PHASE 4 PREPARATIONS - PREPARING YOUR FAMILY

LOUD QUIET TIMES

Quiet Time Devotions, engaging God as a FAMILY, can be an incredible thing. The bonds between family members (siblings, children and parents) are special. Not all family Quiet Time Devotions are necessarily quiet. There are a lot of great family devotionals that include reading the Bible and praying; peppered with laughter, burps, and other body noises. While parents have to keep the process moving and reel the kids in, these are times to be cherished. Times for spiritual markings from God will last the kids a lifetime. Loud Quiet Time Devotions are great!

QUIETER QUIET TIMES

But Quiet Time Devotions can also be quiet. Quiet, reflective time is an endangered species in our culture. For many families, every moment of life is filled with noise and activity, and “down time” is seen as emptiness, rather than richness and fullness. Silence is an acquired taste—especially if we’ve been on a steady diet of noise and activity. But once gained, quiet times, including devotions with God, will feed your child for a lifetime.

The importance of quiet time is something that our culture fails to respect. An over-emphasis on competition and social interaction leads to children’s lives to being over-scheduled with things that generally won’t matter in 20 years. We teach our children to avoid silence, solitude, reflection, and therefore inadvertently even the avoidance of intimate devotionals with God. We also unwittingly train children from becoming acquainted with the voice of God within them by feeding their addiction to distraction.

The child who learns Quiet Time Devotions with God early finds a tremendous advantage for life. There are many respected and protected benefits in simple spiritual focus and quietness.

The child who practices Quiet Time Devotions has an enormous advantage early in life:

Discovers their own individuality before God
Develops a healthy awareness of God and self
Becomes empowered to follow their own spiritual passions
Learns that they are worthy and capable of contentment without stimulation
Develops their spiritual imagination
Discovers deep inner resources in God for healing, inspiration, and sufficiency

Parenting children’s spiritual lives by providing leadership through energy, direction, and accountability is profoundly important in preparing them for a lifetime of successful connections with God. We encourage parents to use this Awakening 21-Day Fast to engage their children with concentrated doses of God. Once the 21 days have been fulfilled, a new habit and family tradition emerges. After 21-days of Family Quiet Time Devotionals your whole family will adopt these as the new normal; the process will feel natural to continue forever. These principles will be with them for the rest of their days. This can by a catalyzing point in the history of your family.