"Your Family Matters"

Family Discipleship Initiative at King of Kings Lutheran Church

"Your family matters! This year, in a very intentional way, we are going to put a greater emphasis on our family ministry,” Pastor Chinberg explained to King of Kings Lutheran Church in early 2024.

“One of the key characteristics of a Christian family is that they prioritize their relationship with God. This means setting aside time each day for prayer, Bible study, and worship as a family. It also means living out our faith in practical ways, such as serving others and sharing the love of Jesus with those around us.”

King of Kings is using the Missouri District’s “Tell the Next Generation” Family Discipleship Initiative to address this goal. The Family Discipleship Initiative (FDI) seeks to “unite homes and congregations in making lifelong disciples of Jesus!” Research shows that parents and other family members may not have the knowledge and skills typically used in faith practices.

In November, King of Kings will complete the training begun in September 2023. The two-fold strategy of the training begins with what has been labeled as “The Shift.”

This is an intentional paradigm shift from relying on church-centered nurturing to equipping parents, grandparents, and other caring adults to nurture faith in all members of their family - especially the next generation – in their homes. A few resources introduced additional FDI key concepts to the congregation, such as: “28 Days of Prayer for Families” and three Family Ministry studies about families in crisis, what Family Ministry is, and how it works.

Other components of FDI include the focus on the biblical basis of God’s plan for parents to share faith, an explanation of the “The Shift,” the emphasis on “It Starts with Me”, and the creation of a “Family Mission Statement.” The second strategy is “Faith Formation in the Home” which focuses on giving adults knowledge, skills, and attitudes for building a Christ-centered home and using strategies to grow together in faith, such as faith milestones, confirmation, family service events, Advent/Lent family devotions, and more.

Benjamin Simmons (DCE) says, “We are excited to see this ministry grow over the coming years as we continue to champion our families. We believe that everyone, whether single or married, parent or child, old or young, is a vital part of a family. We also recognize that families come in all shapes and sizes and are not always structured the same. Together in faith, we are all vital parts of the family – that of Jesus!”