Does your family, like many, struggle with studying the scriptures together? Perhaps the problem isn’t desire but instead simple technical difficulties. A shift in your routine might make for a more pleasant, spiritual experience.
We have often been counseled by our leaders to spend time as a family each day feasting on the words of Christ. Many times I have heard parents emphasize that even if your family grumbles through the study, the important thing to do is to build good habits. And I agree. Yet I wonder how much considering the individual needs and personality of our family might help bring the Spirit into our hearts and increase our children’s love of the scriptures.
A few things to consider:
1. Biological clocks. If four of your six children, plus mom, are all night owls, then they are probably like me – slow to wake up in the morning, slow to process or retain information, and slow to have a good attitude. If the majority of your family functions best several hours past sunrise, you might consider a before-bedtime scripture study routine. This can be problematic if you have teens and younger children, but it may be that staying up later – especially if your younger kids are the night owls, anyway – means that the little ones lose just as much sleep as they do waking up before seminary. (And I’d like to see a teen try to sneak in past curfew when the whole family is waiting up, scriptures in hand. Might make for an interesting way to close a date.)
2. Schedules. Perhaps most of your kids are night owls, but evening scriptures study conflicts with other scheduled activities. Try to determine if there might be another, better time. What about during breakfast or dinner? Lunch may be a possibility for some, depending on school schedules and dad’s work routine (admittedly, not many, but some). At this point, for us, meals don’t work, but that is because we have three small kids and mom is the primary ‘director’ – and mom thinks eating is a nice habit to develop. But it may well work for others.
On a side note, if you hesitate to stray from morning scripture study because you want to send your kids out ‘well armed’ each morning, consider simply ‘sharpening their swords’ by having a breakfast discussion of a single scripture. You can easily pick one from the previous day or night’s reading (who knows what new thoughts may have come in the night?), you can choose a weekly or monthly theme and pick your verse accordingly, or you can utilize a scripture-of-the-day calendar or email. These can all serve to bring the Spirit into your kids’ lives first thing in the morning and sufficiently arm them for their daily battles.
3. Flexibility. First thing in the morning is generally recommended, I believe, because of lack of conflicts, whereas if you study in the evening, different activities may cause conflicts. However, most organize events – jobs, plays, special events – are known of in advance and can be scheduled around. A glance at the calendar during a weekly family counsel, family home evening, or just on Sundays should alert you to upcoming conflicts. And while the same time and place each day are most effective, it’s better to change than to skip completely. Similarly, with the birth of each new baby, our schedules have been rejuggled; we first left morning scripture study because after almost no sleep, Mom wasn’t getting out of bed before dawn to have scripture study (a terrible lack of priorities, I know, but there you go). We have tried to have our babies with us – either feeding, wide awake, or falling asleep – during scripture study to build habits, but this requires a great deal of flexibility over the first few months when the baby changes practically every two days.
If your children are more alert and participate more enthusiastically in your family scripture study, they will be more likely to feel the Spirit. They will be more likely to remember what was read and discussed, and to apply it to their lives. And they will be more likely to enjoy the process and love the scriptures, and continue to love them for years to come.
Related Articles:
Scripture Study and Small Children
The Blessings of Scripture Study
General Conference: “Holy Scriptures: The Power of God Unto Our Salvation”