It's All About the Heart

When we boil down what God is actually after in us, it is our heart. If we can get that right, then our relationship with God will never falter. What if we could teach that to our kids, so they don't make the same mistakes we make?

 

“Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.” Proverbs 22:6 

So simple, yet so intimidating. After all, kids need so much training. Manners, chores, school, extracurriculars. And for followers of Jesus, there’s nothing that we should strive to “train up” more than our kids' spiritual growth and their relationship with Christ. What does this mean? Formal Bible studies, daily devotions, praying non-stop? Is it serving others, volunteering at nursing homes, and feeding the homeless?  

 As noble as each of those things is, a mile long laundry list of “spiritual things” is not what God is after.

God is after our hearts. He’s after your child’s heart. 

It’s that simple. In 1 Samuel, God’s word teaches that “the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on their heart.” This means that “training up a child” in spiritual growth is really about doing what we can as parents to help shape their heart for God.  

Hearts are shaped through small faithfulness over long periods of time. In other words, “baby steps.”  Start small and start simple. Pick one or two things that you can implement TODAY to foster shaping your child’s heart for God. That's it. Don't feel overwhelmed at the list below but see it as a menu to pick from in regards to finding a place to start with the hopes of fostering your child’s spiritual growth and heart for God. 

PRAYER:

Model to your child and encourage your child to pray. Remind your child and show your child that prayer is just talking to God. Tell Him about your day. Thank Him for the things that made you smile today. Ask Him for help in the areas where you’re struggling. 

Tip: If talking to God feels a little too daunting for your child at first, encourage your child to draw a picture, or ask your child what they think you should pray about and model praying for them or even use a singsong prayer. 

BIBLE READING:

Spend even a few minutes a day reading an age appropriate children’s Bible with your child. The Grounds has many options that your child is sure to love. Check them out HERE! As long as the children’s Bible is scripturally sound (and everything offered at the Grounds is!), pick a children’s Bible that you think your child will enjoy visually and stylistically because their enjoyment of Bible reading will make it that much easier to ingrain in them as a habit that they look forward to. 

Tip: Of course it is great to read the Bible anytime of day, but strive to find a consistent time of day that your child will respond positively to, and a time of day that won’t exasperate them. 

SERVING:

Serving others is at the heart of God, so we should strive to give our children opportunities to love Jesus through serving others. Pick somewhere to start, and pray that you and your child would find something that they’re passionate about. Meckidz offers a monthly mission specifically designed for kids. Check it out here! Depending on the age of your kids, some Missions 2.0 serve days may also be a great option. If one of those options doesn’t work, you can love homeless people through packing snack bags and handing them out from your car, bake cookies for an elderly neighbor, or support a child through Compassion. When it comes to serving others, the sky is the limit. But don’t let that intimidate you, start small as you work to “train up” your child’s heart for God.  

Once you choose a starting point, GET STARTED! Once you get started, KEEP GOING!  Once the one thing you chose is ingrained in your family culture and in your child’s spiritual life, pick something else to add on. Build slowly, and as you do, your child’s heart for God will grow. It will take time, but the fruit will be worth it.  

Ask for God’s guidance and discernment on where you can start with your kids. And remember that starting small TODAY is infinitely better than waiting for the “perfect” timing to start all of this sometime in the future.   

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