Building Family Time

In our home, Saturday night is usually family night. We choose an activity, argue a bit about who chose last week and then dive in.

Our time together is always more art than science. There’s no preset method, no well-defined rules. It gets messy and wild, colorful and creative.  It’s always more about the goal and less about the process, and for us, the goal is always building.

The kids don’t quite realize it, but family night is a deliberate attempt to build: we’re building character, building memories, building intimacy, learning to build one another up and  building a foundation for them to become kingdom builders.  We maintain this focus on building whether we’re playing games, watching a movie, sharing a devotional or chatting over pizza. The kids are so distracted by the fun, they have no clue that they’re becoming better people while we play.

And, while this might look a bit different in your home, family time can always be a time for building.  It’s never too early (or too late) to begin building intimacy, there’s never a bad time to build each other up. It’s always the perfect time for building beautiful memories and even if it seems too late for building character in others, it’s never too late to model it yourself.

There is building to be done in every age and stage of family life (if the grown ups involved are willing to do the work). Let’s invest the time in building something beautiful, and may that beauty spread beyond the walls of our homes to the world.

“Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” 1 Thessalonians 5:11

Anitra Elmore is your server today! Find out more about her here and don't forget to sign up for updates by email or RSS before you go.