The older you get, the more you realize how much you’ve been given and how precious the time is that you have left.
The things kids will remember most aren’t just doing things or going places—it’s the traditions you build as a family.
Our Family Traditions
We’ve started a few traditions in our family:
- When our kids turn 10: We go on an adventure anywhere they want to go for 6 days
- When they turn 13: We do a mentor dinner
- When they graduate high school: (This is the new one I’m working on)
We’re always looking for ways to create memories while also helping our kids grow and deepen their faith. Recently, a couple things happened that created another opportunity to deepen their faith and leave a legacy that reaches past us to our grandkids and even great-grandkids.
Two Moments That Changed My Perspective
My Grandfather’s Bible
After my grandfather passed several years ago, I looked through his Bible with his daily devotional stuffed inside—still open to the devotion he completed the same day the Lord took him home.
I looked through the passages he underlined and wondered:
- Why did those particular ones stand out to him?
- What was he thinking or facing in the moments God was speaking to him through Scripture?
The connection I felt to my grandfather through that worn Bible was powerful.
Martin Lloyd-Jones’ Pulpit Bible
Two weeks ago, I finished a biography on Martin Lloyd-Jones. The author talked about visiting his church, standing in his pulpit, and even looking through Lloyd-Jones’ pulpit Bible.
The visceral connection between the author and the owner of that Bible was so tangible in the author’s experience at that famous English church where Dr. Lloyd-Jones spent his life making the Bible come to life through powerful exposition.
I realized at that moment: I want my kids to have that same experience.
What I Want My Kids to Know
- Through the 10-year-old adventure, I want my kids to know their family loves them
- Through the mentor dinner, I want them to know they’re part of a bigger family—the church
- Through their graduation Bible, I want them to know that for all the knowledge they can acquire, the Bible is the greatest source of truth and life
The Scriptures alone are what we base our life and decisions on.
