Pastor Matt reminded us when parents follow Jesus, their kids tend to follow their example.
MY STORY
What was the spiritual life of your parents like? How did they influence your own spiritual formation, for good or ill?
WHAT DOES GOD WANT US TO HEAR? “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children… (Deuteronomy 6:4-7)
What does it mean to love the Lord with all your heart, soul, and might? What would it look like to exclude one of these three things?
What does it mean for a command to be on your heart? Can you obey God without it coming from your heart? If so, how would that show itself?
We are to pass what we know about God to the children in our home and community with diligence. What can we do to prevent ourselves from becoming haphazard or inconsistent about this?
What does God want us to hear? Based on the passage and the questions above, what takeaways do you think God has revealed to you?
WHAT DOES GOD WANT US TO DO?
Pastor Matt said, “Your parenting matters. What you do with your kids makes a difference, way more than career, success, money, and the stuff you can provide, because God chose you to be the consistent, faithful instrument to bring about, in your child’s life, the acknowledgement of God’s existence and His goodness.”
If you have kids, what’s your perception of the degree of influence you have on their understanding of God’s love for them?
How can the pursuit of career, success, money, and the stuff you provide, create speed bumps in regard to your influence on kids? How can you responsibly pursue these things without compromising what your kids need from you—spiritually speaking?
If you were to say to these kids, “This is what I do to grow closer to Jesus; find your own unique way of doing this thing”… What would that spiritual practice be?
What does God want us to do? Flowing out of our reading and interpretation, what action does this passage or the Spirit's leading, call us to?
WHAT DOES GOD WANT ME TO DO?
Pastor Matt said, “There couldn’t be a more significant calling on my life than to create opportunity after opportunity for my children to see the goodness of God. And while that may look different as they age, that calling never changes.”
What is unique about your calling in regard to your kids? How will that responsibility change as they get older?
What unique opportunities does this calling compel you to create for your kids’ spiritual formation?
Focus on any weak links in the spiritual example you’re setting for the kids in your circle of influence—and strengthen those connecting points.
Call someone who played a significant role in your spiritual formation, and thank him or her for her positive influence in your life.
What does God want ME to do? What is the personal application and action step God is calling you, personally, toward?
Message Notes
You can add your own personal sermon notes along the way. When you're finished, you'll be able to email or download your notes.