Passing the Faith on to the Next Generation.

Holding my little grandson Nolan in my arms brought the words of Psalm 127:3 to mind, "Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, the fruit of the womb a reward." Children are indeed a gift from God! But along with the joy of having children comes responsibility. I believe the greatest part of this responsibility is to introduce our children to the Lord Jesus Christ. How can parents do this in a way that will grab and hold the attention of their children (which is no easy task in this technology saturated age in which we live!)?  Here a just a couple of suggestions:

1. Grab their hearts with PASSION - your passion for God AND your passion for them! Your children need to see that  you are passionate about your faith in Christ - that your faith in Christ means far more than just attending church most Sundays or praying before eating a meal. They need to see you as an authentic follower of Jesus. They need to see you in God's Word. Talking to others who don't know Jesus about Him. Giving generously and sacrificially of your resources to the church and kingdom ministries. They also need to experience your passion for them. That  you LOVE them - unconditionally and unfailingly. What you need to shower upon them is the kind of love Paul describes in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7.

2. Saturate their minds with TRUTH - God's truth! If the apostle Paul is right that spiritual transformation begins with the mind (see Romans 12:2), then we must be intentional about teaching our children the Word of God (see also Jesus' prayer concerning our sanctification in John 17:17). Given how our culture is moving further and further away from God's truth it becomes all the more important that we take the spiritual training of our children more serious than ever. If we do not, our children will simply "go with the flow" and buy into the lies that permeate our society about how to find fulfillment and significance (which, by the way, is very much the opposite of the path toward these things laid out by our Creator!).

So ... all this leads me to the following questions I offer to you to ask of yourself:

1. How passionate am I about Jesus? Is He merely and add-on to my busy schedule? Or is He truly the center of my life? If my children were asked, what would they say about my relationship with Christ?

2. How passionate am I about my children? Do they feel my love? Do they know I love them unconditionally? Or do they feel they have to earn my love?

3. What is it that I are doing to saturate my children's minds with God's Word (and I mean beyond merely bringing them to Sunday School or Awana - the church is here to assist parents in this area of training up their children for Christ ... it is NOT the church's job to do it!)? Do I ever talk with them about what God is teaching me in Scripture?

Our children are gifts to us. They are on loan to us from the Creator! So ... let's determine to do our best for HIM and for them!

Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj

P.S. - I will be sharing more about this extremely important topic this coming Sunday at Grace (9:00 and 10:30 services).