship? Post a comment, let’s keep the topic growing!

Family Discipleship: Do you have a plan?

by Ryan Marcum on May 11, 2010 in Blog, Family with 1 Comment

Family Discipleship – Do you have a plan?

This post is a collection of thoughts that have been rattling around in my head. Disclaimer: This is in no way a final product! This is merely me typing out loud about the things to come. The next post will be a simplified version of this post and an outline for future writings on the subject.

Like me, there are many Pastors, Youth Pastors and ministers starting the conversation of family ministry. Don’t get me wrong, this is not a new topic; however it is a growing subject in the church today! Family ministry is, I believe, the next step for those who train future pastors and ministers. Please leave comments and thoughts. Again, the following are thoughts that have been jumbled around in my head and in no way a final product.

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First, there must be a plan for your family’s spiritual growth. Without a plan, you are planning to fail. Secondly, there are “must-have” elements that should be integrated into your plan. Lastly, there are some obstacles to address with family discipleship.

Discipleship Plan:

Everyone needs a plan, however, we must be careful to understand God’s plan for our family. This plan is Biblically based and Parent driven with a Great Commission focus.

Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the LORD’s purpose that prevails. Proverbs 19:21

I believe the basic plan for family discipleship comes from Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and the Great Commission –Matthew 28:18-20. Families are called to teach the way of God to their children and make disciples who reach others for the sake of the Gospel.

Your family plan is also determined by your family make-up. For instance, single-parent homes will look different in the way discipleship is done. The content is not different, but the context might be different. Here are some elements to build into your family discipleship plan:

The Elements:

First, Discipleship must be modeled to your children. This means that the parent/parents must lead your family in discipleship. Some reading this will say, I have never been discipled, so how am I going to disciple my family? The easiest way to fix this is to find and learn from a mature believer, who has discipled others, and then teach your family what you learn. In order to lead your family, you must be lead.

Second, when it comes to discipling your family, you must teach Scripture. Most parents would say, I want my children to grow up to be good Christians, responsible people, and contributors to society. Most parents should want this for our children. However, just to have children who are good Christians is not enough. We must base our discipleship on the Word of God. As we become doers of the Word, so will our children.

Here are some ideas for more elements to include in your family discipleship plan: (not exhaustive) Scripture Memorization, Prayer, Journaling, family devotions, family mission trips, home church in your neighborhood for the whole family, etc.

Common Obstacles:

The idea of discipling my family sounds great! But how do I disciple my family when my schedule is so busy?

The first step to discipling your family will be to understand the obstacles that will come up throughout the process. Let’s look at a few:

Time. Families today are more strained when it comes to time than any generation before. Parents who are committed to discipling their children will prioritize their family’s time in order to accomplish the goal of discipleship. Remember: you can’t make time, you can only take time from other “things” in your life and re-prioritize for discipleship.

Satan. Families must understand that as soon as you attempt to re-focus your family’s priorities, Satan will do everything he can to dismantle your family. Saturate your family in prayer every minute of every day. Put on the Armor of God – Ephesians 6:10-18. Satan tempted Adam and Eve, Jesus, and he will tempt you.

Rebellion. If you have children who are self-determined or who are going through the teenage phase, you may experience rebellion. NEVER give up. Parents should continue to disciple their children, even if it means your children sit and watch you lead. As parents, we plant the seed. The church does the watering, and God does the rest. Be ready and have an idea of how you will handle each situation as it arises.

There are many elements and obstacles to be written about, so leave a comment and keep the conversation going!

Next Post:

Family Discipleship plan – Biblically Based, Parent Driven, with a Great Commission Focus