If we ever needed a Savior...

In the face of a tidal wave of sexual misconduct claims and admissions, a few thoughts come to mind:

• How can such a large number of well-educated men be so stupid? "For whatever is hidden is meant to be disclosed, and whatever is concealed is meant to be brought out into the open. If anyone has ears to hear, let them hear." --Jesus (Mark 4:22-23)
• Why is Vice President Mike Pence still belittled for his policy against dining alone with any woman who is not his wife? Some call him an unenlightened prude; some charge sexism and oppression against women. A lot of prominent Christian men, including Billy Graham, stay out of cars, hotel rooms, and closed-door office meetings that might be shared with just one woman. In light of what we're facing today, can these men get a little respect for trying to stay above reproach? 
• How tricky is it to grow up as a boy in this culture? Certainly they need to follow common-sense rules of respect and appropriate behavior. If they didn't know before, they'll know now that dirty jokes, greedy hands, and walking around publicly in their underwear is not only offensive but just plain dumb. At the same time, they're growing up in a "Girls Gone Wild" culture where nude selfies are the norm, and casual hookups are just a swipe away on Tinder. Add to this that famously underdeveloped prefrontal cortex, and you wonder how they're supposed to make sense of such mixed messages. 
• Her timing was indeed terrible, but how come Olympic gymnast Gabby Douglas was slaughtered by the press when she suggested that women dress modestly and aim for classy over provocative in order to avoid drawing attention from the "wrong crowd"? She was decried for "victim shaming," but did anyone consider that this might actually be good advice? (A few days after the outcry against her Douglas announced that she, too, was the victim of sexual abuse by the notorious USA Team Gymnastics doctor.)
• What the world needs to know, now more than ever: We have a Savior and Redeemer. For the woman whose body and soul have been violated, He brings healing and wholeness. For the man whose sin has left him humiliated, jobless, and alone, He brings forgiveness, restoration, and new identity. Jesus is the only answer for a world torn apart by our racial and gender warring. In Him alone--and by dying to ourselves and our sin--do we find selfless love, reconciliation, and the ability to live peacefully with our neighbors.This certainly isn't easy, but in Jesus, it is possible. There's something to be thankful for. 

Changing the World, One Verse at a Time

We go about our busy days never realizing that the person in the carpool line next to us might be changing the world. Ten years ago, I stood in in a kindergarten orientation meeting bouncing my new baby in the back of the room. Another woman did the same thing beside me, both of us trying to absorb whatever information we could while pacifying our baby girls. This woman--I would later learn her name was Tosha--would be a casual acquaintance for years before becoming a friend as those babies grew up to become dear friends. And while we were bouncing babies, setting up play dates, hosting birthday parties, and driving our kids in endless circles, Tosha was changing the world, starting in her own car.

What she was doing sounds pretty simple, one of those things where you think, "Why didn't I think of that?" All it took was turning off the radio and focusing the chatter in her car on one thing: a verse of Scripture. As she drove her five kids to school, they memorized this verse and talked about it in depth, things like its original context and how it applied to their own lives thousands of years later. They camped on that verse for a week until it was fully ingrained, until her kids owned it for themselves, and then they moved on to another and another and another. Her goal? To make the Bible feel like home to her children. To show her kids that the people in the Bible are not mythological characters with unpronounceable names, but to know them as friends and family. To say, "Ah, yes, Jeremiah. I know him well. I can't wait to talk with him face to face one day."

Tosha's vision for discipling her kids grew bigger. Like me, she believes that one of the biggest challenges facing the church today is biblically illiterate Christians. She wanted other children in other families to feel at home in the Bible, too. She knew this might feel like a daunting task to harried parents everywhere, so she made it easy. So easy that anyone who drives five or ten minutes in a car with their children every day (or eats a meal with them) can make this work. Last month, Tosha launched this program online--free curriculum to make the Bible feel like home to our kids. Each week, there's a new verse, a new set of discussion topics and questions that can literally be covered at a stop light, and new encouragement for how anyone can do this, quickly, simply, effectively. You can find it at MommyDiscipleMe.org.

I have to admit that when I went to hear Tosha introduce Mommy Disciple Me, I was blown away by her vision, but I was also met with a flood of personal regret. My kids don't call me Mommy anymore, and no one here is asking to be discipled. Tosha addressed this with the older mothers in the room, and God addressed it in my heart. It is never too late to spend time with our children around the Word of God. To believe otherwise is to believe a lie. If we truly believe that the Bible is the guide book to life, our source for wisdom and truth, that it's still "living and active, sharper than any double-edged sword" (Hebrews 4:12), then any time is a good time to start (or start again) discipling our kid with God's Word.

It looks different for those of us whose kids don't ride in our cars much anymore and whose schedules make all-family meals a rare treat. But we can still make the Bible feel like home in our family. For us, already memorizing our individual AWANA verses, it means that we've started coming together once a week to talk with each other about what those verses mean. Maybe you've found something that works for your family already. If so, great. Keep at it! And if you're still searching for something, or if you've stopped searching and now you just feel guilty and lame (oh, I hear you!), then give Mommy Disciple Me a try. Adapt it for whatever age your kids are. Use the Scripture memory for yourself or with a friend if you don't have kids. There are no "children's verses" in the Bible. They're for everyone.

The greatest responsibility we have as parents is also our greatest privilege: to introduce our kids to the God who made them, loves them, died for them, and longs for relationship with them. If you need a little help with this, no matter the age or your kids or grandkids, I encourage you to take a look at Mommy Disciple Me. Kids who grow into adults well armed with the Sword of the Spirit, the Word of God, will change the world, and it can start with us.