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I was asked recently, “How do you teach God’s love to kids?  How do we teach them daily?  How can we make it stick?” These are serious questions that every parent asks and faces. Church, Sunday School, Vacation Bible School, and Youth Groups help, but aren’t enough. The practical answer is much more personal and closer to home.  (I am convicted as I type this.)

Kids learn in a variety of ways and manners, and all kids are unique learners.  Some kids learn by watching. They watch their parents and the adults in their lives, paying attention to how they live their faith, how they live what they believe.  They see how our belief in Jesus manifests itself in our lives, how Jesus is evident in the way we live from day-to-day. Do we live what we say we believe? They are watching; always watching.

Some kids learn by hearing the Word.  They benefit from reading and listening to the Bible, to the stories read by parents and lessons by Sunday School teachers, and memorizing scripture.  The more they hear the Word, the better they learn.

Still other kids learn better by doing, by actively experiencing God’s love. They put the love of Christ into action by helping a neighbor, or participating in the wood ministry alongside a parent, or helping Mom make cookies for a family who just suffered a loss. They show His love by action and effort.

Truth be told, the best way to teach children is a combination of watching, hearing and putting the Love of God into action.  A great example of this happened this week.  One of my children contracted Covid and another family found out about it.  The Mother and three kids wanted to do something to help.  One kid suggested throwing a party.  Another suggested a gift.  The third child wanted to invite the sick child over to play – surely that would help her feel better!  The Mom affirmed all as good choices, but wouldn’t really help the sick friend.  After a few minutes, they settled on praying for their friend. A minute later, it was decided that they would send a video of them praying together for the sick kid; that would show their love for Jesus and His love for her.  It was the sweetest video; the kids were all so serious and honest in talking to God, intent on praying well, and praying for her health.  We all learned something about God’s love that day.

At some point, Christian kids will begin to exhibit God’s love on their own, producing their own fruit.  However, until that time, they will need modeling and coaching.  Parents, that is where we fit in.   

 We have been going over Bible reading and its importance in our lives. We can also look at how Bible reading and prayer is important in our marriages.  Ray Rhodes, Jr. is author of Susie: The Life and Legacy of Susannah Spurgeon and Yours, Till Heaven: The Untold Love Story of Charles and Susie Spurgeon. He wrote in an article how Bible reading and prayer were the foundation that Charles and Susie Spurgeon built their marriage and how Susie relied on prayer for her marriage to a very famous preacher and for all the time that her husband traveled and she was alone.

Bible Reading Centered on Christ

Charles Spurgeon looked to Christ and is quoted saying “The true Christian is to be such a husband as Christ was to his spouse." Rhodes tells us that Charles believed “A Christocentric reading of the Scripture informed him that he was to love Susie in a 'special,' 'constant,' 'enduring,' and 'delighted' manner, for he took Christ as his Savior, his model, and his teacher. And Susie felt that she was married to a man who loved her deeply because he loved Christ supremely. Susie’s marriage caused her to marvel at 'the mercy of my God.'"

Ray Rhodes also goes on to say “Charles and Susie’s Christ-centered perspective was honed through their disciplined reading of the Bible. Their approach was simple—they believed the Bible to be true, trustworthy, and sufficient because of the infallibility of God Himself. And, trusting in the reliability of the Bible—they read it faithfully, confidently, and expectantly. Everything that they needed to know about God and about how to love one another was contained in the Bible. Charles imagined that if the Bible merely contained the words of man, it should be discarded. However, he believed the Bible to be 'God’s handwriting and, therefore, authoritative. Susie said that it was 'well to ponder every weighty sentence' of God’s 'loving voice.'”

Spurgeon said “If the heavenly gold is not worth digging for, you are not likely to discover it.” We are told he applied this to his daily life by meditating on God’s Word as well. Charles and Susie would not mindlessly or aimlessly ponder on Scripture, but use their intellect to delve into Scripture.

Prayer

'A most precious thing' is what the Spurgeons called prayer in their home and marriage. They had a simple faith that believed God fulfilled His promises. Rhodes also tells us “Charles believed that God gave promises in the Bible with intent to fulfill said promises to those who asked by faith. He was not advocating for what is today commonly called a prosperity gospel. Quite the opposite; he earnestly read the Bible in context and searched for God’s promises. Discovering them, he asked God to fulfill His promises. Very simply, Charles and Susie prayed expectantly that God, out of His generous kindness and love, would act on their behalf.”

