Helping Your Child Grow a Relationship with God

The most important relationships we have in our lives are those with our families and with God. As Christian parents, one of our greatest priorities should be helping our children build a strong, lasting relationship with God. This can be a challenge when dealing with little ones, however, there are a few things that we can do to help point our kids in the right direction.

• Talk About God

Planting the seed from the beginning can help children grow in their faith as they get older. Start simply, by explaining to your little ones how God created the tree and sun in your yard. As they grow up and can understand grander concepts, the conversations about their faith will follow suit. Taking every opportunity to talk to your children about God will make the conversation natural and commonplace.

• Pray

Pray as much as possible. If your children see you doing it at an early age, they will learn that it is important. Have prayer time before meals, at bedtime, and when waking up for school. Nothing is too small to pray for in a child’s eyes.  Learning how to pray on their own can help them in building a personal relationship with God.  In addition, make sure not to just pray for things you need – say prayers of gratitude as well. Teaching your children about the power of prayer can help them create a daily prayer routine.

• Small Acts of Kindness

Add small, random acts of kindness to your daily routine. These acts can be planned to teach your children a lesson about the importance of modeling their life after Jesus, or spontaneous to show them that sharing God’s love should be given without thinking twice. Anything as small as a “thank you” card to a hard working teacher, or calling a sick relative to wish them a speedy recovery can be an opportunity to teach your children an important lesson in God’s love.

Teaching our children about God is one of the most rewarding and important tasks. While we all have different methods, and there are thousands of roads to create a successful relationship between you, your child, and God, remember that by helping them, you are also helping to strengthen your own personal relationship with Him. Teaching our children is a responsibility, and by doing it correctly, we can build something with and for them that will last for eternity.