Here are some thoughts on how to do periodic (Richard Baxter recommends annual) family/member visitations or checkups.
Continental reformed have a strong tradition of this, but talking with CRC men over the years, it appears mostly to have fallen the way of pastor classes for (usually) junior high students preparing for membership and first communion, catechism classes, premarital counseling, hospital visitation, etc. in becoming pro forma. Everyone is hopeful the two visiting shepherds will not seriously probe, and hence will neither hear nor see evil.
But because the practice has fallen on hard times doesn’t mean any of their tools can’t be used well. Do you know any Dutch reformed men? Maybe they can help? It might always be worth checking on tools the Scots used for communion interviews which, passed, gave you a token to present to the Lord’s Table.
In some ways, it might be wise for the first year or two of visits to have the humble aim of each household founding or recommitting to regular family worship including a couple questions from Children’s, Shorter, Larger, or Heidelberg catechisms, a chapter of Scripture read, then singing and prayer. Fifteen minutes or so done at least four times a week either morning or night.
One more thought. Although the following two essays are Lutheran and one concerns Luther and his men visiting and checking on parish pastors, reading them might provide instructions for household visitors. Here are the two documents, and here as well as “Instructions for Parish Visitors” (sorry I haven’t cleaned it up).
Collegium-paper-Pastoral-Visitation-2014-JM-EDITS-FINAL-CLEAN
Finally, this by my friend Kerry Ptacek. I’m no friend of the family-centered church movement, but lots of good stuff here as long as you have a good sense of balance on this which, among a certain group, has become quite the shibboleth.
