A very brief guide to teaching our kids the faith.

Buy good resources here and here

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The Bible highights the family as the primary place for children to learn and grow in faith. And so, when parents dedicate themselves to raising their newborns in the faith, we ask them:

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Do you give thanks for C, accept the joys and duties of parenthood, and in humble reliance on God’s grace, promise to love and care for him/her as someone God himself has entrusted to your care? Do you promise to bring him/her up within the community of the church, pray for him/her, teach and model this Christian faith to him/her, and raise him/her in the training and instruction of the Lord?

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Below are some tips and helps for doing this.​ The top seven things are:

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1. Find a fixed regular time to pray and read (and discuss when they can) the Bible with them.

2. When you're out and about or something key happens, develop the habit of informally talking over life and the world from the perspective of God and his purposes.

3. Remember to spontaneously pause and pray with them when there's something special to be thankful for, a particular need, or they need to seek God's forgiveness and help to live for him.

4. Be ready to flex around circumstances and life stages, not panicking if a prayer and Bible time is missed, but picking it up again when you can.

5. Make sure they see you positive and enthusiastic about church, shaping your time to ensure you are there, and encouraging them always to Sundays and mid-week activities, even during the years they push back.

6. Pray daily for their growth in faith, being watchful for the temptations and struggles they are facing, and thankful for all the Lord is doing. It can be helpful to have specific verses you are praying home for each child according to their needs.

7. In all things set an example of faith, godliness, and relating to the Lord in the everyday. So much is caught. Obviously you will fail, but how you respond when you do is key too. Model humility in accepting you were in the wrong, and then seeking the forgiveness of the Lord and those you've sinned against.

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We could add a number 8 as: Don't panic! Parenting is about the long game. The Lord will use the ups and downs involved to shape us and teach us above all to rely on him. But he will also use them to shape our children for whatever he has for them as adults. And he knows what he is doing. The key thing is that we are intentional in playing our part, whilst relying on him.

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Pre-school

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From the moment they are born, reading the Bible, praying and talking with your child about the Lord, means they can be as used to these things from the beginning as they are to food and sleep. Bedtime is usually the best time to include reading through a good picture Bible and saying simple thank you, sorry and please prayers. But out and about, everything can be talked about from the perspective of what God has made and why. There are also some great CDs of Bible verse songs from Colin Buchanan and Seeds family worship. 

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Primary school

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During these years, its about continuing the things you did when they were at pre-school, but increasing the depth according to their ability and engagement. Towards the end of primary school, you could start doing Bible notes with them like XTB. You could also start introducing Bible discussions at a meal time using resources like Tabletalk. This could be followed by suggesting to each child how they could pray in response, or suggesting a topic from the world or church for prayer. Whether every time or on occasion, you could also sing a loved worship song. And when on holiday, you could ask your kids to put together a brief service for the family, with one leading, one praying, one sharing something from the Bible etc. Encouraging the reading of Christian books during these years is also helpful so that it is just part of what they do. Search here and here for suggestions.

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Secondary school and sixth form

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It is good to maintain something at bed time as long as possible. But in time this will be less easy and the focus will be more on mealtimes. But these too may be sporadic due to activities. The key is to make sure you do something with them whenever you can. If they make a proper Bible discussion hard, just read a paragraph (or even just a verse) to them and ask what it tells them about God and his purposes, or his will for them. And if they won't engage on that, read it and just tell them the key truths from it. Then ask what difference the passage should make to everyday life, letting the discussion run, before ending by getting someone to pray it all home. However these set times go, these years do give more opportunity for the more spontaneous conversations and prayer times, so it is good to make the most of them. Why not see if you could take each child out independently for a walk or cafe trip once a month to just chat about how they are getting on, and share a faith perspective as you do this. As time with them before bed fades, it is good to encourage them to have their own quiet times of Bible and prayer. If they are unwilling, just keep praying and gently encourage again at different points. Engage are great notes to help teens in this. And older teens could benefit from the Explore app. Its also good to keep good Christian books coming their way, especially those that answer the questions they are raising. Search here and here for suggestions.