One of the keys to raising children who grow up to become productive Christians is giving them a strong spiritual foundation. Because I emphasize that so often in my posts, I was interested when given a chance to review Rooted by Banning Liebscher.
Liebscher does an excellent job of presenting the case for allowing God to develop a strong root system in you (and your kids). Although the book is aimed at adults, many of the insights he shares are good things to teach your children.
Although he touches on a lot of different pieces to the puzzle, I think the most valuable is to realize God has a plan for you and your kids. As a part of that plan He will put you and your kids where you need to be to grow and develop the talents, gifts and skills He has given you to serve Him.
Liebscher points out that even though we will still be working to serve God during those times, it might not always feel like it makes sense or that what He has us doing has anything to do with our gifts and skills. The author points out though (and I have seen this in my own life more than once), that often years later those seemingly out of place pieces in your life make sense when God’s plan is more fully revealed to you. Those times helped you grow and develop so you would be ready to serve God where He needed you later.
The other part I really appreciated was the reminder that God often takes years to take us through this process. Liebscher points to Joshua, Moses, David and the Apostle Paul as examples of people in the Bible who God prepared for many years before they began working on their “main” mission from God. The author reminds us not to try and jump ahead of God just because we think we know where He is leading us and that we know a quicker way of getting there. God’s plan is perfect and by following His lead and His timing we will ultimately be more effective.
Liebscher also spends quite a bit of time discussing the many things we should do while waiting. From fixing the “wall in front of our house” (Nehemiah) to reading our Bibles and praying to developing our skills and talents, this time of “waiting” is anything but quiet and boring.
My only qualm about the book is that I fear mainstream Protestant readers will be turned off by a few veiled references to what appear to be some charismatic leanings. Personally, I didn’t feel it was entirely clear as many people use somewhat similar terms to refer to very different things. I feel the book has enough value that the reader can skim over those few mentions without throwing out the entire book as questionable.
As you work with your kids on developing to their full godly potential, reminding them of some of the concepts and scriptures (he refers to David a lot) in this book will help them as they continue to prepare for a lifetime of serving God. They will realize those tasks God sets before them that appear to go nowhere or have no purpose are probably preparing them for something later in their lives and was not time wasted. Realizing everything is happening to prepare them for other things God wants them to do in the future makes the craziness of growing up a little more meaningful. In fact, you may even want your teens to read this book too and discuss it with you.
This book was given to me for free in exchange for my honest review. An affiliate link is included for your convenience.