4 “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. 6 And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. 7 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. 8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

When we read this key point in the history of Israel we find God teaching parents who are coming out of years of slavery who are now living under the commandments of God, how to be parents. What tips does God give us as parents to train, instruct, and disciple our kids? First, he starts with us as parents. He says if you are going to lead your kids in faith something must be on your heart. In our hearts as parents we need to have a love for “the Lord your God.” He doesn’t just want us to believe He exist but he wants us to love him! God is love. He treats us and responds to us in love. He wants our kids to see us live and act with a love for God. It is how they will learn to love him. Through us. Our actions and conversations with them will answer the question of why do we love God and why should they? It is that important. So much so that he says, do it “with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.”

Secondly, He says, as parents, that we need to have His commandments on our hearts. We can’t something to anyone, including our children, that we don’t know. This one follows the first one. If we love God, we will love His word. And here is the awesome part, the more of His word we study, the more we will love God. And then the more we are able to teach about who God is and why we our children should come to love Him too. Love for the word of God is not just key to passing on faith to our children, it can’t be done without it.

When you love God and love His commandments, sharing it with your kids will be easy and natural. When does that sharing happen? God gives multiple suggestions on the when and how for us as parents. “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.” (vs 7) That covers it all, doesn’t it? Anytime you are awake with your kids is a time to pass on a love for God and His commandments. I ask this of myself, are we as parents, prioritizing our time with our kids to discuss God and His word? What questions do they have? What do they need to understand about God and his word to grow to maturity? Are we taking the time to get them there?

“Bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” (vs 8) Beyond the time frame of when we should be teaching our kids, God tells us how. God’s word should be seen, carried with us, and displayed as a visual reminder that is every before us. These specific things mentioned related directly too instructions given to the Jews in the way God wanted them to remember and carry His word but we can definitely see God desire that His word should go with us and seen in our homes and lives. We do this today in a number of ways. We have bracelets with scripture, art work, clothing, stickers, ways to share it on social media, and more. We are certainly living in a time where is it easier than ever to carry scripture and make it a visual part of our lives and our kids’ lives.

So parents, my encouragement to you is to really absorb the words of Deuteronomy 6. Read them over and over again to discover the desire of God to teach your children. Find creative ways to share and discuss the word of God. Scriptures in lunch boxes, texting scripture to your older kids with not only the verse but what does it mean to your faith. There are a number of great Bible apps, to listen to scripture and explore the meaning of scripture. Listen to a chapter of the Bible in the car, pause it and discuss it with your kids. In our house, we have an age range of 12-3yrs old. We have begun to post on a letter board, one verse a week. Every night at dinner, we recite it to help memorize it, but then just ask simple questions about this verse. There are so many ways to bring a love for God and His word in your home and ever before your kids. The point is, that we love God with all we are, so that our kids will as well.