Jesus said, “You shall Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37). In J.P. Moreland’s book, Love Your God with All Your Mind he says, “If we are going to be wise, spiritual people prepared to meet the crisis of our age, we must be a studying, learning community that values the life of the mind.”
As Christians today living in a post-Christian world we are inundated with multiple media messages, DCS, COA, political and social advocates, and other groups telling us how we should think and nurture children. It is critical for us as CFC staff to have the mind of Christ and understand Christ’s teaching in these critical areas that affect the wellbeing of children and families.
To affectively carry out our mission of strengthening families and serving at risk children in the name of Jesus Christ, the Bible needs to be our ultimate guide for the decisions we make daily.
A few things that have helped me grow in loving God with all my mind:
- Bible reading is a daily part of my worship and communication with God.
- I try to read broadly and include authors who challenge my thinking both from a biblical and non-biblical worldview.
- I write and/or discuss with others what I am reading.
Years ago, I asked several men to join me in discussing a book a month. These were men who I knew where a level beyond me, like a Roderick, deep thinkers who would challenge my thinking greatly. They challenged me to get into reading books I would never pick up on my own and it also challenged me to think.
There is not a day at Christian Family Care where I don’t come into conflict with a social, or personal issue that requires me to have some understanding of what Christ thinks about that issue (True for you too, I assume). For us to effectively transform culture for the wellbeing of the children and families we serve we need to be thinking Christians.
Action Steps
If you are reading, please share a brief synopsis of what you are studying and learning from your reading that will help us all grow as a thinking community so that we can better serve the children and families God brings into our care.
If you are not reading, think seriously about starting now. In addition to the Bible, here is a list of some of the books I have read recently, that you might enjoy:
- Family Cycles and The American Way: Family and Community in Shaping the American Identity, both by Allan Carlson
- A Life of Trust by George Mueller
- The Christian View of God and the World by James Orr
- Onward – Engaging the Culture without Losing the Gospel by Russell Moore
- The Art of War by Sun Tzu
- The Advantage by Patrick Lencioni