Simple, Seasonal Discipleship

In November of 2018, my husband and I spent a brisk weekend in Branson, Missouri with new friends and their family. As my chilled-to-the-bone body stood in amusement park lines, my soul took mental notes for the first time (at least consciously) on ways to disciple a child.

Despite the below-freezing temps, I heard my friend Abbey make the most of every moment with her niece, Jubilee - as we walked, stood in lines, rode rides, and took in the holiday decor, she talked of the things of God. She wove Him and His nature into every observation and experience: the cool breeze, the adrenaline rush of a ride, the warmth of a mug of cocoa, the glittering lights after dark, and the motifs in the theme-park’s version of “The Christmas Carol” were all easy pointers to God’s creative hand and Christ’s redemptive works, spoken aloud as such for little ears (and my own big ones) to hear. 

The longer I’ve known this friend and the parents who raised her, the more I’ve seen and learned from this simple Deuteronomy 6 discipleship method and have added it now to my own parenting style years later.

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, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. (Deuteronomy 6:4-8, ESV) 

As I approach this holiday season, I think back to these lessons learned in frigid lines. I see this way of discipleship that God commanded of the Israelites in what’s known as the Great Shema all over that holiday in the amusement park. And it makes me wonder how my family (and yours) might lean into it this holiday season intentionally when to-dos, parties, and cooking wear us down even more so than the previous ten months of the year, and discipling our children toward the real reason for the season is prone to be lost in the shuffle or simply feel like too hard of a cultural-uphill-battle to climb. 

1. Hear a word (or two or three) from the Lord

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. (Deuteronomy 6:4-5 , ESV) 

As many of us do for new years or new business goals, I wonder if we might ask the Lord for a truth-filled word or a phrase we can point our families to this season - maybe it’s simply the same words He gave to Israel: “the Lord is one” or “love the Lord.” Perhaps, it’s something else: maybe a specific passage of Scripture, maybe an attribute of God, a name for Jesus, or a gift of the Holy Spirit.  

Ask the Lord: what are “these words” that you might want my heart and the hearts of my household to remember and repeat this holiday season? Then, give yourself time and space to listen for an answer.

2. Write them on your door posts. 

You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.  You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. (Deuteronomy 6:8-9, ESV) 

With or without your children’s help, write down your word(s) for the season in places you dwell together often - maybe most importantly in the places you sit down, walk (or drive) around, lie down, and get up. 

Whether it’s ink on post-it notes, paint on a poster, or aesthetically woven into your holiday decor, get the words front of mind, so they might be “in your heart” and easily repeated to your children.  

3. Keep them in your heart. 

These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart. (Deuteronomy 6:6 ,CSB)

Invite God to teach you about these words daily as you meet with Him. Whether in prayer or time in His Word, look for what He’s teaching you about these words and about Christ. Find worship songs or Christmas hymns that allow you to worship God with “these words” He’s given you. You may even be able to find an Advent devotional or Bible study that takes you deeper with these words. 

4. Repeat them to your children. 

Repeat them to your children. Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. (Deuteronomy 6:7 CSB)

As God speaks to you through His Word and creation, repeat and teach these words to your children. Wrap these words about God into every part of your holiday season and traditions. Challenge your family to look for the way God is speaking to them about these words. Consider experiences in God’s Word, worship, and service to others that could help you interact with these words as a family and with outsiders. In his book, Living Out Loud, Kevin King calls these repetitions, “shema statements” or sentences that empower Christians to weave God and Christ naturally into everyday conversations, both with believers and non-believers alike. He contends that these statements not only open doors to Gospel conversations, but they also allow believers to be obedient to the many places in Scripture that command us to praise God with our mouths in a variety of settings. Moreover, King says, “People who live out loud and make Shema Statements end up sharing the Gospel far more often—and more naturally—than those who don’t.” 

You don’t need a perfectly curated Thanksgiving tablescape or detailed, daily Advent adventure to point your family (and those listening in) to Christ this Holiday season.

Keep it simple this year, Shema-style.  

1. Hear from the Lord. 

2. Write His words on your doorposts. 

3. Keep His words in your heart. 

4. Repeat them to your children. 

Wondering what this could look like? Check out an example here using TDC Kids’ key passage and big picture question/answer for our upcoming unit.  

Download this template for your own prayer and planning.