               Susie said that prayer was her ‘telephone line’ to God. When her heart was heavy or weary this is the way that God provided for her in which to share her burden.  Charles too, being human felt like the spiritual disciplines he set in place could help him through seasons where he felt spiritually cold. He would use prayer to renew his fervent love for Christ.

               When the world is talking about love in the next few weeks, let’s see how we can apply Scriptural and prayerful love to our marriages, to our families, and to God. To read this article in full click here or visit https://www.spurgeon.org/resource-library/articles/bible-reading-and-prayer-in-the-marriage-of-charles-and-susie-spurgeon

Romans 8:31-39

What kind of Christian will we be in this specific time and place? We read in Acts that God determines the times set before us and the places we live. “God did this so that men would seek Him and perhaps reach out for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each of us, For in Him, we live and move and have our being…” (17:27-28)

We read in Jeremiah that though we be in exile, feeling far from what we used to call “normal”, He has plans for us, to give us hope and a future. “Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all of your heart.” (29:11-13)

God calls us and has provided all we need to be “more than conquerors”. (Rom. 8:37) He warns, and instructs and promises victory to those who overcome. (Rev. 2:1-3:22) He tells us that we can overcome by the blood of the Lamb and by the testimony of the saints. (Rev. 12:10-12)

Do you have peace in our fearful and chaotic world? Do you have hope for our broken, sick world? If so, this will be the testimony that will encourage your family in Christ to be more than conquerors, and will make opportunity for the “world” to ask you for the reason for your hope. (1Pet. 2:12, 3:15) What an exciting time in history for us, this church, His bride, to be alive, as conquerors, through the blood of the Lamb, joyfully and hopefully awaiting the return of our Savior.

Fear not tomorrows, CHILD OF THE KING, entrust them to Jesus, DO THE NEXT THING.                  (Isaiah 43:1-7)

Psalm 119:9-11 says “How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to Thy word. With my whole heart I seek Thee; let me not wander from Thy commandments. I have laid up Thy word in my heart, that I might not sin against Thee.” The psalmist was definitely a fan of memorizing the Torah (the Old Testament saints didn’t have the New Testament).

When I became a Christian in college, I started getting involved with the Navigators. The Navigators were not just focused on seeing people become Christians. They were heavily vigilant toward making disciples. Their real purpose was in grounding men and women in the Word of God.  As such, there was a major push to begin memorizing the Bible. We (Cheryl and I) obtained copies of the Topical Memory System (TMS: a series of sixty Bible verses) dealing with witnessing and living life. We completed the TMS and then started a lifelong project of memorizing every verse that the Holy Spirit laid on our hearts. I cannot tell you how many times we have experienced difficult circumstances in life and the Holy Spirit brings a memorized verse or passage to mind that provides peace or direction before we even have time to go to the Bible or seek Godly counsel.  

Scripture memory has been one of the biggest blessings since coming to know Christ. I would highly recommend memorizing scripture. John 1:1 says “In the beginning was the Word as the Word was with God and the Word was God.” When we memorize scripture, we are literally taking Christ into our lives. God uses memorized scripture for many purposes. These include: responding to people in a godly way, controlling anger, accidents, fearful situations, sin, pushing to continue growing in Christ, connecting scriptural passages, praying scripture, cultivating trust in God, Memorized scripture is easy to meditate on. The Hebrew word for meditate means to think on, to muse, thoughtful deliberation, studying…

Deuteronomy 8:1-3 says “All the commandment which I command you this day you shall be careful to do, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the land which the Lord swore to give to your fathers. ² And you shall remember all the way which the Lord your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments, or not. ³ And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know; that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but that man lives by everything that proceeds out of the mouth of the Lord.” Jesus quoted the last half of verse three to Satan when he was being tempted in the wilderness. Quoting scripture to Satan and his emissaries stops them clean in their tracks. It is important to memorize scripture because it constantly feeds our spiritual nature just as manna fed the physical Hebrews during their 40 years in the wilderness. Memorizing scripture is another form of gathering manna. It is work with untold benefits.

