a FAMILY based on CHRISTIAN VALUES by

THE MODERN NUCLEAR FAMILY faces incessant pressures, needs, and problems in today's global village. This is brought about by crass materialism, borderless criminality, international terrorism, and graft and corruption. Thus, it is necessary for the Christian family to be guided by the right set of values and be founded on obedience to God's teachings written in the Bible. Primarily, the doting parents are mandated to play the lead part in parental instruction by serving as role models for their growing children.

Parental obligation and instruction
The Lord God Almighty, our Maker, has especially assigned the parents to instruct their children. Primarily, they are obliged to teach the true religion inside the homes. The parents, regardless of existing varied cultural norms, should make every effort to train, discipline, and counsel their children. Apostle Paul instructs the Christian parents:

"Fathers, do not irritate and provoke your children to anger - do not exasperate them to resentment -, but rear them [tenderly] in the training and discipline and the counsel and admonition of the Lord." (Eph. 6:4, Amplified Bible)

Parental instruction calls for the parents to tenderly train their offspring based on the admonition of the Lord God Almighty. As the first teachers of their children, parents ought to instill in their household fear and reverence to God. In serving as exemplary role models for their sons and daughters, they must rear them in the training and discipline of the Lord:

"That you may [reverently] fear the Lord your God, you and your son and your son's son, and keep all His statutes and His commandments which I command you all the days of your life, and that your days may be prolonged." (Dt. 6:2, Ibid.)

"All the days of your life," the Lord god commands the parents to tech their children and their grandchildren reverent fear of the Lord God. This could be done by making them dutifully keep or obey His commandments. The Lord God even enumerated the importance of constant and proper instruction in molding the children, thus:

"And these words which I am commanding you this day shall be [first] in your [own] minds and hearts; [then] You shall whet and sharpen them so as to make them penetrate, and teach and impress them diligently upon the [minds and] hearts of 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 up." (Dt. 6:6-7, Ibid.)

At all opportune times, whether inside or outside their respective homes, the parents should teach their children. Modern psychologists, educators, and experts describe these realistic situations as "quality time," "nurturing period," and "parent-child bonding." The Church Administration for their part has instructed every Christian family to systematically organize the regular weekly "Christian Family Hour" to enable parents and children to share common experiences for enhancing their mutual kindred relationships and enriching spiritual lives.

Joshua's family
One exemplary God-fearing family during God's first chosen nation, Israel, was Joshua's. Joshua, who ably succeeded Moses as liberator and leader of the Israelites, committed himself first to stand by uncompromisingly on the winning side of the Lord God, thus:

"But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord." (Jos. 24:15, New International Version)

As a parent, Joshua upheld the true service and worship of the Lord God. He realized the undesirability of materialism, the evil of polytheism, and the pollution of idolatry prevalent during his time. He did not give in to the popular cultural practices prevalent i n an environment overwhelmed with plurality of gods and idols. He decided boldly to commit himself and his household to the true service of the one true God. His battle cry should ring true and relevant for every Christian family in this modern civilization which is encircled with idolatrous beliefs and inundated by materialistic quests: "But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord."

Parents as storytellers
Christian parents, though busy in their daily tasks at home and in their workplaces, should find quality time to impart the teachings and commandments of God to their children. Corollary to this, they must act as "story tellers" to their children and grandchildren, narrating the historical backgrounds and personal experiences they went through in their history. In transmitting the lessons their unique stories have taught them, they reinforce the teaching process to their descendants.

The Lord God Almighty commanded the Israelite parents of old as documented in Deuteronomy 4:9, 7, thus:

"Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them slip from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them. What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the Lord our God is near us whenever we pray to him?" (Ibid.)

Christian parents are duty-bound by the Lord God never to forget the things their eyes have seen, witnessed, felt, touched, and experienced. While they are alive, they carefully and watchfully reckon the wonderful acts, miraculous deeds, and extraordinary kindness of God which He benevolently bestows to His chosen nation. Parents are the real eyewitnesses to the palpable manifestations of God's mighty hand in transforming the Church from obscurity to glory, in granting them professional successes and material advancements. They must patiently tell their unforgettable story of surviving poverty, miseries, persecutions, hardships, pains, vicissitudes, travails, and trials to their descendants.

