By Jason, M.Ed., M.A.R., Headmaster
“The truth in its wholeness—for the whole child, for the whole of life, for the glory of God—this is what the curriculum is all about.” (Norman E. Harper, Making Disciples)
Our lives are filled with different responsibilities and we take on different roles in fulfilling them. I am a husband, a father, a deacon, a principal, a boss, an employee, a church member, a Sunday School teacher, a student, an American, a Marylander, a University of Maryland alumnus and fan, a friend, a neighbor, a son, a brother, an uncle, etc. I could go on and on ad infinitum, ad nauseum. Sometimes I am called to clean dishes, while at other times I run staff meetings. Within the course of a day, I may go from changing a dirty diaper to writing an article for MAD21, church, or school to counseling an employee to playing with my son and so on. The question: For which of these roles and responsibilities do I need to be educated in God’s truth? The answer: ALL of them.
My chief end, at all times and in all circumstances, is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever. I need to know how to do that in everything I do, whether paying my bills or trying to fix the steps on my back deck (UGH!). Sometimes the things God calls me to do require “academic” knowledge (language skills, math, etc.), while at other times the knowledge is more physical or social or “spiritual.” In a sense, though, even delineating such categories is artificial: everything I do is physical, social, spiritual and intellectual.
As parents, we need to help our children see their lives as an integrated whole lived Coram Deo, before the face of God. We need to train them to ask always, “How can I glorify God in this situation?” This is exactly the picture God has given us in Deuteronomy 6:
"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." (vv. 4-9, ESV)
So how do we do this? We begin by teaching our children about God and His character: that He is almighty, that He is all-seeing and all-knowing, that He made them and cares for them and is with them always. We go on to teach them about themselves and who they are as people made in God’s image who owe Him their obedience and praise at all times. They need to know that their most foundational identity is their relationship with God and that this undergirds everything else that they do.
The best way to start with teaching them these things is with the Children’s Catechism. The first 15 questions are priceless and should be taught over and over again, not just memorized but also explained and connected to Scripture and prayed through and applied to life:
1. Q. Who made you?
A. God.
2. Q. What else did God make?
A. God made all things.
3. Q. Why did God make you and all things?
A. For his own glory.
4. Q. How can you glorify God?
A. By loving him and doing what he commands.
5. Q. Why are you to glorify God?
A. Because he made me and takes care of me.
6. Q. Are there more gods than one?
A. There is only one true God.
7. Q. How many persons is this one true God?
A. Three.
8. Q. Name these three persons.
A. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
9. Q. What is God?
A. God is a Spirit and has no body as we do.
10. Q. Where is God?
A. God is everywhere.
11. Q. Can you see God?
A. No – I cannot see God, but he can always see me.
12. Q. Does God know all things?
A. Yes – nothing can be hid from God.
13. Q. Can God do all things?
A. Yes – God can do all his holy will.
14. Q. Where do you learn how to love and obey God?
A. In the Bible alone.
15. Q. Who wrote the Bible?
A. Chosen men who wrote by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.
Once we have taught our children these things, we need to help them make connections between their relationship with God and everything else they do. Why do they need to honor and obey mom and dad? Not “Because I said so,” but because God has called them to honor and obey their father and mother for their own good and for His glory. Why should they do well in school? Not “So you can go to college and get a good job,” but because God calls us to be faithful and wise stewards of all He has given to us, including our intellect. Also, because God gives us the gift of education as a blessing and we are not to despise His good gifts. We are to apply ourselves with all diligence, seeking excellence for the glory of God.
So many Christians today live compartmentalized lives, where God is shut away in a little corner and not allowed full sovereign rule of over all of their lives. This compartmentalization comes when we privatize our faith and do not connect it to every aspect of our lives. Our culture likes privatized Christianity. It can be easily dismissed as something that works for us or helps us feel better about ourselves. The devil likes privatized Christianity, too, because it keeps Christ’s ambassadors ineffective, separated from “his turf” in this world. Yet we are Christ’s ambassadors, called to shine His light in every corner of our lives, by our words and actions. We need to pray and seek to be more effective representatives of our High King and to train our children to live for Him in all things.