Do You Have a Family Constitution?

God is challenging us to pursue Him with all our hearts.

Our Society, which includes the body of Christ, reflects a generation that has wandered from God’s original constitution. What is a constitution? More than a document, it’s a system that dictates the character, boundaries, temperament and structure of how something is governed.

I believe that every family should have a constitution. Just think about it: You would never enroll your child in a school that lacked an infrastructure. And you wouldn’t put your investments and earnings in a banking system void of policies and procedures mandated by the Federal Reserve System.

Even the animal kingdom operates by a constitution—one of instinct. The governing law of nature that God deposited into animals works like a divine compass. You will never see an eagle protesting to the Creator that he wants to be a fish.

Yet human beings often choose to live life outside God’s biblical constitution, despite the privilege of being created in His image. We are the only ones in His creation He calls family.

We often align ourselves with neighboring societies and take on the same patterns and customs. As a result, the pressures of other cultures gradually change our core belief systems. We often become desensitized to what once compelled us to do right.

When parents fail to establish a household constitution, children look to the most popular and trendy norms of the day. We’ve often heard children say: “Everybody else is doing it. Why can’t I?” There must be a line of separation that brings the family back to God’s original commands.

We are too preoccupied with external influences that cause us to take our focus off God. These subtle compromises lure us into traps we can’t discern until it’s too late, and we pass them on to our children.

For example, we know that pursuit is the proof of desire. We allow our kids to crave carnal, materialistic things that have no eternal value, but we don’t encourage the same level of pursuit when it comes to spiritual matters.

A few months ago, a news program reported that parents had camped outside a store for a week to purchase a new iPhone for their kids. I thought, How many of these parents have daily Bible devotions and teach their children to pursue God and His Word with equal passion?

The Word of God says that those who find Him find life. He challenges us to pursue Him with all our hearts.

Joshua, a man who went after God in the midst of an idolatrous nation, declared: “‘As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord'” (Josh. 24:15, NKJV).

How do we establish a family constitution in our homes? Families should start by reading the Bible, praying and making daily confessions according to Scripture. This is a serious discipline, but it’s worth the time and investment.

Compose guidelines and display them in the house where the entire family can easily see them. Require each family member to sign the constitution as an oath to the Lord. My husband and I made a vow to read through the Bible together.

Today the concept of family has been perverted because we live in a society that is gravitating toward no moral absolutes. In our households, we must apply principles that reflect the true character of God’s Word in order to shape the future of our families.

Let’s proclaim: As for me and my house, there will be no more divorce, abortion, financial lack, rebellion or strife. Let’s be a witness to the world that the Word of God does work.

Patricia Bailey-Jones is the founder of Master’s Touch Ministries, a missions outreach based in North Carolina, Los Angeles and London. Her focus is the 10/40 Window, a geographical region that includes North Africa, the Middle East and most of the least evangelized countries of the world.