Our Only Hope in Life and Death

I never heard the word ‘catechism’ until I was an adult. Well, that’s not entirely true. I remember reading the word in a book once as a child and wondering what it meant, pronouncing it cat-a-CHism in my head, with a hard CH, like in the word cheese.

I grew up a Southern Baptist and attended a Southern Baptist university. I now attend a Southern Baptist church where my husband faithfully pastors, and even though we hold to Reformed theology, the idea of catechizing my children feels weird to a Baptist girl who grew up in the buckle of the Bible Belt in Tennessee.

My parents regularly led my siblings and me in morning devotions when I was growing up. We read through the Bible together before school, primarily from the book of Proverbs because you could read a chapter according to whatever day of the month it was. My younger sister learned to read during those morning devotions as we read the chapters a verse at a time, taking turns reading verses.

The concept of family devotions brings up a lot of sweet memories of my childhood; my profession of faith in Jesus occurred during family devotions. When my husband and I became parents, we eagerly began the practice of family worship with our son. No matter what education choices we made for our children in the future, we believed that their biblical education and discipleship was primarily our responsibility, along with the help of our local church. We still believe that, now that we have sons aged 10 and 3.

When my oldest son was a toddler, I watched a video on Facebook of a friend’s young daughter reciting the first five statements of the Westminster catechism. Impressed, I googled until I found a catechism for young children. (Again, my Baptist background did not lend itself to any familiarity with any form of catechesis.) I began teaching my two-year-old the short statements and added hand motions to help him remember. But, in the vacuum of rural Baptist church ministry, I didn’t know anyone else practicing catechesis, and I eventually quit. Our family worship patterns relied heavily upon prayer, Bible reading, and sometimes songs—all of which was absolutely sufficient for our family. We’ve continued in these patterns for many years now.

But when I was given a copy of The New City Catechism for Kids at The Gospel Coalition Women’s Conference in June, I thought it might be a good idea to add the practice of catechesis back into to our family worship. I have the book, but I downloaded the free app for the music that comes with each catechism statement.

Our family worship is conducted in two parts: 1) around the dinner table, which is regular because we usually eat dinner at home, and 2) just before bed. When everyone is finished eating, we recite the week’s catechism statement, listen to the accompanying song on the app, and then draw a name of a church member to pray for (I have a cup with popsicle sticks that are labeled with each church member’s name). There are 52 statements in The New City Catechism, which gives us a year to get them all firmly implanted in our heads and hearts. The songs on the app are short but catchy, and my three-year-old especially loves them. Later in the evening, when the boys are ready for bed, we pile on the couch and let our ten-year-old read aloud a portion of a children’s Bible before we pray together and tuck them in bed. Currently we are working through The Big Picture Storybook Bible, which is one of our favorites for its commitment to the cohesiveness of the gospel story throughout the whole Bible.

Our kids are young, so our family worship time isn’t lengthy. But I believe that establishing rhythms of grace in our family now will prepare our young boys for when they are grown Christian men who will lead their own families in gospel-centered living, Lord willing.  What we do with this generation matters for the next one. Think of it as future discipleship.

What we do with this generation matters for the next one. Think of it as future discipleship. Share on X

While we are still relatively new at catechizing our children, I already see the benefits of teaching them the important answers to important questions. It’s supplying them with information now so that when faced with questions later, the answers are already planted in their memories. They have only to remember and apply them. While we also want our sons to memorize Scripture, the catechism statements sum up our scriptural beliefs in short, memorable statements that can be called to memory quickly. It’s not a lot different than our church covenant which is made up of statements that summarize the scriptural calls and commands pertinent to church membership and community.

What sold me on The New City Catechism for Kids was the very first statement.

Q: What is our only hope in life and death?

A: That we are not our own but belong to God.

I’ve been rolling that statement around in my head for days, thinking of the ways that it applies to every corner of my life as a believer in Jesus. Fear, anxiety, financial stress, illness, trauma, danger, persecution, betrayal, death: the things we most fear for ourselves and our children are answered by the complete safety we have in belonging to God. When we are in Christ, we have nothing to fear. Whether we live or die, our hearts are safe because they are hidden in Him. Paul says in Romans 14:7-8, “For none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s.”

I’m reminded of John 10 where Jesus explains that those who belong to Him will never be plucked from His Father’s hand. A heart tethered to Christ is eternally safe. This hope is an anchor for our souls. And I can see myself comforting a fearful child with the truth that because of Christ, we belong to God. I can see myself comforting myself with this truth. Because of Christ, I belong to God. This is my hope, my only hope, in life and in death. I want my believing son to get this, and I want his younger brother to have it for the day we pray he also believes.

The statement is also a correction and answer to pride. We do not appeal to our flesh or enslave ourselves to its desires because we do not belong to ourselves. We belong to God. We are called to be holy as He is holy (1 Pet. 1:16), to walk in a manner worthy of the gospel (Eph. 4:1). We do not lean on our own understanding but acknowledge that He is the One who directs our paths (Prov. 3:5-6). We belong to Him.

That’s good stuff to teach our kids. I’m grateful for tools that help us articulate big truths about sin, depravity, the Godhead, redemption, justification, and the sacraments in ways that my children can remember. Parenting is weighty in and of itself. But the responsibility of teaching our children the gospel, about the God who sent His Son as a ransom for many, about the beauty of atonement and redemption—that is a both privilege and a calling that feels insurmountable sometimes. Thanks be to God for the clarity and accessibility of His enduring Word and for the tools His people have developed to help pass on the heritage of our faith in Jesus Christ.