Discipling the Next Generation By Sarah Kuepfer
I sit here with my newborn daughter on a blanket at my feet. My toddler and preschooler are outside with their older sister, enjoying the brisk fall weather and each other. My husband is watching and playing with them, and I can relax in the comfort of my parents’ home. My mother has supper cooking in the slow cooker, and the smells of warm stew are teasing my appetite. My father has a fire on in their fireplace, cozying up their already inviting home. This, to me, is family. Comfort, warmth, food and friendship are what most of us think about at this time of year. It’s the time of year to gather together with loved ones, and celebrate family. As believers, family is even more special, for many reasons. We have a larger family than just related by blood or marriage, but is also created by faith. Family is the form of the Church, the foundation of society and the fundamental representation of the Triune God. It is by family that we learn to relate to each other, to God and to the world. God has instructions for family as He does for every other area of life. Family is incredibly important to God, and should be also vital to the Christian. In fact, the main qualification for any type of leadership in the Church is that one’s family has been and continues to be well managed and an example of faithfulness, respect, love, and kindness. Paul states that if we cannot lead our own families well, we have no business trying to lead the church. A godly family begins with a godly, solid marriage. In the beginning, God created human beings to be together in families, and joined the first couple in marriage Himself. Their relationship was without barriers, originally, and they had complete intimacy: physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. They had complete trust in each other and in God. God designed us to long for that connection to another person: to be completely known... and accepted! This intimate, connected relationship is where our strengths shine and our weaknesses are protected. United in marriage, our efforts are multiplied, and our impact magnified. A godly marriage starts with God. When both partners have a personal relationship with God, like a triangle, they grow closer together as they grow closer to God. Godly marriages are strengthened by our willingness to be honest, open and vulnerable. Paradoxically, we build a strong marriage by being willing to reveal weakness. Marriage is then fulfilled in our unity and teamwork. We are fully “one flesh” when our first response is about “we” not “me”. It is in family that we best exemplify the Image of God. Genesis 1:27 says that man was created in His image, male and female. Together we fully show who God is. It begins with marriage, and