The "Way"

Teach a youth about the way he should go;
even when he is old he will not depart from it.
– Proverbs 22:6

“The Way” is what the early Church was called in its beginning.

How does being called “The Way” apply to “training our children in the way they should go"?

Most of us are “Western” Christians.

But the way indicates an “Eastern” approach to discipleship.

The “Western” approach most of us grew up with is a byproduct of European rationalism. It is intellectual and academic. We are taught to logically work out our faith before acting. And our model for transferring faith (discipleship) is through classroom style instruction.

This approach glorifies religious education, religious leaders, and makes many parents feel ill-equipped to disciple their own children.

Jesus, though, took a small tribe of twelve individuals, who had little-to-no religious education, and told them to “follow.” Along the way, they learned deep lessons – lived and experienced – as Jesus showed what journeying with God looked like in ordinary life, and consistently crushed their previous understanding of what being “religious” was all about.

He modeled: listening to the Spirit, obeying the Father, practicing rhythms of rest, work, worship, suffering, and true human engagement.

The lessons were caught, more so than taught.
Actions, louder than words.
It was a true taste of God's Kingdom culture. On earth as in Heaven.

Some of the deeper lessons came after Jesus left – when the disciples were forced to put into practice what they had seen and heard.

At the risk of oversimplifying, Western religion calls for becoming an expert in ideas.

Eastern religion is about walking life’s journey in each moment – the way you walk being shaped by who (or what) your god is.

Our children don’t always understand what they are being taught. But as Westerners, we greatly downplay how much our children are learning by simply watching us and overhearing us.

Discipling our children as parents, just as with Jesus’ way of discipleship, is about our life-long journey: consistently growing as we follow God, and bringing our children along for the ride.