Five strategies for making family discipleship a priority this year
According to Verywell Mind, a vast majority of New Year’s resolutions will fail within just a few months. Whether this is due to setting unrealistic goals or a lack of motivation, change is hard. However, some resolutions are worth the time and effort.
Parents, if you decide to set at least one goal this New Year, I’d urge you to focus on family discipleship—establishing a time for Gospel-centered fellowship within your home. This intentional time, with participation from the whole family, can be more impactful to your family’s spiritual health and faith than you might realize.
Dr. George Barna suggests that the number of Americans with a Biblical worldview has significantly declined overtime. Analyzing the last five generations of Americans, Barna found that adults holding a Biblical worldview went from 12% to now 4%. It’s also no coincidence that roughly 66% of college students step away from their faith once they leave home.
Experts suggest that a child’s worldview is almost entirely formed by age 13, so we must ask ourselves a simple question: Who is shaping our children’s worldview?
As our culture grows more disenchanted with and detached from Christianity, I firmly believe Bible-believing parents should seek ways to introduce their children to Christ daily, helping them to foster a personal relationship with Jesus in a place where they are most comfortable—at home.
If you’re a parent seeking to make family discipleship a priority in 2025, I want to encourage you with five helpful strategies.
Start small.
Like any New Year’s resolution, it might be tempting to set the impressive goal of reading a family devotional every day of the week in 2025. Let’s be honest, as great as this sounds, you may want to temper your expectations, especially if your family is not already committed to some weekly form of in-home discipleship.
While your goal should be to discuss the scriptures daily with your children, think about devoting three or four days during the week to a 30-minute devotional as you begin the journey. Start small and realistic, but plan to increase this amount little by little until it becomes a normal part of your daily routine as a family.
Keep it simple.
Discipleship within the home does not have to be a stressful or elaborate process. Rather, it should center around a single mindset—how can I point my children to Christ today? Whether you choose to follow a specific devotional, watch a video series, or read through a book of the Bible, keep it simple and remain focused on your mission. Whatever this looks like for your family, place a strong emphasis on reading scripture and prayer. Don’t worry about having a list of questions prepared or a lesson put together. Simply learning about God’s Word and expressing thankfulness through prayer together as a family is enough.
Utilize tools known to your children.
During this time of year, many parents may choose to center their New Year’s resolutions on technology and smartphone usage. While creating boundaries with technology is important, consider the mighty tool at your fingertips.
Digital content is the new “heart language” of younger generations. Understanding this reality, our team at RevelationMedia has chosen to embrace technology as a tool for Gospel advancement, and we are on a mission to communicate the entire Biblical Narrative to children through visual content. Like many other organizations with Bible study and discipleship resources, we want to walk alongside parents as they seek to make Christ known and the core foundation of their family.
How impactful would it be for parents to interact with their children using the tools they are most familiar with, such as smartphones? Rather than eliminating technology completely from your devotional time, I would encourage you to find resources that communicates the Gospel to your children in a format they already know and love.
Make it fun.
When it comes to in-home discipleship, you have the power to make it your own. Again, there is no recipe for a successful time of family discipleship other than what’s at its center. If your family loves to sing and dance, incorporate a worship song into the mix. If your children love to read out loud, give them the job of reading scripture each time you meet as a family. If they love arts and crafts, encourage your children to draw a picture of what you just discussed. As we already established, this time does not need to require special preparation, but identifying your children’s interests and what excites them most can be a game changer in how they approach family discipleship.
Don’t lose heart.
New Year’s resolutions come and go, but the time spent investing in your family will reap beautiful benefits with an eternal impact. Family discipleship can be hard at times, especially if you have little ones with wandering eyes and ears. Understand that you aren’t going to be perfect along the journey. Life is busy and we may fall short in our routines and practices. However, if you approach this goal with the right heart and mindset, God will work wonders not only in the lives of your children but in your life as well.
I believe wholeheartedly that creating a habit of family devotions can leave an eternal family legacy. My hope and prayer is that you will remain steadfast in pursuing this goal and that family discipleship will be a priority in your home this new year. Remember, your goal is to simply plant the seeds and let God do the rest.
Consider a few extra resources:
