Reflect on this past week – your waking hours, not including hours on the job. Tally the time spent in prayer, worship, Scripture and study of God’s word. Divide the number you come up with by 74. This is a way to quantify the status quo on being in this world versus being of this world.
There are roughly 74 waking hours across the week, allowing for 45 at work and 49 sleeping. If you lead your family to church – two hours each week, that is a 2.7% ‘all in’ factor. An hour in a weekly Bible study takes the factor to 4%. If you are praying as a family and having spiritual discussions daily, and maybe a family devotion each week, add one hour a day and the ‘all in’ factor goes to 12.2%. The devil is good with that.
You shall have no other gods before Me. – Exodus 20:3. The first command God gave to Moses is the first commandment for a reason. I am the Lord; that is My name! I will not yield My glory to another or My praise to idols. – Isaiah 42:8. He is a jealous God. In His anger, He allowed the destruction of His city, the exile of His people to Assyria and Babylon, and the removal of His presence with His people. Even while these people were worshiping the Lord, they were serving their idols. To this day their children and grandchildren continue to do as their ancestors did. – 2Kings 17:41. Even Old Testament kids caught what their parents had. It is our job to make sure what we have is what we want our kids to catch. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. – Deuteronomy 6:5-7. The charge from God is to be ‘ALL IN’ in, passing our faith in the Lord on to the next generation. Jesus issues the same charge in Matthew 22:37-38 – Jesus replied, “’Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment.” This is not a suggestion. It is a command from the Creator of the universe. Calculate your ‘all in’ factor and discuss it as a family. Charge yourself to get to 50% as the spiritual leader in family and talk about the progress being made while eating dinner together.
Tips to improve your ‘ALL IN’ factor:
- Live your relationship with Jesus the Christ in marriage every day for the kids to see;
- Decrease news intake to about 5minutes a day – plenty to stay up to date, and read Scripture instead. Great option – sign up for the 90 Day Bible Journey;
- Listen to Christian radio / music in the home; make your vehicle a prayer room;
- Eat dinner together as a family; introduce a spiritual perspective into discussions;
- Pray together as husband & wife, in family, with each child and for each child.
Prayer guide: Thank You Lord for Your word and Your patience with me. I don’t know that I am much better than ancient Israel when it comes to idols in my life. My ‘all’ has not been ‘ALL IN’ with You. Forgive me. I do want to purge the idols from my mind. Help me be the spiritual leader You call me to be by committing to improve my ‘ALL IN’ factor. Grant me strength for the journey to bless my children and grandchildren with an example that honors You. That is the dad You call me to be and that is the dad my kids need to see. Amen.
A faithful father rebukes the devil and works to improve his ‘ALL IN’ factor.
