Family Altar

Family altar refers to a devotional time for the family corporately. It is a time where Scripture is read, prayers are offered for each other, and a reorientation towards God for the family is established. But what is the biblical foundation for it? What are the examples of family altar in the Bible? Some quote Deut 6:4-7:

Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: and thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up"

I don't know of any other passages that really talks about a family devotion time but the primary principle behind a family altar is that God is central to all family activities, discussions, and decisions. To that end, does it really have to take the form of a corporate time such as before / after meal, morning / evening, etc.? I don't think so. Family devotion time corporately can be much easier done when the children are young ... actually this may not even be true for some families especially if the children ages are quite far apart. But for my teenagers who come and go throughout the day, we seldom even have a family meal together. But we do see them individually. We may see one in the morning and the other at night. We chat with them about life, future, plans, God individually. Our family altar is not an assembly of the whole family but it is an altar. We just have to keep in mind to have these "God talks", or "God modelling" often enough to train them up in the Lord!

So there is no need to struggle to have a corporate family time ... although if one can pull it off, that is great. But living out the principle, and that's what is most important in Christian life, not the letter, but the spirit, is what is important.