As we anticipate the arrival of our firstborn, a son, my wife and I have talked about how to create a time of doing what’s often called a “daily devotional” in our home. In some circles this is called a “quiet time,” but what we want to do well (better than we’ve done with just the two of us) is have a shared time in God’s Word and in prayer and worship as a family.
I don’t remember now where I first saw it, but I came across what I thought was a devotional book called “Be Thou My Vision” (link at the bottom of this post), and the people who had talked about it (perhaps on Twitter?) were quite excited by it. The title immediately brings to mind the hymn of the same name that has so much meaning for my wife and me. My roommate in college and I wrote the lyrics to this hymn in dry erase marker on our dorm room’s bathroom mirror, a reminder to both of us to keep Christ at the center of our lives. Later, he and his wife would sing this hymn (along with the entire congregation) at their wedding, something I had also planned to do (and exactly what we did four years later). We knew and wanted to remind ourselves that no marriage, no happy occasion, was ever going to fulfill us – only Christ can fill the deepest recesses of our hearts.
So I found this book and thought we would try it out, and so far we have been incredibly blessed by it! I’m not giving a full recommendation or anything like that (we haven’t finished it and plan to take it day-by-day, so I don’t know if the theology throughout matches what the Bible teaches) but so far, so very good! The book is not a devotional, though it could be used in that way, but rather it’s a daily at-home worship instruction that is rooted in high church liturgies. It contains prayers that are intended to be prayed out loud, Scripture readings, a short song (like the Doxology) to be sang, readings from traditional Christian catechisms and Creeds and Confessions of Faith. It’s all very different than our church background, but very traditional.
Some would say, specifically of the prayers, “Is it really authentic if it’s not spontaneous and coming from the heart?” I would respond that the prayers of another can come from the heart (why should I not ride the coattails of what the Holy Spirit has given to someone else in the past?), and also I pray spontaneous prayers all the time (publicly and privately), so perhaps it is exactly what I need that I would be led by someone else’s for a short period of time each day!
I’ve rambled enough, but we have been so very blessed to actually worship together in our living room these past few nights, and we intend to continue doing so. We have found that right around 7pm works best for us, after supper, and we are trying to form a habit that will be prepared and sustainable for when our son is born. Perhaps we’ll find that this book is not for us long-term, but so far it’s very promising. And it’s helping me to fulfill my strong desire to worship (as a family in our home) each night in addition to the blessed gathering of God’s people on the Lord’s Day each week for worship!
May God, by His grace, enable all families to set aside time to worship Him in spirit and in truth in their homes. God bless you!
Chase Thompson 