Super Parents are Just Ordinary People Doing Ordinary Things Consistently

Part One: Teach them about Jesus and the Word

Image courtesy Jacob and Kiki Hantla

As our pastor’s wife says, “If you’re too busy to teach your kids about Jesus, you’re too busy.”

Since the word of the Lord is one of the few things that will remain forever, it follows that we should make knowing the Bible and teaching God’s ways to our kids a priority in our lives. This instruction is not the kind we can check off in a neat little box and be “done” for the day. Instead, it is to be woven into the fabric of everything we do.

“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.” (Deut. 6:7).

While reading the Bible to our kids seems very ordinary on the surface, it yields extraordinary results. It may seem like nothing is happening as we faithfully read the Word to our kids each day, but under the surface, a seed is taking root. Just as tulips break through the hard ground--frozen by winter, faithfulness in planting the Word into the soil of our kids’ spirits will result in visible results in their lives through time.

Plus, unlike any other book in the entire planet, the Bible is living and active. An older, wise man from our church said once that when we read the Word to our children, it communicates to them on a different plane--Spirit to spirit. I thought that was a profound way to put it.

So what are some practical ideas for feeding our kids with the Word?

• Start when they’re little. Read to them from the Bible. Bible storybooks are colorful and certainly have their place, but nothing should replace the actual Word of God. The Beginner's Bibleis not “living and active,” whereas the Holy Bible is.

• When they’re little, read them a few sentences out of the Bible and talk about what those verses teach us. Build from there.

• Read them real stories from the Bible. These fascinate my boys.

• As they learn to read, encourage them to read out of the Bible on their own in addition to your family Bible reading.

By modeling a love for God’s ways and His Word, we lay a strong foundation for our kids to build on in their own lives. Personally, I want my boys to make a solid habit of turning to the Word first when they have a problem or question in their lives. I’m not going to be with them every single day for the rest of their lives, but God—and His Word—will. It’s my job to prep the course. Sure, it feels ordinary—some might even say boring—day in, day out; but this ordinary act yields unbelievable results when done faithfully, day in, day out.

Part 2: Be Who You Are!
Part 3:  Teach Children to Work