Teaching the Gospel to Our Children

The wonders of our child’s mind is amazing to see. Their questions, thoughts, and even imaginations. Their little minds are extraordinary and adventurous.

Throughout the years of being a stay at home, 10 years to be exact, I have had a heart to engrave the Word of God in my children in some way. The Word of God is important to know for us adults, but how much more for our children? Though I never had it down correctly and tried at first to show them it all, I have come to see it is no race but rather, a journey to embrace on with the Lord all while allowing the Holy Spirit to lead.

There are times we think we are behind and need to hurry, much like how I felt for my teenager, but this isn’t so. Knowing and learning the Word of God is a lifetime experience in walking with our Lord. Instilling the Word of God in our children should be fun, interactive and a learning journey for them, not a chore! If doing it as such, as a chore, they become bored and it pushes them further away from God, not towards him.
You may think it’s silly but I narrate my voice at times when reading the stories of the Bible to my children. It’s fun and grabs their attention with laughter or the experience of sadness depending on that days read. I would even have them interrupt and ask questions, because questions are good for their little growing minds.

So how do we teach our children the Word of God?

Take it slow. Carve out time in your day to read the Word together. It doesn’t matter how little or old they are, this brings such great connection with one another.
Choose a book of the Bible you can read together, whether it’s the story of Creation, the story of Noah, the story of Jonah, or the story of Jesus’ birth.
Don’t rush. Teaching sound doctrine should not be rushed but enjoyed through. We can share sound doctrine to their little hearts by sharing simple truths for their appropriate ages.
Have them draw out a picture of what you read. This could spark their imagination and capture their listening ears.

One way that has helped us was asking them how they feel. We never want to diminish their feelings or have them sweep it under the rug. Rather, we want to talk it through and lead them to what the Word of God says about it. Helping them to navigate through those feelings by taking them to Christ and reciting truth within their hearts. How we did this was, again, asking them how they felt. Let’s say for example, one says, “I’m afraid of the dark.” You would then head to the concordance in your bible and search “fear.” There you will find verses to help pray over them and even have them memorize that verse.
When they began to share with us how they feel, we would then search the Word together. I had them open up their bibles and we would search verses to speak truth in those matters. We then had them write one verse down and memorize it. Now, they are able to recite scripture anytime something not of God comes in, they are able to use their weapons, the Sword, to dismantle lies.

Before we began our journey on homeschooling, we would read every night before bed. This is what helped us begin. We would read a story and talk about what we learned and answer questions they may have.

As the Lord led our family to homeschool and our schedule being changed, we begin each day with Bible class. We read the Word together, they would memorize scripture, recite the Word, and we even have pop quizzes. My children enjoy this! I know it sounds untrue but it really is something they get excited about. Every Friday they ask “are we getting a pop quiz today?” And they smile big when I say “okay let’s do a pop quiz.” We also have coloring sheets and short videos to show the story behind the bible reading we had read.

When my oldest was little, she would grab her bible and tag along with me in the early mornings. She would highlight verses as she saw me highlight. She would write in her bible as she saw me write in mine. They see us mothers in our time with God, how we see him, what we do in our down time, they see it all and soak it up like a sponge soaks up water.

Do you recall the time when you were a kid and learned about God? How did you hear about God? About Jesus? Did you know God as a kid? What bible stories grabbed your attention? What do you wish you knew as a kid?

Sharing the Gospel with our children is not a race. It’s a journey the Holy Spirit leads us through to help equip and teach our children by instilling the truth of Gods Word in their hearts one verse, one story, one day at a time.

The key points we can teach our children is to have them know:

Abba Father wants a relationship with us.
Since the beginning of time, God has been all about relationship. It is why He created Adam. He knew it was not good for man (Adam) to be alone and so therefore, he created Eve. God loves relationship and wants a relationship with us.

He loves us deeply, it is why He sent Jesus to save us from our sins.
Humans sin. And in sin there is death. But in Christ there is eternal life.

Salvation is in Christ alone.
We are saved from eternal separation when we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior.

Sin separates us from God. But with Christ and repentance, He restores our relationship back to God.
Because God is holy, sin cannot be where God is. Therefore, we must repent of our sins, turn away from them, and turn to God.

Simple truth for little ears

Here are a few simple truths you can teach your littles ones as you begin to navigate this journey.

verses

• For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16
• I praise you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works my soul knows it very well. Psalm 139:14
• The Lord is my Shepherd I shall not want. Psalm 23:1
• He will cover you with his pinions and under his wings you will find refuge. His faithfulness is a shield and buckler. Psalm 91:4
• The fruit of the Spirit is, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control; against such things there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23
• And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is is the great and first commandment.” Matthew 22:37

God’s Charachter

God is Faithful
God is True
God is Love
God is Just
God is Patient
God is Kind
God is Good
God is Compassionate
God is Holy
God is Unchanging
God is Eternal
God is All-Powerful
God is All-Knowing
God is Jealous
God is Sovereign

Stories to begin reading in

Please do not view this section as a check off the box. View it as starting point if you are unsure where to begin.
We started at God’s creation, then were led to the birth of Jesus and began to read about Daniel and the lion’s den, then so forth. My children have loved the stories told to them, it has imprinted deeply within their hearts. We would read one to two chapters a day, sometimes less.
I suggest, with little hearts and minds, breaking the chapters up. Older ones can tolerate longer reads as littler ones can only handle so much. Don’t overload their minds and hearts, but instead, read what is possible for your little ones.

God’s Creation | Genesis 1-2
The Fall of Man | Genesis 3
The Story of Joseph | Genesis 37 & 39
The Story of Moses | Exodus 2-4
Jonah & The Fish | Jonah 1-4
The Birth of Jesus | Luke 1:26-56
David & Goliath | 1 Samuel 17
Daniel in the Lions Den | Daniel 6

resources

ESV Student Study Bible (I would recommend this bible for the ages 9 and up)
CSB Kids Explorer Bible (we have this one and have loved it!)
I AM: 40 Bible Stories, Devotions and Prayers (this we use quite a bit along with our Bible Reading)
Minno YouTube Channel
Fruits of the Spirit Coloring Printable
The Daily Grace Children Resources I personally love the Daily Grace studies. It’s rich in sound doctrine and points always to Christ never ourselves or the world.

There will be more free resources coming at She Walks His Way as we allow the Lord to lead and direct our steps into motherhood, homeschooling, becoming the godly wife and the woman who pursues Jesus in her daily tasks. So stay tuned! You can also stay tuned by reading a new blog posted every Thursday or by becoming an email friend staying alert to free resources and more!