Scripture memory is also a way of countering temptation. Satan shutters when people memorize scripture. He cannot stand before the Word of God.

One hike that keeps coming back to the Young family is the 10 mile trek to the top of Hermit’s Peak. Our first trip involved a backpacking trip where we experienced snow and a torrential rainstorm as we crossed the Gallinas River 27 times. That is a story we continue to tell.

As usual our hike up the mountain involved a beautiful New Mexico fall day. Our experience with the peak goes back close to 30 years now but it’s a trek we continue to do given the magnificent views.

This time, we dug a little bit deeper into the history behind Hermit’s Peak. The story of Juan Maria de Agostini is intertwined with the peak. Agostini lived in a cave some 250 feet below the top of the peak for a little over 5 years. He was an Italian who was born around 1800 to a noble family and was educated and multilingual. Legend has it that he may have studied for the priesthood, but chose to wander the world instead. After living in a cave in Kansas, he joined a wagon trail headed for New Mexico in around 1862. Agostini walked the entire 550 miles from Kansas to New Mexico.

After arriving in New Mexico, Agostini chose to live in a cave on the Peak. At the time the peak was known as Cerro del Tecolote or Peak of the Owl. Amazingly, the hermit lived in the cave beneath the peak for over five years, even in the winter! Visitors to the peak would bring him food and he got water from Hermit Spring. While we were at the peak on this day, we stopped at the spring to reflect on Agostini and the fact that he got water from this spring that still exists today. Even after 130 years!

As Patti and I made our way across the flat top of the peak, our trail was marked by various handmade crosses along the way. At the end of the 19^th century, a local organization created in his honor, the Sociedad del Ermitano, or the Society of the Hermit consisted of 62 members. Their primary purpose was to make the long trek to the peak to pray and erect crosses. Today only a handful of members keep the tradition alive. As they make the pilgrimage to the peak, they perform various rites including the Stations of the Cross which commemorate the death of Christ. Although Agostini was never part of an established parish, he chose to model himself after St. Anthony of Qozhaya, a third century Maronite Christian who spent 20 years in solitude and then founded the first Christian monastery.

Every Sunday, Agostini would walk to Las Vegas, New Mexico from the cave for mass. So impressed with his religious faithfulness, people from the area began making pilgrimages to the hermit’s cave. They returned with stories about how the hermit cured them of various ailments or once made a spring appear by striking the earth with his staff.

As we sat at the edge of the peak, we gazed out across the vast, wide open landscape of eastern New Mexico. The same path that Agostini had taken from Kansas along the Santa Fe Trail was there below us. It was incredible to think that the hermit lived on this peak, gazing out at these same views over 130 years ago. And that he had made such a lasting impression on locals in the area, that they continue to make the pilgrimage that their families had for generations.

To understand the incredible faithfulness of this man was somewhat humbling. Agostini had dedicated his entire life to praying and studying God’s word. Total submission to his creator.

Recently, I listened to a message by Pastor Tim Keller on the Love of Jesus. He described how Judas Iscariot had the best training, the best bible study group, and the best pastor and mentor anyone could ever have. At the same time, being a disciple of Christ, Judas had likely saved many people by passing along the message of Christ. However, in the end, it was clear he did not know Christ nor did he have the Holy Spirit dwelling in him.

Although, we cannot say for sure whether Agostini knew Christ and was embraced by the Holy Spirit, his dedication to the Lord was nothing short of miraculous. And a tremendous example of giving yourself entirely to the Lord in meditation and prayer. Here on this magnificent, lonely peak in the southwestern corner of the Pecos Wilderness, Patti and I were able to once again trace the steps of this eccentric and lonely hermit. And in doing so, were able to be inspired by his dedication.

Without the Holy Spirit working in our lives, can we really call ourselves Christians? Christianity has rules and traditions that are unmistakably unique to the Christian faith. However, without the power of the Holy Spirit working through us to minister and share the gospel, our faith is meaningless and only an empty shell of what we could be doing in the name of Christ.

Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. – 2 Corinthians 5:5