I read this short article, “The Best Day of the Week…for Your Kids” by Nick Kennicott and was deeply convicted. Oh, to have the opportunity to turn back the clock and do things differently with my own children! Not that we didn’t, for the most part, enjoy Sundays as a family, but I wish we had been more intentional in our approach. Here is how Kennicott begins his article:
Several years ago, I was leading a seminar on family worship at a conference and a man told me, “As a child, I always dreaded Sundays. My parents made it miserable.” I was sad to hear about his experience and the only thing I could think to say was, “Well, then they were obviously doing something wrong!” By way of contrast, Joel Beeke once explained that he woke his children up every Sunday and say, "It's time to get up. Today is the best day of the week!" I hope the accusations leveled against Christians who have the highest possible view of the Lord's Day—namely, that we just sit around on the Lord’s Day making sure we and our children do not handle, do not taste, do not touch (Colossians 2:21)—aren’t true! Jesus reminds us, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27). So, if we’re to use it rightly and call the Sabbath a delight (Isaiah 58:13), we need to think about how we can cultivate that delight instead of dread in our children’s (and our own) hearts on the Lord’s Day.
He then describes eight ways we can help our children delight in the Lord’s Day:
- Prioritize corporate worship.
- Fellowship with other families.
- Have a Sunday feast.
- Discuss Sunday School and sermon lessons.
- Ask about their soul, and share how you’re praying for them.
- Talk about God’s blessings and express thankfulness.
- Rest.
- Play.
Don’t let the Lord’s Day be drudgery for your family. Enjoy it! Help your children view it as God intends it to be viewed, namely, as the best day of the week. It may take some planning, but it’s worth the effort. As your children get older, they will thank you.
You can read the entire article here.
