Growing Up

Throughout the course of our lives, we can build on a firm spiritual foundation.  Timothy was an individual raised up by God to help train and teach the early Church, and was someone who learned
the Scriptures even from childhood; we can read in 2nd Timothy chapter 3:
14 But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them,
15 and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.

The can illustrate for us the power of parents teaching Biblical principles to their children.  Fortunately, there are all resources through which this can occur - the primary responsibility, Biblically speaking, is on the parents, but the local Church can also play a critical role in being sensitive to getting God's Word into young hearts.  And, you have ministries that also specialize in children's work and tons of materials that can assist parents in spiritual training.  We can be devoted to seeing that the next generation is learning God's Word.

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The book of Deuteronomy prescribes a path through which children can be taught spiritual truth, and
the training of children in the Lord is certainly prioritize for Christian parents. Deuteronomy 6 says:
6 "And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart.
7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.
8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.
9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

The selection of a church home may be driven by a number of factors, and one of the leading ones, according to a new Barna study, is how the church serves children.  The survey summary states:

One of the key findings of Guiding Children to Discover the Bible, Navigate Technology & Follow Jesus shows that nearly six in 10 highly engaged Christian parents (see About the Research below for a full definition) say children’s programming is the primary reason they chose their current church (58%), proving that even though children may be small, they carry big weight when it comes to family decisions about where to worship.

As the article points out, this can be a motivation for churches to make reaching and teaching children a priority.

Church involvement also spills out into other areas, as the data indicates:

For the six in 10 Christian parents who report attending church on a weekly basis, we see that their high involvement in church is echoed in other domains of family life. These are church-engaged families, and their faithfulness in a worshiping community correlates with other faith-forming activities.

For instance, among those determined to be church-engaged, over half - 56% - of the children are in youth group and 40% are in Bible study.

The research summary defines highly engaged Christian parents in this way; they have:

...attended a Christian church service within the past month (other than for a holiday or a special event); strongly agree that the Bible is the inspired Word of God and contains truth about the world; strongly agree that they believe Jesus Christ was crucified and raised from the dead to conquer sin and death; strongly agree that they have made a personal commitment to Jesus Christ that is still important in their life today; and strongly agree that they desire to pass faith on to their child.

Evergreen Parenting Course developer Hettie Britz, who has been a guest on The Meeting House, is quoted in the article, stating, "Spiritual development is closely tied to moral development phases,” adding, “How growing children process the ideas of right and wrong, safe and unsafe, good and bad. These are very abstract concepts for a while and only become concrete later in childhood. When we as parents demonstrate both God’s justice and his forgiveness in consistent ways… it is the best spiritual gift we can give our children.”

In a companion article, Britz describes the stages of spiritual development.  She outlines:

From ages 3 to 5 there’s a phase of wonder. Kids are very much impressed by the miracles God can do.

Then, what she terms as "the crack" in spiritual development phases occurs: "The 5-year-old starts getting ready to understand some of that and the 6-year-old, depending on their development and personality, can move onto a next phase that’s very, very different."

That is followed by the age range of 6 to 10, which is "almost ruled by fear," she contends. Britz writes, "Kids become acutely aware of how real dangers are in the world around them...They see the world a bit more clearly. During this time, one of their primary felt needs is to know, 'How can God protect me?'"

The next phase is "from age 11 onward," in which "there is a stronger focus on morality. There is an acute awareness of sin, uncertainty whether they are good enough for God." She adds, "This is a wonderful phase for them to be introduced to concepts of grace, forgiveness, confession and the power of the Holy Spirit to enable us to live the Christian life."

These are some interesting observations that can be instructive for us in the process of training children.  And, it's important to understand the responsibility of the home and the Church in spiritual development.  Deuteronomy 6 shows us how parents can be proactive in teaching children throughout the course of life.  We can be reminded to look for teaching opportunities.  We also remember that God is teaching us through the events of our life, even in the times in which adversity strikes and things might not seem so pleasant.

For many, spring break is coming up, which is an opportunity for families to engage together, including participation in spiritual activities.  We can anticipate what God wants to do as we are sensitive and responsive to the promptings of His Spirit.