Archive for January, 2016
6 Tips for Raising Your Children in the Ministry
Raising our children in ministry was a true joy for Jeana and me. We knew God had called us; we never even implied there was another option. Therefore, our children knew it as a joyful lifestyle.
Yet, I am more than aware that ministers sometimes struggle with raising their children in ministry. I want to share six tips I believe will be helpful while raising children in the ministry.
1. Be content where you are.
If you are not content in ministry or content where you are living, sooner or later your children will catch that same spirit. The spirit of perpetual discontentedness is reality not only for ministers and wives, but their children. This can lead to all kinds of conflict in the home.
If you know God has called you, then in reality, you have no choice but to follow Him. If you know God called you to serve where you are, give it your best and leave your future in the hands of God.
2. Leave conflict at the church.
Refuse to be negative about the church in front of your children. If something has happened and you must talk with your spouse about it, wait until the children are out of the room. Leave conflict at the church.
By the way, your spouse does not need to know every negative thing you face in your ministry. You are called to pastor the church, not her. God will give you the grace to carry the conflict and the discernment on what to say to your spouse and what not to say.
3. Be involved in the church.
Raise your children in the church and ensure they are involved in ministry at their level. If camp is happening, your children need to be at camp.
When we raised our boys, church was still highly engaged on Sunday nights and Wednesday nights, as well as several outreach nights. We built a culture: This is what we do! It was never optional.
The best thing for your child is to have spiritual influence from the church throughout their life. Your children need to be involved in the church.
4. Talk about the benefits of ministry.
Many in ministry want to spend volumes of time talking about the challenges and problems in ministry. That is never productive.
When you have children at home, your children are afforded many great opportunities when they are raised in the home of a minister. They will have access to meeting many wonderful people in your church and others who visit to assist you in ministry. They get to go places where other children may not have access. As a minister, you have the privilege of going to unique places. When possible, take your children with you and on the way, talk about the benefits of being raised in the home of minister.
5. Take an annual vacation.
Take an annual vacation with your entire family. This is non-negotiable. Do not let limited finances choke this opportunity with your children. You have only one shot with your kids. Invest time in them. Whatever the financial resources or lack of them, you can find something you can do.
There are other times you can get away, like Christmas or other holidays. Take advantage of this time. Leave town and go. It is impossible for ministers to really relax and spend time with family without being out of town.
6. Pray with your children daily.
Every morning before our boys left for school, we prayed with them. Many ministers pray with everyone else, but they do not pray with their family. This is not healthy at all.
In your own devotional life, pray for your children to love Jesus and love His church. When people used to ask us, “How can we pray for your children?”, this is what I always told them. I wanted our children to leave my home and one day raise their children to love Jesus and love His church.
God answered our prayer. He will answer yours.
Now is the Time to Lead,
Ronnie W. Floyd
Dr. Ronnie Floyd is the President & CEO of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee.
Freedom is Never More Than One Generation Away from Extinction
On March 30, 1961, Ronald Reagan spoke to the Phoenix Chamber of Commerce. He spoke these timeless words with great conviction:
Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it on to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children’s children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.1
This champion for freedom was later elected the 40th President of the United States of America. We should never forget these compelling words. Today, America needs this same kind of vision for freedom.
In America Today
This past Saturday, January 16, President Barack Obama issued a Presidential Proclamation: Religious Freedom Day, 2016. In his proclamation, he quotes from the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, which was adopted on January 16, 1786, and drafted by former President, Thomas Jefferson. These profound words need to be heard today in every village, town, and city in America:
“all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinions in matters of religion, and that the same shall in no wise diminish, enlarge, or affect their civil capacities.”2
This proclamation offered by President Obama is worth reading and sharing with others. May the mercy of God continue to grant America religious freedom.
On the Same Day, A Miracle Around the World
Interestingly, it was also this past Saturday that Pastor Saeed Abedini was released from an Iranian prison along with four other Americans. As you may recall, Pastor Saeed was in prison for his commitment to Jesus Christ.
