FIVE PRIMARY AREAS OF FAMILY MINISTRY :
▶ MARRIAGE : “ Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it , and have dominion ” ( Gen . 1:28 ). “ A man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife , and they shall become one flesh ” ( Gen . 2:24 ). “ And what was the one God seeking ? Godly offspring . So guard yourselves in your spirit , and let none of you be faithless to the wife of your youth ” ( Mal . 2:15 ). 9
▶ PARENTS : “ You shall teach them diligently to your children , and shall talk of them when you sit in your house , and when you walk by the way , and when you lie down , and when you rise ” ( Deut . 6:2- 9 ). “ Hear , my son , your father ’ s instruction , and forsake not your mother ’ s teaching ” ( Prov . 1:8 ).
▶ GRANDPARENTS : “ Only take care , and keep your soul diligently . . . teach them to your children and children ’ s children ” ( Deut . 4:9 ).
▶ EDUCATION : “ The student [ disciple ] is not above the teacher , but everyone who is fully trained will be like the teacher ” ( Luke 6:40 ). “ The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge ” ( Prov . 9:10 ).
▶ THE CHURCH : “ And he gave the apostles , the prophets , the evangelists , the shepherds and teachers to equip the saints for the work of ministry , for building up the body of Christ ” ( Eph . 4:11-12 ).
FAMILY MINISTRY IS STRATEGIC
Rob Reinow said , “ If you spend an hour with children , they get one hour of ministry . If you spend an hour training and equipping parents , your hour multiplies itself into hundreds of hours of ministry in the home .” The church needs to shift its emphasis from the direct discipleship of children to the equipping of families to disciple children .
The RenewaNation Family Ministry Academy will help you capture a biblical vision for family discipleship . This new online program provides the flexibility you need to earn your Family Ministry Certificate while successfully fulfilling your responsibilities to family and ministry . Over nine months , you will learn how to define family ministry , assess what is happening in homes today , design a family ministry strategy for your church , gain many practical tools , and be equipped to lead a successful family ministry .
A family ministry expert will join us each month for training , and targeted books on family ministry will be read and discussed . The small group size allows for rich interaction about the why of family ministry , discipling your family , theology of family ministry , equipping parents , training grandparents , education matters , and strengthening marriages . If you are hopeful about having a family ministry at your church and want help to equip families , then the Family Ministry Academy is for you ! ■
Learn more about the Family Ministry Academy on page 14 or visit renewanation . org / church-and-family .
Dr . Josh Mulvihill is the Executive Director of Church and Family Ministry at RenewaNation . He served as a pastor for nearly 20 years , serves on the board of Awana , and helps to provide leadership to the Christian Grandparent Network . He holds a Ph . D . from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary . He is the author of Biblical Grandparenting , Preparing Children for Marriage , Biblical Worldview , and 50 Things Every Child Needs to Know Before Leaving Home . Josh is married to Jen , and they have five children . Josh blogs at GospelShaped Family . com .
Endnotes 1 . George Barna , “ Parents Accept Responsibility for their Child ’ s Spiritual Development but Struggle with Effectiveness ,” Barna Group , accessed October 11 , 2016 , https :// barna . com / research / parents-accept-responsibility-for-their-childs-spiritual-development-but-struggle-with-effectiveness . 2 . Larry Fowler , The Question Nobody Asks About Our Children ( Steamwood , IL : Awana , 2014 ), 11 . 3 . Lifeway Research , “ Most Teenagers Drop Out of Church When They Become Young Adults ,” Publishing Organization or Name of Website in Roman , January 15 , 2019 , https :// research . lifeway . com / 2019 / 01 / 15 / most-teenagers-drop-out-of-church-as-young-adults . 4 . Barna Group , “ Church Dropouts Have Risen to 64 %— But What About Those Who Stay ?,” Barna Group , September 4 , 2019 , https :// barna . com / research / resilient-disciples . 5 . Ibid ., 18 . 6 . George Barna , “ American Worldview Inventory 2023 - Release # 1 : Incidence of Biblical Worldview Shows Significant Change Since the Start of the Pandemic ,” The Cultural Research Center , February 28 , 2023 , https :// georgebarna . com / research / 90 _ americanworldview-inventory-2023 . 7 . George Barna , Third Millennium Teens : Research on the Minds , Hearts , and Souls of American ’ s Teenagers ( Ventura , CA : Barna Research Group , 1999 ), 66-67 . 8 . Ben Freudenberg , The Family Friendly Church ( Loveland , CO : Group Publisher , 1988 ), 28 . 9 . George Barna , “ Teen Role Models : Who They Are , Why They Matter ,” Barna Group , accessed October 11 , 2016 , https :// barna . com / research / teen-role-models-who-they-arewhy-they-matter .
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