Word for the day by Christian Education Forum

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 Nourishing Theological Reflections from Experiences

Bible portion:  Deuteronomy 6:3-12

Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. -Deuteronomy 6:7

Devotion
According to John Macquarie the renowned theologian “Experience is one of the formative factors of any theological exploration”. Deuteronomy is Moses’s lengthy sermon before they enter the promised land. It reaffirms the need to adhere to the law, the commandment. To protect the integrity of moral and spiritual life certain life principles are essential when we move forward, progressing as a community. 
Passing Of Faith To The Next Generation
The cultivation of faith is obviously primarily God's work but it is also our duty as well.  If we fail in it, faith fades away. This is what we see in many countries like Egypt and Turkey where faith was once very vibrant.The individualism of our culture sometimes prevent us from doing this.  But we have to find our own ways to nourish our next generation in growing with our faith and practice.  The material prosperity like a land flowing with milk and honey may force us to live without the divine prepositions.  The given passage is also known as the classical creedal affirmation of Israel’s “Shema”(hear, listen).  You shall love your God…Adam didn't listen to it but Abraham did.  The Church is the New Israel and so the message of Shema is for us too.
Communicate With Personal Experience And Testimonies.
 The God experience is a relationship based on trust, love and obedience. It cannot work in a vacuum. Our immediate generation needs living examples of faith. It starts from home. Home is the epicentre of all theological formations, it is the first seminary. Human actions and God's grace complement each other in our faith journey.   When we share our faith narratives, it goes beyond the syllabus and furnishes it with personal experiences and challenges. Before you communicate, it should be within your heart full of conviction and decision.  Our heart is the seat of all emotions and decisions. During His ministry Jesus criticized the attitude of Jewish religious leaders in displaying emblems and public expressions that degraded to self promotions and self righteousness.  James 2:19 records confession itself is not sufficient but to also practice what you proclaim. Orthodoxy and Orthopraxis go together.
 
PRAYER
 
 Help us to communicate our faith affirmations to our immediate life world like family and our society
 
Thought for the Day 
 
 Legacy is not what I did for myself, it’s what I’m doing for the next generation.
 
Mrs. Seena Abraham (Kochamma)
Salem Mar Thoma Church, Vennikulum
 

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