Family Ministry

Supporting Christ-centered homes

LCMS Family Ministry supports the Christian estate of the home with resources and programming to assist families in their calling to pass down the faith to the next generation, equip them to nurture the spiritual formation of their children, and embolden them to be Christ-bearers to the culture at large and to their local communities.

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• Martin Luther identified the family as one of three holy “estates” (alongside the church and government) that God instituted to care for His people. God gives us the good gift of family and so highly esteems it that He uses it as the primary building block for His kingdom. We are all born into a biological family, but as baptized believers we are also brought into the family of God. Therefore, all people — whether young or old, single or married, widowed or barren — are placed within a family and entrusted with vocations (Psalm 68:5–6).

  The role of the family is to share the faith with the next generation (Deut. 6:6–12) and to recount His plan of salvation to young and old (Psalm 145:4–7). Parents are entrusted with the ultimate responsibility of teaching the faith and catechizing their children. All other estates and vocations are in service to this holy training ground that is the family.

  LCMS Family Ministry carries out this mission by:

  • Developing multi-media resources that support and guide families toward ongoing discipleship and lifelong catechesis;
  • Providing education regarding God’s good design for the family and programming to support all family vocations (fathers, mothers, children, siblings and grandparents); and
  • Collaborating with LCMS School Ministry, Youth Ministry, districts and Recognized Service Organizations to create resources for congregations that respond to societal pressures and other challenges for the family (such as divorce, blended families, single parenting, technology, sexual orientation and gender identity).

A Starting Place for Families

It’s never too early or too late to implement a regular practice of reading the Word and praying together as a family. Even young children will benefit as you make time to intentionally pass down the faith to the next generation. For those who might not know how to get started, LCMS Family Ministry offers the following customizable resources:

• The family devotions calendar is a monthly resource offering suggestions on what to study, memorize and pray for each day.
• The daily devotions guide includes an outline for your devotional time as well as suggested hymns, memory work and Bible verses for each week of the year.

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