Sharing Christian Faith with Young Children
Raising children is a holy responsibility. My prayer is that our children would know and love God at an early age. That they would hear the gospel and receive the grace and forgiveness of the cross. That they would yield their lives to their Savior and ask the Holy Spirit to dwell inside of them. We believe our role as parents is to show our children the love and goodness of God through our actions while also presenting the truth of the gospel. And we believe it is ultimately the power of God that will lead them to Him.
Before I get to some tangible ways we share our faith in our home, it’s important to remember that it all starts with our personal faith. We can read all the stories to our children and help them memorize all the verses, but our personal relationship with Jesus makes the greatest difference in the lives of our children. One of the simplest ways I share my faith is by asking my children for forgiveness when I sin. It shows my children my need for Jesus’ grace. So while the list below is important in their faith development, we must remember they’re learning the most from our example: “Christ in you, the hope of glory!” Colossians 1:27
A few resources (more here) I recommend for your own faith formation:
Everyday Gospel by Paul David Tripp
Christ-Centered Family (a collection of essays)
Praying the Scriptures for Your Children by Jodie Berndt
Habits of the Household by JustinWhitmel Earley
Below I’ve shared seven simple practices we use in our home to shepherd and disciple our young children.
1. Read Bible Stories
I like to introduce my children to the Bible using The Rhyme Bible. The simpler, rhyming text and beautiful illustrations both capture and keep the attention of a young child. As their attention and interest grows, we enjoy reading The Jesus Storybook Bible and The Beginner’s Bible. We use this type of children’s Bible to introduce Bible stories. For my older children, we love The Biggest Story Bible Storybook. Our ultimate goal is to introduce our children to a full-text Bible. For their 6th birthday, we gift our boys the Explorer Bible. We teach them how the Bible is setup and practice finding scripture. We read specific verses and passages alongside them in our homeschool Bible study.
As we read God’s Word, we learn about the character of God. We see his kindness, knowledge, and power in the stories of the Bible. We also teach our children that the Word of God is alive. It corrects and instructs. It is also completely true and historically accurate.
2. The Five Finger Prayer
This is one of the first prayers we teach our children. The simple sentences and movement make for a memorable prayer. While teaching and memorizing the prayer, I explain the meaning of each sentence. For example: Why do we tell the Lord good morning? Why does he deserve our attention first thing in the morning?
This prayer gives our children an outline for prayer. We praise and honor God. We submit to His will. We ask for His help.
Good morning Lord. (hold up 1 finger)
This is Your day. (hold up 2 fingers)
I am Your child. (hold up 3 fingers)
Show me Your way. (hold up 4 fingers)
Amen! (hold up 5 fingers)
The Five Finger Prayer helps us introduce prayer to our children. We want to teach our children that they can talk to God anytime, anywhere, and about anything. Make prayer a habit in your home: pray before meals and pray at bedtime. But also, model prayer throughout the day as you converse with God about your day. The picture book Any Time, Any Place, Any Prayer is a great resource for introducing children to prayer.
Pray First for Young Readers by Chris Hodges is a fabulous prayer resource for older kids.
3. ABC Memory Verses
Scripture memorization allows the Word of God to be written on our hearts and minds. Our young children’s minds are eager for knowledge. My prayer for my children is that the tool of scripture memorization will plant seeds of faith and truth in their lives. Using the alphabet, we memorize 26 Bible verses, each beginning with a different letter of the alphabet.
Memory verse flash cards and activity pages can both be found at the end of my free Biblical Truths for Children resource.
4. Biblical Truths for Children
Biblical Truths for Children is a free resource that I created for families. It teaches 10 Biblical truths in kid-friendly language and illustrations. To learn more about this resource, head over to my blog.
With my older children (6+), I love reading The Ology: Ancient Truths, Ever New.
5. Songs of Worship
I let my kids request songs in the afternoon, but mornings at home and in the car are filled with worship! I am always adding to and editing our Family Praise playlist on Spotify. We also listen to my personal worship playlist.
6. Devotionals
With my toddlers, I love to read The One Year Devotions for Preschoolers at bedtime. It offers practical wisdom, scripture, and prayer.
We also love Louis Giglio’s devotionals: How Great Is Our God, The Wonder of Creation, Indescribable, and You Can Count on God.
7. Biblical Picture Books
We love to read in our home! You can shop our favorite picture books that hold a biblical worldview here. The “Tales that Tell the Truth” series is my favorite!
I hope these 7 practices give you vision and clarity as you pass on your faith to your children.