Raising the Prophets

“How are the prophets?” That was the question I heard from a friend of mine. I knew what he was talking about. He wanted to know how my two boys named Samuel and Elijah were doing.

These two boys bring out all of my emotions, the good and the bad. I try to give them my best, yet they always like to see how I am growing in patience.

One of the questions that I am always asking myself is, “How do I raise them up to be mighty prophets? How do I disciple them?”

I believe the call of every parent is to be the chief disciple maker for his/her children. It is my job, not the church’s job. The church’s job is to help. I am mystified when parents give this calling up.

So what am I doing to raise the mighty prophets?

Primarily, it is not about what I do rather it is about who I am. I need to first be a disciple if I am going to ask others to be disciples. Plus, I can’t put on a show for the boys. They will see me for who I am. I trust they will see me as a man who is going hard after God. So, they do see me reading Scripture. They do see me praying. Making disciples begins with me.

Every night before the boys go to bed we have a routine that I think everyone can follow. We always read a Bible story and then we pray together. I encourage them to ask questions and I ask them what they want to give thanks for. And then we all pray. I pray special prayers for them and they give thanks.

To be honest, I think making disciples is as simple as that. First, it means being a disciple. Then it means being intentional, with love, about bringing God into the conversation of our lives. That doesn’t mean it is easy. It just means that there is no secret formula to it.

Be a disciple. Disciple others, especially in the home.