At all times, the Christian parents must impress upon their sons and daughters the great value of worshiping, serving, and praising the Lord God Almighty. Family oneness or togetherness is evident in the commandment that parents "rejoice before the Lord God" together with their sons and daughters. The Lord God authoritatively commands in Deuteronomy 12:11-12, thus:

"Then there shall be a place which the Lord your God shall choose to cause His Name [and His Presence] to dwell there; to it you shall bring all that I command you; your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, your tithes and what the hand presents [as a first gift from the fruits of the ground], and all your choicest offerings which you vow to the Lord. And you shall rejoice before the Lord your God, you and your sons and your daughters, and your menservants and your maidservants, and the Levite that is within your towns, since he has no part or inheritance with you." (AB)

Values and virtues
To help Christian children tread the holy path of righteous living amidst the wicked world filled with lies, deception, and seduction, parents must nurture them with biblical values and virtues so that they will never be tempted to practice falsehood or deceit. King David as a parent teaches in Psalms 101:7, thus:

"He who practices deceit shall not dwell within my house; He who speaks falsehood shall not maintain his position before me." (New American Standard Bible)

God disallows any form of deceit to dwell in the house of Christian homes. Godly values and virtues such as love, peace, joy, patience, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and self-control (Gal. 5:22-23), must be thoroughly impressed upon the children. No deceit and falsehood should ever be found within the confines of the Christian household.

Truth, in word and in deed, must prevail inside the Christian homes. At all times, the God-fearing parents must show good examples to be emulated by their children.

Therefore, the parents should prioritize, though preoccupied with their multiple work and flexible employment, the teaching of true religion. Mothers and fathers should realize the basic importance of fulfilling their lifelong roles to teach their children not only intellectually or morally but more so spiritually.

The Christian culture
The true Christian culture should be the prevailing culture that cuts through all existing man-man cultural patterns known in world history. It touches the lives of every family who are "one in Christ" as cultural, racial, and lingual barriers have been demolished as proven by Apostle Paul in Galatians 3:28 where he acknowledged, thus:

"We are no longer Jews or Greeks or slaves or free men or even merely men or women, but we are all the same - we are Christians; we are one in Christ Jesus." (Living Bible)

In addressing the Christian brethren in Rome, Apostle Paul acknowledged that regardless of their various cultural roots, all Church of Christ members ought to conform to or live by one ideal standard of living - the Christian way of living. He admonished that no Christian should be "so well adjusted" in his own culture but must fix his attention to the Lord God:

"Don't be so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention to God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what He wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you." (Rom. 12:2, The Message)

The evil of neglect
The Holy Bible shows the evil result if the parents neglect their obligation to instruct their children. King Solomon revealed:

"A self-confident and foolish son is the [multiplied] calamity of his father..." (Prov. 19:13, AB)

Neglecting parental obligation brings evil result to household. In the Old Testament, Eli, one of God's servants was totally ruined and despicably cursed by God because he condoned the foolishness and shameful character of his undisciplined children (I Sam. 3:12-14).

Unity in spiritual strength
Apostle John explains about the Christian parents and youth who are spiritually strong and vigorous in abiding unto the pure words of God, thus:

"...I write to you, young men, because you are strong and vigorous, and the Word of God is [always] abiding in you, [in your heart] and you have been victorious over the wicked one. Do not love or cherish the world or the thins that are in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world - the lust of the flesh [craving for sensual gratification]' and the lust of the eyes [greedy longings of the mind] and the pride of life [assurance in one's own resources or in the stability of earthly things] - these do not come from the Father but are from the world [itself]." (I Jn. 2:14-16, AB)

Because the word of God is always abiding in the well-trained Christian youth, they have become victorious over the wicked world.

Blessing for the Christian family
The Lord God Almighty promises His bountiful blessings for the Christian family that lives by His word. These enduring material graces and spiritual blessings were explained by King David, thus:

"BLESSED (HAPPY, fortunate, to be envied) is everyone who fears, reveres, and worships the Lord, who walks in His ways and lives according to His commandments. For you shall eat [the fruit] of the labor of your hands; happy (blessed, fortunate, enviable) shall you be, and it shall be well with you. Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine in the innermost parts of your house; your children shall be like olive plants round about your table. Behold, thus shall the man be blessed who reverently and worshipfully fears the Lord." (Ps. 128:1-4, Ibid.)

Blessings, both material and spiritual, accompany the family who reveres and worships the Lord God. For the ideal Christian family to be filled with biblical values and virtues, the key is to fulfill God's commandments. Parents are duty-bound to be effective mentors of their children. In turn, the children should learn to be submissive and obedient to the will of God. Reward awaits the family of those who are dedicated in worshiping God and who are faithful and prayerful in His sight.

For always and for ever
he came home late	she waited hours
he was busy at work	she was busy, too
he didn't want to talk	she had to blurt it out
he walk out the door	she ran inside the room
enraged ...	upset ...

and then, he saw	and then she saw

the ring they wore in each other's finger the day they vowed to love each other for always and for ever ...
he came back	she was waiting
he was sorry	she was sorry
he drew near her	she came closer
he embraced her	she hugged him back
tightly ...	lovingly
and then, they bent their knees, hands joined together, surrendering to Him who has bound them to each other, for always and for ever.