Wholehearted Devotion

Wholehearted Devotion

Commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these words of mine. Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders. Teach them to your children.

Deuteronomy 11:18-19

In the Amish community, work connects families and the communities. The Amish believe that work is God given, and there is joy to be had in work together. That’s a good thing because there’s a lot of it!

The floors must be scrubbed, the beds made, and the living areas tidied and dusted. Windows and walls need to be washed and the porches swept. Sewing and mending for all the family members seem to be never-ending tasks. Outside, there’s lawn mowing and planting and weeding to be done. Chickens must be watered and fed and fresh eggs gathered. In season, the family garden must be harvested, and hundreds of jars of food need to be preserved for the coming winter. Making quilts to sell or working in a cottage industry on the property can also take up hours in her day.

The list of tasks is long, but the Amish know how to work. In fact, their industriousness is one of the stumbling blocks for people seeking to join their communities. If people haven’t been taught to work hard when they’re young, it’s difficult to catch that work ethic later in life. For the Amish, working hard is embraced as part of what it means to be an adult. And because their work serves the purpose of caring for those they love, it’s considered a joy by most of them.

As I read this, I couldn’t help but think how our children’s lives would be different if we taught them such a work ethic. Even more, if we taught them to be as diligent in learning about God and turning to Him in prayer.

First John 5:14-15 says, “We are confident that he hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases him. And since we know he hears us when we make our requests, we also know that he will give us what we ask for.”

It’s up to us to train our children in what they need to know for this life and for eternity.

Dear heavenly Father, please give me wholehearted devotion in training children to have wholehearted devotion.