At a Glance
Join us for part two of our discussion on the role of the family in discipling nations. Today we dive into the hotly-contested topic of God’s design for the role of the mother, father, and children in the family. As always, we seek to analyze this at the level of worldview–why did God create the family with differing roles and responsibilities? What are the good and bad consequences of adhering to or neglecting these God-given roles? For this episode, we had the privilege of being joined by two special guests: Naomi Bloom, a wife, mother, and the author of Home Inspired: A Look at the Micro-Nation of Home for New Moms; and Scott’s wife, Kim Allen, a mother, grandmother, and contributing author of As the Family Goes, so Goes the Nation: Principles and Practices for Building Healthy Families.
What You'll Hear
- Introduction (1:32)
- God’s role for wives and husbands, but specifically for the husband (13:41)
- The God-given role of the wife and mother (29:20)
- The maternal heart given to mothers (38:41)
- Why does the family exist? (46:05)
- The child’s role in the family (52:13)
- Concluding thoughts (59:29)
Dr. Brian Fikkert is a Professor of Economics and Community Development and the Founder and President of the Chalmers Center for Economic Development at Covenant College. He is coauthor of the best-selling book When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor…and Yourself as well as Helping Without Hurting in Short-Term Missions, Helping Without Hurting in Church Benevolence, and From Dependence to Dignity: How to Alleviate Poverty Through Church-Centered Microfinance. Dr. Fikkert earned a Ph.D. in economics from Yale University, specializing in international economics and economic development. He is the author of numerous articles in both academic and popular journals. Prior to coming to Covenant College, he was a professor at the University of Maryland—College Park and a research fellow at the Center for Institutional Reform and the Informal Sector.
Using the link above, you can read the transcript, listen along, and adjust the speed of the podcast while you listen.
"The battles that are going on in our culture today are framed in which the family is not important. We live in a post-maternal world, a post-familial world, and a post-nuptial world."
Darrow Miller (24:37)
Quotes
- 24:37 “The battles that are going on in our culture today are framed in which the family is not important. We live in a post-maternal world, a post-familial world, and a post-nuptial world. These things have historically been established by Scripture–from the very beginning, men and women were made to get married… we’re made to form families, to have children.” Darrow
- 28:27 “We get all these messages from the culture. But we’ve got to just say, ‘No, the culture is trying to just tear down the family, we’ve got to recover it.’” Scott
- 29:55 “Back to the Garden, when Eve was created, God created an ezer kenegdo. Which is translated into English as a helper, suitable for Adam.” Naomi
- 42:29 “Why are so many feminists and pro-abortionists so angry? Why are they so angry? Why is there so much hatred? And the reason that came to my mind is they’re warring against their own nature. Their nature is nurture, their nature is maternal. And the culture has said to them, these are not good things. So you war against these things, but you’re warring against yourself. How do we help people be free so they can celebrate who they are in their role as mothers and the maternal? It’s so beautiful, how do we help women understand that so they celebrate who they are, and not war against who they are.” Darrow
- 48:18 “We need to be grounded in a worldview that’s reflective of God and who He is and His nature and character. And when we find that we’re not expressing that, we need to come back and find out what He says to me–what does He say to me in my role, and then I need to ground myself back into that.” Shawn
- 49:27 “There’s just such a harmony that comes when we’ve rooted and grounded ourselves in God, His Word, and the nature and character of who He is. He wants us individually and corporately to flourish. And if we extract ourselves out of that, then it’s really me trying to get the best for me. But when you put yourself back into his story, you realize okay, wait, there’s something bigger at work here. There’s a definition of life and family that maybe I haven’t seen.” Shawn
- 53:19 “The Bible sets up the family as a structure of authority where parents have authority over children. And that authority is to care for them, to provide for them, to educate them, and to disciple them.” Scott
- 1:02:36 “Any relationship we have, whether it’s with our husband, wife, parent, child, has to come from a receiving of the love of God the Father to us. In order to overflow from that source, from a fountain of that love to anyone else. My relationship with my husband and my children, will never be good or right, without being filled first with a love of God, and His Son, Jesus.” Kim Allen
Why are so many feminists and pro-abortionists so angry? Why is there so much hatred? And I realized the culture says the maternal nature is not good. So they war against their very nature. How can we liberate them and help them see the beauty of their nature?
