Edition #4 – October 2025
Happy October, fellow disciple-making parents! Welcome to The Trailhead, a devotional designed to help you begin each month with focus, encouragement, and intention. Just as a trailhead marks the start of a journey, The Trailhead is here to reorient your heart for the weeks ahead—a season filled with joy, challenges, and opportunities to lead your family closer to Jesus.
Quick Update
If you’ve been with us from the start of this school year, you know that The Trailhead is walking through 12 aspects of God’s character. Each month we’ll pause to remember who God is and how that shapes the way we parent. Last month we looked at God’s faithfulness. This month, we’ll focus on His holiness.
God is Holy
Parenting has a way of revealing both the beauty and the messiness of our hearts. One moment, we’re filled with patience, kindness, and joy. And then the next moment, frustration and selfishness rise to the surface. It’s easy to feel discouraged. But when we turn our eyes to God, we see something far different – He is holy.
“Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!”
– Isaiah 6:3
The word holy means “set apart.” God is utterly different from us. He is perfect, pure, and without sin. We are not perfect, pure, and without sin. We have sinned in the past, sin in the present, and will sin in the future. And yet, His holiness doesn’t push us away. Instead, through Christ, His holiness draws us near and transforms us. A holy God entered into our world, fully God and fully man, to live a perfect life, die on a cross for our sins, and rise again so that we might have life.
Reflections for Disciple-Making Parents
What does God’s holiness mean for our homes? It means that while we will never model perfection for our kids, we can model repentance and humility. Our children need to see that only God is holy, and that He calls us to pursue lives set apart for Him. When we confess our sins and ask forgiveness, we’re teaching our children that we belong to a holy God who makes us new.
Life Application
Take time this week to confess your sins to God—and, if appropriate, to your children—modeling humility and a heart that desires to grow in holiness.
Talk with your kids about what it means that God is holy and set apart.
Choose one practical way your family can pursue living a holy life together in response to God’s goodness.
Bible Study for October
Throughout October and November, we are continuing our family Bible study through Ephesians on Discipleship Cliff. Ephesians shows us a faithful God who redeems His people, builds His church, and gives us a new identity in Christ. I’d love for you to walk through this study with your family as another way to see God’s faithfulness on display.
Book Recommendations
The Holiness of God – By R.C. Sproul
This classic book helps us see God as He truly is—majestic, pure, and set apart. Sproul’s insights remind us that understanding God’s holiness changes how we worship, live, and even parent. A must-read for any disciple-making parent.
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Looking Ahead
In November, we’ll focus on God’s love—a love that’s perfect, steady, and transforms how we lead our families. We’ll explore how His love shapes our daily parenting and prepare our hearts for a season of gratitude.
Closing Encouragement
As we wrap up this month’s Trailhead, remember that God’s holiness isn’t meant to push us away—it’s what draws us closer. His holiness reminds us that He’s pure, perfect, and completely trustworthy. When we stand in awe of who He is, we begin to see everything else—our parenting, our priorities, and our purpose—more clearly.
This week, take a moment to pause and thank God for who He is. Let His holiness inspire you to live with humility, gratitude, and joy as you lead your family closer to Him.
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