Tips for Passing a Deep, Practical Faith to Children

Estimated reading time: 6 minutes

This is an alarming reality. And most likely it is why we are seeing few true Christians leading in the four pillars of society: government, academia, media, and spiritual/religious institutions. It is our job to equip our children with a lifelong, unshakeable commitment to Christ.

We are confronted with vigorous anti-Christian pushback in today’s increasingly antagonistic, humanistic culture. If, as adults, we feel challenged to stand strong in our faith, imagine how much more difficult it is for our impressionable children. So, the question becomes, how do we inspire and equip them with a deep, practical faith that will last a lifetime?

The good news of passing our faith on to our kids

The good news is that we absolutely can pass our faith to the next generation. Even better, it is never too early – or too late – to begin that process or to make “course corrections” that will empower our sons and daughters to be strong, lifelong, faith-filled believers. There is a great battle for our children’s souls in the spiritual realm. We are their first and most trusted mentors. When we trust God, He will equip us to raise up this next generation of warriors for Christ.

We are all created in the image of God. Psychologist Dr. Lisa Miller explains in her book The Awakened Brain, “. . . when we look at human variance in spirituality, a person’s degree of spirituality is determined 29 percent by heredity, and 71 percent by environment.” Even our DNA is spiritual! Start praying for your little one before he/she is born, professing that they will follow Jesus all their life. Pray for God to make you a wise and discerning spiritual leader for your child. Keep asking God’s blessing upon you and your children throughout your life.

No matter your child’s age, you can begin or improve upon your child’s faith journey. It is never too late! Pastor and author Erwin Lutzer has shared in his sermons the story of archeologists who found grain buried in Egyptian Pharaohs’ tombs for two, three, or even four thousand years. When they planted those seeds and gave them what they needed to grow, they blossomed to become what they were always meant to be. Imagine that! No evidence of life for thousands of years, but under the right conditions, life that was dormant flourished.

It starts at home with the parents and extends to the church. Every day presents us with opportunities to inspire, equip, and empower our children with the love OF God and FOR God so that they will be the next generation whose faith will change the world.

The mission: To pass our kids a practical faith that brings about “heart transformation” from a sinful one to a heart that loves the Lord and will obey Him.

The basics of passing on practical faith to our children.

1. Modeling faith for our children is essential to helping them grow in theirs. Kids learn more by watching us than by listening to us. If we live a life of “Do as I say,” but what we do contradicts what we say, our children will simply reject our faith as being fake. We must dig deep into our values and ensure they align with God’s word. How we consistently live is the proof our kids are looking for to believe what we are teaching them.

Worship God with “Stop, drop, and pray” throughout the day, and let your children see you praying.  Read the Bible daily – in front of your children.  Let them participate in your devotional reading time.  Let them see you praying, and encourage them to pray with you.  Use Scripture verses as part of your teaching moments.

When our children see us – or participate with us – while reading God’s word, praying silently, or talking to Jesus as if he were sitting next to us, we are modeling our faith so it will be second nature for them to follow our lead.

Listen to a great conversation I had with Dr. Kathy Koch about using positive character traits to raise children to be Christlike.

• Creating an environment that promotes godly values is a fun and practical way of modeling faith in action. When children see Scripture verses on walls or mirrors and find books on biblically based shelves,  they will recall what they see, hear, and read.

Make your little ones’ bedrooms more like Destiny Land and less like Disney Land.  Decorate with Bible story themes that remind them of the goodness of God, the beautiful world He created, and the God-honoring heroes they will want to emulate.

Have a designated place in your home where everyone can discuss their day or week and spend time in devotions and prayer. Develop a yearly family mission statement that the whole family creates and commits to. Review that mission statement together regularly for everyone to weigh in on how well it is going, or whether adjustments need to be made. Create a family action plan of how to serve others as a unit and individually. Include action items for both inside and outside the family unit. Our children need to be exposed to other Christians living out their faith to further validate what it means to be part of the Christian community.

To dig deeper, learn about four different ways your child can experience God.

• When facing obstacles, our kids need to witness “faith in action” and develop critical thinking.  Children could come alongside parents and offer their feelings and suggestions when appropriate. Ask open-ended questions such as, “What do you think we can do as a family to solve this issue?” Also, encourage them to ask questions and then reply to their questions with the question they asked you. So,  if your teenage son asks, “Mom, our neighbor is old and needs help. What should we do?” Instead of just giving a suggestion, ask him what he thinks. This equips our kids to become critical thinkers while encouraging them to think like Jesus.  This is teaching them how to gain spiritual wisdom.

• Incorporating faith in daily routines is a powerful way to make living a God-filled life the most natural thing for your children. Look for opportunities to pray throughout your day. After all, we have much to be thankful for. Read Bible stories or Christian books at bedtime. Then, repeat the story you read in the morning to reinforce what they learned at bedtime. Pray over your children before they go to sleep and before they start their day. Be kind and respectful to one another in your words and behavior. Ask questions that will help you understand what your child is thinking and how they are growing: What new thing did you learn today? What made you happy today? How did you show kindness today? How did Jesus help you today? Teach them to love and forgive by exhibiting love and forgiveness. This is mercy and grace in action. Thank God for everything and praise him continuously. You can also incorporate interactive resources to help you raise your child to have a thriving faith.

Personal faith, open communication, regular prayer, Bible study, attending church, family traditions, Christian media, proper discipline, and, most importantly, love and encouragement among family members create an atmosphere where deep, practical faith that lasts a lifetime is the natural outcome.

“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things.” (Philippians 4:8 NIV).  And teach them to your children!