Go Deeper
We don’t usually think of parenting as a vocation, but it is. It’s also some of the most vital work we will do in our lifetimes.
How does a biblical worldview shape how we think about this important vocation? How does it shape our thinking about marriage, children, procreation and the rearing of children? The health and flourishing of our nations requires strong, flourishing families. These, in turn, are a fruit of a biblical worldview applied to our work in the home.
Our free course has an entire unit to help you understand these essential truths.
Footings for Children: Developing a Biblical Worldview So They Can Thrive
As parents and teachers, we want our children to thrive in life, to grow strong, and to flourish in every circumstance. We desire for them to prosper in the best sense, developing and using their abilities to bless others and the world around them all their days.
Yet, most would agree that the conditions for raising children are as intense and difficult as ever. While statistics highlight this fact, they are unable to portray the pain and disillusionment experienced.
How can we equip children to grow strong and actually thrive and flourish in this world?
We must impart to our children a foundational understanding of truth and reality upon which all future viewpoints will be formed and decisions will be made.
We must give them the footings on which they can understand all of life clearly and accurately. In short, today’s youth need a Biblical worldview.
This powerful, tested curriculum is designed to help parents, churches, and Christian educators disciple the children in their lives and is available to download free of charge.
A Teacher’s Guide is available to accompany several available student versions for adolescents, young readers (under age 11), non-readers, and even a devotional version for when time is limited. Two versions are available in Spanish!
Each version has 28 or more lessons that guide students in learning through Scripture, discussion, journaling, and activities. The lessons span six units that teach (a) About God, (b) Made in God’s Image, (c) God’s Purpose for Mankind, (d) Our Problem and God’s Solution, (e) God’s Design for the Family, and (f) God’s Design for Money.
Home Inspired: A Look at the Micro-Nation of Home for New Moms
Naomi Bloom’s is an amazing life journey. From dance major to radical Jesus follower to single campus minister to wife to mom, Naomi Bloom travels down the road with God distilling life lessons along the way. She does not pretend to have a corner on the market of how to do motherhood “right.” She only knows that her sojourn as a mom has brought out colors of her own heart that she never knew were there.
She also discovers that His design for home is brilliance shrouded in normalcy. She realizes the path of love goes low and her radical love for Jesus only deepens as she slows down enough to truly stop for her son and his first few years. Home Inspired will lead you to think through your own journey imparting grace and vision for your season.
Healthy families produce healthy nations. Healthy families are those united by a solid spiritual foundation in Christ. Today, the prevailing culture has redefined marriage and family, and its habits of thought and practice dominate, even in the Church. Christian parents need a biblical vision of wholeness and joy in marriage and family life and a practical plan for applying the wisdom and power of God’s Word to their lives. As the Family Goes, So Goes the Nation is a primer of principles and practices that illuminates God’s pathway for righteous marriages, parenting, and family life. God’s way is the way of beauty, truth, and goodness, the way of celebration, blessing, and healing love in our homes and in our nations. God established the family as the bedrock of society to reveal the kingdom of Christ here on earth. Discover HIS way and and walk in it!
The Grand Design
DNA’s Grand Design course will surprise and delight you. Many participants find they are engaging elements of worldview and the biblical narrative in ways they never have before. Their self-understanding has improved, as they realize what it means to be transcendently and biologically male or female. This has breathed fresh life and purpose into areas that previously felt mundane and unimportant, and their family relationships have improved. It’s time that you discovered the Grand Design.
Take your first step by starting our free course today!
