3 Reminders for Fostering Your Teen's Faith
I think most Christian parents hope that their children will follow in their footsteps and trust Jesus with their lives as they grow into adults. I know in raising my own children, I wanted them to share my faith in God, to learn to love Him, trust in Him, and know that He is for and not against them. That seemed easy when they were little and they just went along with the program. We would read Bible stories and talk about Jesus and the kids nodded their heads and had a very simple faith. But as they got older, all of a sudden they had questions - hard questions - that I didn’t always have answers to.
Why did that person die?
Why would God allow that to happen?
How do we know we are “right”, don’t people from all religions think they are “right”?
Why did God create me the way He did?
These questions can bring a mom to her knees. There are no easy answers anyone could give their kids to questions like these. I wrote the Make it Count curriculum to help moms navigate this difficult transition period as their kids get older. As your child moves into the teen years and you are wondering how to come alongside their faith journey, here are 3 things to keep in mind:
Realize it’s not all on you.
We all have to make our own decision on whether or not we will follow the Lord. I cannot make my child love God or believe that God loves them - their relationship with God is just that, “their relationship.” Your job is to love them, let God convict and pursue them.
Lead by example.
Make sure you are walking with the Lord yourself, momma! I can show my children God’s love through my ordinary, everyday life. As I grow closer to God, my children see the fruits of the Spirit in my life. Share with your teen what God is doing in your life, and what God is teaching you. That way your faith conversations are about your walk, not theirs.
Pray!
Put your children’s names on sticky notes, write out scripture that you want to pray over their lives, journal your prayers, do whatever you need to do, but pray for your children to come to love Jesus. One of our greatest privileges as moms is to be our child’s biggest prayer warrior.
Remember when the tough questions come (and they will come moms) that God is not afraid of their questions and you don’t need to be either. You have a lot of influence in your child’s life, so listen well, ask questions to open a dialogue and then try to speak truth.
For more on faith and your child, listen in to this week's episode of Wire Talk.