Whyte House Family Devotions: Prayer for the Family, Church, Nation & World #180

My family and I have had morning devotions, or family altar as some people call it, everyday ever since my wife, Meriqua, and I were married 30 years ago. We have prayed and read the Bible together as well as other devotional books as a family and it is the only reason why this family has stayed together and it is the only reason why God has blessed our family and used our family in ministry all of these years. We read Ephesians 5 and 6 every morning as it relates to the role of each member of the family and how that we need to put on the whole armor of God to fight against the devil who is seeking to destroy our family and all Christian families, churches, and Christians. Sometimes our devotions would last 3 or 4 hours. So if you see 45 minutes to an hour, don't be shocked. That is an abridgement. So, now after 30 years of doing this in our home, we are opening this up to others who don’t have a family to pray with, who don’t have a spouse, who are single by choice, and to encourage all families who are still in tact to go back to the family altar and have devotions together every morning. In these devotions, you may hear me deal with a temptation I’m facing in my life, you may hear me rebuke my wife about not doing what she should be doing, or you may hear me get on one of my children’s cases about something they’re doing. Don’t be shocked; this is real life.

Chiara Lubich said, “Prayer begins in the family. It must begin in the family. Families are the first schools of prayer. Right from their earliest years, children should begin to perceive a sense of God and worship him. In fact, what we learn as children, also in this field, remains for the rest of our lives. If prayer is not taught in the family, it will be difficult to fill this emptiness later on.”

DEVOTIONAL PASSAGE: PSALM 83:14-18

DEVOTIONAL READING: "The Lord is My Portion (Part 1)" by Charles Spurgeon