16
Teaching Our Children About God
| Sis Mary Eyre (Jamaica)
H
ave you considered the early days of
Moses? What was the influence which, in
spite of his early surroundings in an idolatrous
Egyptian palace gave him that godly fear and
courage to suffer affliction with the people of
God? The secret, of course, lies in the fact
that his nurse was his own Hebrew mother.
The tremendous influence of a mother upon
her child in its early days is
one of the great teachings of
the Scriptures.
Beyond the hour or so at
Sunday School, children need
the daily spiritual food
prepared by the mother as
much as her tasty meals. In
what ways can we provide our children with
wholesome teachings about God, so ensuring
their spiritual health throughout the days?
Firstly, about His Name: Outside the home, the
most frequent use of the word “God” may
reach our children’s ears from the mouths of
those who have little respect
for Him. Others use His Name
under the cover of such words
as “golly”, “gosh”, and “gee”.
We must not use our lips in
this way: let us teach our
family to speak His Name
always in a respectful manner.
Secondly, about His care for
us: “For all things come of
thee, and of thine own have
we given thee.” Our regular
times of thanksgiving at meal-
times can be used to remind
our children of God’s care.
Repeating the same grace
should be avoided. The chil-
dren should be invited to take
turns in saying thanks and to
use the opportunity to
remember God’s blessings which they have
met that day: the pretty sunrise, the happy
games, health after sickness, the care of
schoolteachers.
Thirdly, about His Word: No parents should
allow the day to pass without providing their
children with something from God’s book: it
may be that the sister finds this responsibility
falls on her shoulders and, even if she has to
work outside the home, she will be strength-
ened to fit this necessary provision into her
busy day by recalling the words of Jesus,
“Seek ye first the Kingdom of
God”. The portion which we
choose to read should not be
too long. What a wonderful
picture book God has written
to show both young and old
how He can transform human
lives: the steadfastness of
Ruth, the repentance of
David, the stamina of Paul.
The experiences of the day may lead us to
choose a particular Bible incident to teach our
children what is beautiful or ugly in life. When
our children read the Bible on their own, look
for opportunities to ask them afterwards about
their reading. If we are
truthful about ourselves when
talking together of God’s
Word, our children too will
become heart searchers.
Whenever possible, let the
family assemble together daily
to read the Scriptures and to
pray. Teaching our children
about God’s Word takes but a
little part of the day, and yet
so much is to be gained – God
will be brought into the home
and His Word will be more than
a picture book: it will become
a rule for life.
Fourthly, about God’s love:
“He that loveth not his
brother whom he hath seen,
how can he love God whom he
hath not seen?” Our children cannot under-
stand the love of God unless we practice it in
the home. This love of God is the kind that
blesses and chastises for good.
Teaching our children
about God is the most
challenging task with
which parents are faced.
If we perform it faithfully,
there are rich rewards