How can we make church an exciting and integral part of our family life?

Paul Carrington emphasizes that church should not be a mere checklist item for families, but a vibrant and integral part of life. It's important to view church as a place where we get to go, not where we have to go. This mindset shift can be beautifully captured in the idea that it is better to be a doorkeeper in the house of God than to dwell in the tents of wickedness. The excitement and love for church can often be passed down to children through the enthusiasm parents express. Engaging in activities such as family worship, where the Word of God is studied and enjoyed, helps cultivate this positive outlook.

When church is approached with this enthusiasm, it becomes a place to connect with God's people and hear His Word, rather than a duty to fulfill. Carrington urges families to anticipate the Lord's Day, seeing it as a time to receive spiritual nourishment and fellowship. Making church attendance a non-negotiable priority, barring exceptional circumstances like major illness, helps establish a strong foundation for children. This approach ensures that the love for church and God's teachings is deeply rooted, potentially impacting future generations.

Psalm 84:10 (NKJV): "For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness."

It's a great task to make church a living, breathing, beautiful thing to our family, not a drudgery someplace we go that we just check off, okay, we went to church today, but really we get to go to church today. It is better to be just a doorkeeper in the house of our God than to dwell in the tents of wickedness. I think that's such a beautiful picture. It's better a day in his courts is better than a thousand outside. So how do we how do we do that I think is again the level of excitement that our children kind of catch from us.

Do we really have that view? And if we have that view, chances are our children are going to have that same view, that they love to go to church. And a lot of that can be done in a very practical way, you know, in terms of our weekly family worship, for example, right? Where we're studying the Word of God. It's something that we enjoy doing.

The way that we sing together or pray together, in other words, the way life is lived. And so when we go to church, we get to see the people of God. We get to hear the word of God. These are opportunities versus I have to go to church because if I don't, so and so is going to say something or whatever the case is. And we begin to look for excuses not to go.

And so having a great anticipation for the Lord's Day, the greatest day of the week, the day where we receive that food, that instruction for our souls, where we get to meet with God's people, Don't let that be diminished at all in your family. Don't let it be even an option. In other words, we go to church unless there's some big event, when I say big event, you know, major sickness or something like that. But we make it a purpose that our life again is going to circle around the church, the people of God, the Word of God. And I think by doing that, we set a great foundation, great solidity beneath their feet that will bear fruit hopefully for generations to come.