Spiritual foundations are one of the most important parts of a child’s growing faith. They help to shape and develop their relationship with God. Even though they are learning about spiritual foundations in church, it’s imperative to implement them at home as well. When children learn that prayer, worship, reading God’s word, and being generous are meant to be in every part of their lives, they learn that their relationship with God is meant to be in every part of their lives. Here are four tips for implementing spiritual foundations at home!
1. Take Every Opportunity to Pray
Normalize praying in every setting and situation. Let your child see you praying during your quiet time, when you’re making a big decision, or in a random moment when you feel like prayer is necessary. Let them pray for things and people. Allow them to lead prayer at the dinner table or bedtime. Teach them that prayer should always be their first defense! Pray in the car on the way to school and as a family when you’re running an errand on the weekend. Taking every opportunity to pray will teach your children that prayer is both normal and foundational. They’ll grow up in a household that chose to pray first and take that with them as they continue to grow in their faith.
2. Include Worship in Your Daily Routine
One of the best ways we honor God is through our worship. God loves when we sing to him! We think he especially loves it when his children sing to him. By including worship music in your daily routine, your child will learn to praise God in every situation. If you’ve had a bad day at work, worship, if your child was misbehaving, worship, if something exciting happens in your family, worship! You must teach your child that no matter what the circumstances may be, God is always good and always deserves to be worshipped. For many people, worship grows to become the spiritual foundation they connect with the most. By setting the tone for them as they are growing up, this could be true for your child as well.
3. Read God’s Word as a Family
The best way we learn more about God is through his Word. Take a little time every day to read the Bible as a family. This will not only grow your child’s knowledge of God but their faith in him as well. A great resource for young children is The Bible App! As a parent, you must teach them that the ultimate way to hear from God is through what is written in the Bible. Help them to understand that for every problem life may bring, God’s word has a good solution. If they grow up falling in love with God’s word, they will likely love it throughout their whole life. They will run to the Word for everything and use it as their first defense. Reading the Bible with them at an early age has the power to set a strong foundation for them as they grow.
4. Display Generosity
As written in 2 Corinthians, the Lord loves a generous and cheerful giver. Generosity can often be one of the most difficult spiritual foundations for someone to grasp. As a family, show your child what it means to be generous with not only your money but your time and resources as well. If possible, take them with you when volunteering. Allow them to pick out toys of their own to be donated, as well. This will help cultivate a joyful attitude when they are giving. Teaching your child these things will not only make God’s heart happy but, it will leave yours feeling pretty full, too.
At Connect Point Early Learning Center, it is our honor to partner with families in spiritual foundations. We truly believe that making them a priority at an early age is the best way to set your child up for a thriving relationship with God! For more questions on how your child can be a part of the Connection Point family, visit our website at https://cpointelc.com/.