Building a Strong Spiritual Foundation for Your Child

During my childhood our family built a home. It was exciting driving out each day to see what had been accomplished since the day before. Construction still fascinates me. It amazes me how buildings start from just ideas and then end up as remarkable structures. I enjoy watching the planners, architects, and builders work together to accomplish their goal. Each one is important to the construction process. To me this is art in motion, from the initial design to the completed structure.

God has given us the awesome blessing and responsibility of helping Him build the lives of our children. This is the greatest construction of all. If we are going to build a strong spiritual foundation in a child's life, we will first need to know God's plan, His blueprint. Next, we begin by laying a solid foundation. We would never consider living in a house that had no foundation or a weak one. The first storm that came along would wipe it out. Neither would we knowingly buy a house from a builder who had hurried the construction or used materials of poor quality.

Have you ever taken a tour of a movie production lot? Did you see the beautifully constructed houses with perfectly manicured lawns? You probably were shown that these structures are not houses at all. They are only facades. They are built to give the appearance of houses, but in fact they are just props. They have no backs, insides, plumbing, or foundations. They are fake houses.

Do you see the lesson here? Children who are taught to act or talk like Christians without actually becoming Christians are not Christians. Children can give the appearance of being Christians because they have learned all the right information. However, that does not make them Christians. What is built on the inside is more important than what can be seen from the outside. The spiritual foundation we lay for a child's life is what the Holy Spirit will use when the child begins to become a Christian. It is the foundation on which he will build his whole Christian life.

In Jesus' day some men gave the appearance of belonging to God, but He saw right through them and called them "hypocrites." Help your child see the difference between knowing about Jesus and actually following Jesus. You not only want your child to know the definition of sin, but you also want him to truly repent of his sin. Help your child have a strong and personal faith in Christ by building a solid Christian foundation.

Good building blocks will help you build a solid spiritual foundation in your child's life. They are the greatest gifts you can give a child. Building a strong spiritual foundation for your child will prepare his heart for the Holy Spirit's conviction and leading. It will protect him from enemy arrows (fear, confusion, false teachings, temptation, pride, etc.). It will help him become a solid Christian.

BUILDING BLOCKS FOR A CHILD'S FAITH

A Godly Home

Whether your home has two parents, a single parent, or a blended family, you can have a Christian home, but it takes work. It takes work even when both parents are Christians. There are no shortcuts. Why? Parenting is hard work. Furthermore, Satan attacks parents, and he attacks children. But there is good news. God wants us to have healthy family relationships, strong marriages, and obedient children, which equal happy homes. However, this is not possible unless we invite God to be in charge of our families. When the presence of God is evident in parents' lives, their children are drawn to follow Christ with their lives. Christians who live faithful, obedient, joyful, disciplined, and godly lives affect those with whom they come in contact. Our impact as Christian parents is even more powerful. God wants parents to be the most influential shapers of their children's spiritual lives.

The characteristics that we possess influence what characteristics our children will possess. Our personalities help form their personalities. Our outlook and attitude shape theirs. Whether or not parents are Christians, they influence their children's spiritual lives. If you take the approach of leaving it up to the church to develop your children's spiritual life, you are making a gigantic mistake.

However, the church can and should come alongside the family. God has used many wonderful church leaders who teach children in Sunday school, vacation Bible school, church camp, Christian school, and other settings and who influence the lives of children in a tremendous way. These people are a parent's spiritual teammates. Parents should express heartfelt appreciation to those who affect their children for Christ.

Leading childhood educators and psychologists have told us for many years that a child's adult personality is about 90 percent complete by the age of five. This is another reason we should start a child's spiritual training from the time he or she is born. Spiritual training is not just sitting down with your child each week or each night to discuss the things of God. Having scheduled times for Bible stories, devotions, and discussion is very important. But a godly home is more than that. A godly home has an atmosphere. It has an attitude. It has purpose.

What is a godly home? A godly home begins with each parent being a committed Christian. The parents must also be committed to their marriage. All other family relationships are built from this most important relationship. Children watch the relationship between their parents and use it as a measuring stick for other relationships. Through their parents' example, children learn trust, patience, forgiveness, unselfishness, dependence, commitment, and love. By watching their parents' love for each other and for God, children learn about God. Marriage demonstrates to the children whether or not we really mean what we say about God.

Do not make the mistake that many couples make when they have children. They elevate the role of parent higher than that of spouse. This creates a home that is off-balance and will be greatly challenged when problems and stresses from life come along. God's Word teaches that a Christian home is made up of two godly parents involved in raising their children. The husband/father has specific duties, and so does the wife/mother. When these roles are ignored, overlooked, forgotten, or neglected, then chaos occurs.

If you are a single parent or a parent married to a nonbeliever, then you may at times feel very much alone. But you can be assured that God is with you and will use your influence in your children's lives even when you do not have anyone else supporting your efforts. It is also important, when you do not have a Christian partner at home, to build a team of Christian supporters around you and your children—church leaders, teachers, coaches, and relatives, to name a few. Ask them to be spiritual helpers, guides,...