Gò0dNews for Parents
Have You Given Away Your Influence? by Matthew Dennis
I
have seen it many times: Christians who are shocked
teaching their kids to follow God. It is not the youth pastor’s
when their children have spent their entire lives in
or the children’s pastor’s job to make sure our children are
church, only to see them leave the faith as soon as they
following God. When they are little, your children WANT
enter college. The truth is, kids’ being in church one to
to spend time with you. Please do not give your influence
two hours a week will hardly influence them at all to love
away to a device or anything/ anyone else. Psalm 127:4 says
the things of God. We live in a culture that is constantly
that children are like arrows in the hands of a warrior. In
attempting to influence the way our children think.
other words, your children were given to you so that you
In Deuteronomy 6:5, God gave what Jesus referred to
could train them to make a difference for God’s Kingdom.
as the greatest commandment in all of Scripture: to love “the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.” In 6:7, God explains how they are to teach this commandment to their children: “You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.” The things of God are a daily conversation with our children, not just a Sunday event. Parents have incredible influence over their children. If parents continue to constantly put sports and extracurricular activities above God, then kids
I know that schedules can be busy, and sometimes
will continue to see that God cannot be taken seriously. If
parents have to work two jobs just to make ends meet, but
parents are not teaching their children to treasure His Word
there are ways to make time. Use the time driving to school
with all of their hearts, one day, they will think that God’s
to ask them what they are learning in church. Memorize
Word is just a book of fables. If you just sit them in front
Scripture with them before bed. Sit down at the dinner table
of a screen every day, they will tune you out and follow
and talk about God and His Word. Time is hard to come
whatever values are coming through that screen instead.
by, but God will give you the wisdom and grace needed to
In most cases, I have witnessed a HUGE difference
teach your children if you simply ask for both (James 1:5-6).
between children with parents who are actively engaged in some cases where parents are engaged and their children walk away anyway, but parents are still responsible for
20 // April 2020
About The Author
their faith development and parents who are not. There are
Matthew Dennis is currently serving as a children’s pastor and one of the college ministry leaders at The Grace Point in Cleveland, TN. You can follow him at awakenpurpose.wordpress.com.
