Parenting as Christians is difficult on good days. We want the best for our children, and we want to grow them up knowing Jesus, accepting Him as Savior, and living for Him.

All parents want to see their children grow up and make excellent life decisions. We long to see them succeed in life. That’s natural.

For the most part, though, this doesn’t “just happen.” It requires parents to be intentional. We have to live that life we want them to know and accept. We are the models they learn from. Our faith is lived out before them every day – regardless how weak, complacent, struggling, or strong.

We should pour the wisdom of God into our children, teaching them, modeling for them how to lean on Him every day, not just the bad ones. We should teach them to pray by doing so in front of and with them. We should teach them how to build and keep relationships by being loving, kind, and forgiving. We should model the life of Jesus in our homes so our children learn from that.

None of this can be taught just from the Book. We don’t get to relegate this teaching to the Sunday School teacher or preacher. It requires us as parents (and grandparents) to live this Christlike life in front of the children every day, in every circumstance.

While we don’t need to share the details of every difficult situation with the little ones, it’s good to share that the family has to cut back on purchases for a while, then demonstrate that by cutting back yourself without complaint or comment. Perhaps the family needs to eat more healthy foods. Let the children know, then do it without complaint – lead the way.

Let the children see you holding your Bible to read it. (They can’t tell if you’re reading the Bible or Facebook when you’re using your phone.) When a verse stands out to you, parents, discuss it between yourselves and allow the children to hear. This teaches them to dig deeper into the meaning of the words and how to talk about the Bible without it feeling awkward. (It might feel awkward to you in the beginning, but you’ll learn.)

Let’s start today to lay a firm foundation for our children and grandchildren to build upon. No matter their age, it’s time.

Coffee, Bible, Journal.