A Father's PathSample

Developing a Child’s Walk With God

A father's responsibility is to train his children to know and follow Jesus.

This does not diminish the importance of moms in the spiritual development of children, of course; it simply is a challenge to men to be involved in helping their children develop their walk with God.

Here are three key ways to help your children strengthen their journey with the Lord:

1. Help your children know the story of the Bible through the stories of the Bible. The Bible is a collection of stories of God’s ongoing relationship with normal humans, just like your children. There are a variety of age-appropriate Bibles and story books that will help your children learn the story of the Bible.
2. Help your children memorize the Bible. God’s Word says, “Your Word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against you” (Psalm 119:11). Here’s the point: the more you can get God’s Word into the heart of your children, the more He will use it to help them find the right path. Children memorize through repetition (think about how they learn a song!). So, you can do this simply by picking one Bible verse every week and repeating that verse over and over as a family until everyone can say the verse without looking at the Bible.
3. Help your children learn to pray and develop personal devotions. Numerous age-appropriate devotional books exist; the key is that you want to encourage your children to learn to talk to God and to listen to how He wants to speak to them. You can do this by giving them the chance to pray out loud at home and by asking questions like, “What has God been speaking to you from the Bible lately?”

When you help your children cultivate their own relationship with God, you will also help them make wise decisions when you are not around.

Prayer: Father, help my kids to find You and know You. May they know Your Word, hear Your voice, and walk in Your ways. Give me the wisdom to help them find Your path. Amen.

Reflection: What are some key elements of your own walk with God? In what ways are you showing those things to your children?