Biblical Directives
Along with the over 1,200 promises found in the pages of scripture are more than 6,000 directives from God on how we can best position ourselves to receive them. While God is free to bless as He will, the best of His presence, provision and protection are reserved for those living in concert with His commands.
A Short List of Scriptures
The following few scriptures are offered as examples of Biblical Directives for families. We hope you'll take the time to consider the wisdom and help they offer:
Pray for everyone, always, every opportunity you get!
"The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know. Pray especially for rulers and their governments to rule well so we can be quietly about our business of living simply, in humble contemplation. This is the way our Savior God wants us to live. He wants not only us but everyone saved, you know, everyone to get to know the truth we've learned: that there's one God and only one, and one Priest-Mediator between God and us—Jesus, who offered himself in exchange for everyone held captive by sin, to set them all free." 1 Timothy 2:1-6 The Message
This is no small passage. Prayer is our first and constant spiritual weapon against the gathering darkness that threatens family and friends. Here Paul agrees with Peter that God is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to the knowledge of salvation. This scripture provides strong ammunition in the battle for the souls of our loved ones and beyond.
Raise children in the instruction of the Lord
"Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 'Honor your father and mother'—which is the first commandment with a promise— 'that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.' Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord. Ephesians 6:1-4
With temptation and deception rampant, it's more important than ever to raise our families in the care and admonition of God.
Train children not to depart from the way they should go
Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it. Proverbs 22:6
Early and continual spiritual training and example is vital to producing godly adults. Clearly serious and vigilant prayer is a part of such oversight.
The Lord is slow to anger and unfailing in love
"The Lord is slow to anger and filled with unfailing love, forgiving every kind of sin and rebellion. But he does not excuse the guilty. He lays the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations." Numbers 14:18
Let us take full advantage of the Lord's mercy and love, interceding for His presence to be powerful in us and our loved ones that we might merit His blessings.
Unless the Lord builds the house
"Unless the Lord builds a house, the work of the builders is wasted. Unless the Lord protects a city, guarding it with sentries will do no good. It is useless for you to work so hard from early morning until late at night,
anxiously working for food to eat; for God gives rest to his loved ones. Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from him. Children born to a young man are like arrows in a warrior’s hands. How joyful is the man whose quiver is full of them! He will not be put to shame when he confronts his accusers at the city gates." Psalms 127
It literally takes tens of thousands of work and service to provide for our households. It would be foolish to skimp the most important aspect. Only godly families have good reason to trust their efforts will succeed.
Seek the Kingdom above all else
"Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and he will give you everything you need. So don’t be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom." Luke 12:31-32
It is the Father's pleasure to give everything we need, even His Kingdom, when we seek it on behalf of our familes.
Pray without ceasing
"Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, 18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
If we're to pray without ceasing how many hours a week should we dedicate to prayer over our families?
Present your bodies living sacrifices
"So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you." Romans 12:1-2 The Message
Our families should not be conformed to the culture but rather transformed by learning about and serving God. Clearly this would require diligence in training, behavior and prayer.
Love God with all your heart and soul, strength and mind
"One day an expert in religious law stood up to test Jesus by asking him this question: 'Teacher, what should I do to inherit eternal life?' Jesus replied, 'What does the law of Moses say? How do you read it?' The man answered, 'You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’ And, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’" Luke 10:25-27
The directive to love God with all we have requires supreme dedication and living faith from ourselves and family members.
Build your house on rock not sand
"'These words I speak to you are not incidental additions to your life, homeowner improvements to your standard of living. They are foundational words, words to build a life on. If you work these words into your life, you are like a smart carpenter who built his house on solid rock. Rain poured down, the river flooded, a tornado hit—but nothing moved that house. It was fixed to the rock. 'But if you just use my words in Bible studies and don't work them into your life, you are like a stupid carpenter who built his house on the sandy beach. When a storm rolled in and the waves came up, it collapsed like a house of cards.'" Matthew 7:24-27 The Message
Knowing the storms of life come against everyone, wisdom dictates we make the effort to dig down deep into God's word to find the meaning of life and the directions He provides for raising our families.
A light unto my path
How sweet your words taste to me; they are sweeter than honey. Your commandments give me understanding; no wonder I hate every false way of life. Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path. Psalm 119:103-105
Knowing God's word is better than honey and a light to keep us from stumbling when darkness hides the the safe path our families should take.
Pray not to enter into temptation
"When he came back to his disciples, he found them sound asleep. He said to Peter, 'Can't you stick it out with me a single hour? Stay alert; be in prayer so you don't wander into temptation without even knowing you're in danger. There is a part of you that is eager, ready for anything in God. But there's another part that's as lazy as an old dog sleeping by the fire.'" Matthew 26:40-41
"Could you not tarry with Me one hour?" is a question that echos through the millennia yet how few daily do so? Knowing each of our family members is already immersed in temptation and may be facing a Gethsemane of their own, isn't it wise to routinely and diligently pray at length that we overcome deception and sin?
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