I think for many Christian parents, a main goal is to want to help their children grow in faith. But I would dare to say 90% of those same Christian parents get overwhelmed and drop the ball in putting faith first due to busy schedules, not knowing where to start or just life. Between school, meals, activities, meals, house chores, more meals (if you can't tell this one really gets me!) and everything else in the day, it can be hard to know how to consistently bring faith into family life.
The good news is that building a strong faith at home doesn’t require long Bible studies or complicated plans. Sometimes the most meaningful spiritual growth comes from simple daily habits that keep God at the center of family life.
Let's talk about three easy habits that we personally use in our home and can help your family grow closer to God too. First, let me be clear, the overwhelm of the day to day still creeps in here and there. It's not always easy and somedays the days just seem hard. But I really do try to remind myself that throughout the day I make multiple choices on how to fill our time, and our faith should always be first. That's why I love these three easy ways to take a moment to focus on God.
1- Start your homeschool time in God's Word
Beginning your homeschool time, or the morning if you don't homeschool, with a short Bible verse can help set the tone for the whole day. It doesn’t need to be long, just reading one verse together can open up meaningful conversations. Read the scripture together and follow it up with questions like; "how can we live this out today?" Or, "what does this scripture teach us about God?" (Check out my curriculum that incorporates this habit here). This is also a great opportunity to let your kids talk through something in their life that connects to the scripture, and you can give them an example from your life. Like when studying Ephesians 4:26-27, where it says to not give the devil a foothold during a time of anger, talk to your kids about a time you may have given in to your anger and how you needed to seek God's forgiveness and what you can do differently next time you feel angry.
2- Pray together at simple times
Prayer doesn’t have to happen only during church or family devotions. Some of the best prayer moments happen naturally throughout the day. Before starting school, at hard times through the day, at happy times through the day, or pray for a stranger when you hear the sirens of a first responder. Use small moments to show your kids how prayer isn't always a formal, perfectly planned out set of words, but it's a chance to talk to God. A chance to praise what God has done for you, a chance to plead to God. Teaching kids to give it to God at all times helps them navigate through the lows in their lives where they might otherwise feel alone or helpless. Homeschooling isn't just about teaching our kids the facts of math and language arts, but it's also about teaching our kids that God is the way and the light. Just as God spoke to Jeremiah, He knew every one of us before we were born, He purposely created each and every one of us and wants us to always come to Him in prayer.
3- Have options
In our home, having the boys directly read from their Bibles is always a struggle. Whether it's them not wanting to sit down and read or we don't have the time, I always feel like this is such a dark cloud for me right now. I still encourage it, but it doesn't happen the way I want it to and somedays I feel like I'm failing them. So, insert all the options! We have scripture flashcards, Bible study brain-quest games, Bible infographics (like this one), Bible Yoto stories with matching books, The Action Bible, and so much more. Some days our Bible study is a scripture study from our curriculum and other days it's my boys watching a Biblical show while coloring or building Legos.
Our days don't always look the same but right now, this is how we get into God's Word and it works for us. Let me know if you use any of these tips and how they work or what your family does to effortlessly dive into God's Word and keep your family's faith growing strong!
Prayers,
Kayloni