Children think about God. They like to talk about God. Each person experiences God in a different way, and some not much at all. Some adults consider it a private matter, hesitating to speak of it even with the children we love most. It can be difficult for kids to learn responsiveness to God if we won’t give up a bit of our privacy.
How many of these statements are true of you?
- I pray in front of the child.
- I give concrete examples of when I have seen God at work in or around me, and how I responded to seeing that.
- I worship and highly esteem God, even more than I worship success, entertainment, money, or other people.
- Sometimes I start a conversation with the child: “I see God in that person. Do you want to know how?”
- When I see a stranger doing a random act of kindness I point it out to the child.
Consider each idea in turn, from the list above.
- In which have you already engaged with specific children? What was their response?
- Is there one you want to try? With which children?
- Remember, you have the option to adapt the ideas to fit with your understanding of God, if necessary.
When you read the example below, in what specific ways do you see the mother modeling and teaching responsiveness to God?
When I was making a difficult decision about whether to take a particular job in another state, I intentionally decided to let my 9-year-old son in on my process. I told him about the opportunity and we made a Pros and Cons list, but we didn’t stop there.
I told him I wanted to pray to God about what God would want me to do. I asked my son if he would also pray and listen for whatever God might be telling him, especially since this decision affected him, too.
We prayed and talked together over the course of a few weeks, and eventually came to the same conclusion. This new job would provide many more opportunities for me to help people were were sick and in need. (I am in the medical field.)
There was nothing crucial to keep us in the location where we were. Even though the money would be less, we both felt released by God to move so that I could take this new opportunity.
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