The Bible for Breakfast

Our family is not so much for mornings.

In fact, though I love to get up early, I do not like to speak for the first 45 minutes, at least. My husband would rather snooze until the last possible second and my daughter thinks waking up is for the birds.

But when our family came together with the adoption of our already-eight-year-old, we were thrust directly into deciding what we wanted to establish for family devotions. No growing into (or perhaps out-of) anything. Either we started something and did it, or we didn’t. And it soon became clear that if we were going to do anything, it had to be in the morning.

Oh, boy.

I’ll be honest with you, it’s taken me awhile to get around to a good attitude. I miss my 45 minutes of silence. I miss my personal morning devotions. I miss feeling chipper in the mornings.

But, I am also thankful for everything this season of life has gifted me.

I’m thankful for breakfast times discussing Moses. For explaining verses in Proverbs over scrambled eggs. For sticky maple syrup and explanations about the stickiness of sin. For milk mustaches and stories of Jesus.

We break the bread (or pancakes or whatever) and drink the cup (of cranberry or orange juice) and learn to fellowship together, as family, as Believers, as one body in Christ, right there at the breakfast table each morning.

I don’t think there are any right or wrongs about doing devotions in the mornings or evenings — any time spent in the Word of God is worthwhile. However, I am more and more convinced of the blessings that pour from cracking open the Bible as dawn breaks across the sky.

Our children need to know about God from our own lips. Not just from Sunday School teachers or preachers. They need to know what we believe and why we believe it. They need to have a place to bring questions and have discussions about the answers.

And what better place than the breakfast table? Where food is entering their bellies and the Bread of Life is entering their minds?

When is better than first thing in the morning? When so much of our days attitudes and expectations are being determined?

So, even though I’d rather everyone else sleep in, and even though they would rather sleep in — when morning comes, I make the calls, fix the breakfast, set the table, and open the Word of God. And He never fails to show up, just as He promised.

Do you do family devotions? What methods have worked for you?