Throughout the history of the churches it has been demonstrated that there is no better means to a rather adequate knowledge of the spiritual condition of God's people than that presented by family visitation. Let those who are called to carry on this work be guided by the spirit of love and helpfulness, indeed, having an eye for the reflection of God's glory through the lives of the believers. Let the members of the church be ready and even eager to discuss the power of the gospel in the lives of themselves and the members of their families. Then the spiritual level of the congregation may be discerned with a fair measure of accuracy, and the minister of the Word will be able to preach the gospel in such a way that with God's blessing it will meet the needs of saints and sinners alike. But if any now reply that this work of supervision can be better discharged by calling upon the members individually, we would answer that such a method can-not do justice to a very important aspect of spiritual life.
All life is organic , that is, it exists in relationship to other, similar lives.
Thus spiritual life, too, cannot be treated in isolation. It is not to be considered a hot-house plant, some exotic bloom that flourishes only in the secret recesses of the heart. It must come to expression in daily contact with family, friends and associates. Too often has this been forgotten, with the tragic result that the individual believer makes little progress in effective Christian living. Many times Reformed family visitation has been caricatured.