In the past two years, Pastor Saeed’s wife, Nagmeh, has spoken to our Southern Baptist Convention in various settings. During both of these conventions and privately since, we have prayed for Pastor Saeed’s release. Today, we rejoice and praise God for answered prayer. In my communication with Naghmeh on Saturday, she was thankful to God for the prayer support. Please continue to pray for the Saeed family.
Today, Our Nation Honors Another Champion of Freedom
Today is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in America. We celebrate the remarkable achievements of this great American. As a civil rights leader, he stood boldly against segregation, at a great cost. His life was given for racial equality in the United States.
This past November, I spoke in Jackson, Mississippi, with my friend Dr. Jerry Young, President of the National Baptist Convention. After he spoke to this gathering of leaders, I spoke on the subject Now is the Time for the Racial Crisis to End in America.
In the message, I spoke about Dr. King. I referenced the letter he wrote on April 16, 1963, Letter From a Birmingham City Jail. Then I quoted his words from the final paragraph.
Let us all hope that the dark clouds of racial prejudice will soon pass away and the deep fog of misunderstanding will be lifted from our fear-drenched communities, and in some not too distant tomorrow the radiant stars of love and brotherhood will shine over our great nation with all their scintillating beauty.3
This champion stood so tall for freedom, it eventually cost him his life. Thank God for Martin Luther King, Jr. We honor him today.
While in Washington D.C.
This past Saturday, I spoke at a Free to Believe event with the Family Research Council, which is led by Southern Baptist, Tony Perkins. They asked me to help honor our great heritage of religious freedom in our nation.
Saturday morning was a convergence of emotions. I was preparing to honor our history regarding religious freedom in our nation’s capital, Pastor Saeed was released, and just before I left the hotel, I received word regarding the death of my friend and Cross Church Ministry Staff member, Richard Cox. While experiencing the grief of losing this brother in Christ to cancer, I was overwhelmed thinking of the freedom he is now experiencing in Heaven.
In This Pivotal Time in Our History
Therefore, in this pivotal time in our history, we need to cherish the freedom we have in our nation. We are in challenging days relating to freedom, not only here, but across the world. Even more specifically, we are in a daily challenge to preserve religious freedom in our country.
May the words of President Ronald Reagan ring in our ears clearly: “Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction.”1 This includes religious freedom and freedom regardless of skin color. We need to rise up as champions for freedom in our nation.
Because of the freedom in our land, my friend and staff member who died this past Saturday was able to hear the gospel, which resulted in radical life change. Richard Cox’s testimony is powerful.
While we may face days where freedom is at stake, we need to look toward the day when all cares of this world are over. The day we exit this world through death or Christ’s second coming, we will experience complete rest and freedom forever.
But until then, we love Jesus. We love one another. We serve Jesus. We cherish and even fight for the freedom we have now, always looking toward the day when we experience freedom forever. Freedom in the presence of Jesus.
Now is the Time to Lead,
Ronnie W. Floyd
Senior Pastor, Cross Church
President, Southern Baptist Convention
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Dr. Ronnie Floyd is currently serving as the President of the Southern Baptist Convention. The Southern Baptist Convention is America’s largest Protestant denomination with more than 15.7 million members in over 51,094 churches nationwide.
To request an interview with Dr. Ronnie Floyd
contact Gayla Oldham at (479) 751-4523 or email gaylao@crosschurch.com.
Visit our website at http://ronniefloyd.com
Follow Dr. Floyd on Twitter and Instagram @ronniefloyd
1 https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Ronald_Reagan; accessed on January 17, 2016
2 https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2016/01/15/presidential-proclamation-religious-freedom-day-2016-0; accessed on January 17, 2016
3 https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/king-papers/documents/letter-birmingham-jail; accessed on January 17, 2016
Dr. Ronnie Floyd is the President & CEO of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee.