A NEGLECTED GRACE
Family worship in the Christian home
By Jason Helopoulos
Christian Focus. 126 pages. £6.99
ISBN 978 1 781 912 034
‘A few Christians living under the same roof does not make a place a Christian home any more than two or three bankers living in a house make it a bank. A Christian home will seek to be centered upon Christ...’
This very readable little book is a clear and convincing call to practise family worship.
Written by a father of young children, it is refreshingly realistic and, although deeply challenging, there is no ladling out of guilt. As the title suggests, it focuses on family worship being a blessing rather than a burden and on God’s grace and glory rather than our own failings as parents.
There is a helpful emphasis on family worship being a joyful responsibility and I would challenge any Christian parent to read the chapter on ‘Some Other Practical Reasons’ and not be convinced of this fact.
What it is not
There is also a reminder of what family worship is not (e.g. morality training, a time to castigate our children) and lots of practical suggestions of how to get started, how to keep going and what to do if we feel inadequate for the task.
There are sample structures for family worship (most of which look helpful, although perhaps a little stodgy in the way they’re presented), and a list of resources (sadly omitting The Good Book Company’s Table Talk, The Jesus Story Book Bible by Sally Lloyd Jones and some more contemporary song / hymn suggestions).
The final chapter comprises of personal testimonies which I have to admit I found slightly bizarre! Throughout his book, Helopoulos rightly emphasises male headship, arguing that the husband leading family worship will reinforce this model. He does recognise that for many families the father is absent either physically or spiritually and that in those cases the mother needs to lead in this area. He addresses this area sensitively, but it’s disappointing that no personal testimonies of single or spiritually single women (or men for that matter) are included. This seems a rather glaring and unhelpful omission.
Gift for new parents?
That aside, this is an excellent and important book and one that could massively impact our families and churches. It would be a beneficial gift for new parents, great to discuss in groups and used to promote this sadly neglected grace.
