Is the idea of family devotions a new one for you? Is it something you are realizing the importance of as you raise your children in this crazy world? So many lies compete in our culture. We need to find ultimate truth in God and His Word. However, to recognize the lies of Satan, your children need to know what the Bible says. Using family devotional books can help guide you on this journey.
Devotional books aren’t to be used in place of the Bible, but as a resource tool to guide you through the Bible either as a whole or by topic. You will want to make sure whatever devotional book you’re using is pointing you to the Bible as the final authority. A family Bible devotional will do just that!
Why Should I Start Family Devotions?
Each day, we need to be in the Scriptures and in prayer. We need to be teaching our children the basics of faith. We are responsible for raising our children in the Lord, so this is why some kind of family devotions or family worship is important.
Walking through the Bible as a family is the perfect way to introduce important concepts, work through questions and doubts, and learn together about God and how He wants you to live. It is a way to grow closer together as a family, but also closer in relationship to God.
God and His Word need to be at the forefront of what we teach our children. Our actions and our talk need to match up as we teach our children how a follower of Christ should live. Family devotions or family worship is a great way to grow together while you discuss the basics of the faith.
How do You Start a Family Devotion?
Family devotional time doesn’t need to be fancy or take tons of prep time. The most important thing is to just start. Find a time that works for your family. After breakfast or dinner or before bed are common times that work for many families. You may even choose to do a short family devotional at breakfast and a longer time of reading the Bible together in the evening. Also, make sure each of your children has a Bible of their own.
Using a family devotional book is a great way to get started. Many of these books explain how to use them, have Scripture to read, and also some discussion questions. Also, spend some time in prayer as a family.
Related: Children’s Bibles Top Picks
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Family Devotional Books
I’m sure you’re wondering, what are some good devotionals? Our family has used many good family devotional books over the years. Most of the ones I will share are ones we have personally used. Do you have a favorite? If so, please be sure to let me know in the comments.
Best Family Devotional Books
Alright! Let’s jump into these family devotionals. If you’re not looking to buy a book right now, keep reading because there are free options available. Also, you may want to know about these for a later time or to share with a friend.
Long Story Short
I really love Long Story Short: Ten-Minute Devotions to Draw Your Family to God! It basically walks you and your family through the Old Testament and shows how everything points to Jesus and the Gospel. Its companion, Old Story New, goes through the New Testament and shows how everything points back to Christ. It’s really a wonderful way to show how the whole Bible is really about Jesus!
Our 24 Family Ways
Our 24 Family Ways: A Family Devotional is a great resource to help teach your family biblical truths, character, and the importance of a relationship with God. There are 24 Bible truths for your children to memorize, along with devotionals, Bible verses, character trait definitions, and coloring pages. This is something you can probably go back to again and again. We’ve been through it twice so far, and it’s great for the whole family!
One Year of Dinner Table Devotions and Discussion Starters
One Year of Dinner Table Devotions and Discussion Starters: 365 Opportunities to Grow Closer to God is a Family is a fantastic table family devotional. It’s designed to give you ten to fifteen minutes of discussion as a family. This works best if you have at least some older children.
Essential Truths of the Christian Faith
Essential Truths of the Christian Faith is a fantastic catechism-type book to teach your children doctrinal truths. You may want to skim each lesson ahead of time and make sure it lines up with your beliefs, but each question or topic has many verses that it bases the answer on. There were very few that I skipped or changed a bit. This is a great way to introduce systematic theology to your children.
The One Year Book of Josh McDowell’s Family Devotions
The One Year Book of Josh McDowell’s Family Devotions: A Daily Devotional for Passing Biblical Values to the Next Generation is amazing if you’re looking for great family discussion over right vs. wrong scenarios. This is a great devotional to get your family thinking. Your family will learn how Scripture can be applied to everyday situations, and it’s the perfect resource for making sure your children know why you believe what you believe. I haven’t personally used this one, but I plan to add it to our list.
The 10 Minute Bible Journey
The 10 Minute Bible Journey is especially perfect for families that are newer to Christianity and don’t really know the Bible. This 52-lesson book will walk you through the highlights of the Bible stories with a short reading. It also has great illustrations and a timeline, so you know when things happen in relation to other events.
Faith Forward Family Devotional
Faith Forward Family Devotional is another devotional that walks you through the Bible. Each day, there is a key idea or character trait about God pointed out, which I love. There are also discussion and application questions. It says it’s geared for ages 8-12 especially, but I found it could be used for a wider range than that. I wouldn’t use it if you have all older children though.
The One Year Classic Family Devotions
The One Year Classic Family Devotions is put together by Keys for Kids. My parents read Keys for Kids to us when I was growing up! These are geared toward younger children and maybe preteens. They have a fun story that you can relate to in your daily lives, key verses to read, and some questions. Every seven days, there is also an activity page to help foster family relationships. This one is sure to be a good one!
As moms, unless we prioritize our relationship with God, it can easily fall by the wayside. Learn more about growing closer to God. As we grow closer to Him, we become a better wife and mother as well.
Free family devotions
If you don’t want to or can’t use a book right now, there are some great free family devotions available as well as tools to keep your family on track when reading through God’s Word. If you know of other free options, please let me know.
- FREE Family Devotions, 147-day Devotional. This devotional will walk you through the life of Jesus. By seeing how Jesus lived, it will help us be better followers of Christ.
- 52 FREE family devotions – These short devotions from Focus on the Family will help you plant seeds of faith in your family.
- YouVersion app has family devotionals, devotions for kids, or Bible reading plans just taking you through the Bible. We’ve done a “chapter a day” plan, which takes you through the Bible in 3 years. We’re currently using a plan to take us through the Bible chronologically.
Family Devotion Challenge
The spiritual growth of your family should be of the highest priority, even as busy families. While you can certainly just open the Bible and read and discuss, sometimes it’s also helpful to use a devotional guide. Be sure to ask the Holy Spirit to teach and guide you during this time.
If you aren’t currently in God’s Word as a family, what is holding you back? Even weekly devotions will help point your children to Christ and show them God’s love. Do you have a family devotional book you’ve used and loved? Please be sure to comment below.
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- Children’s Bibles Top Picks
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