Raising Kids That Love Jesus

I’m the wife of the Lead Pastor at my church and my kids don’t know the 10 Commandments. There, I said it. Sometimes I feel like my kids don’t have basic Bible knowledge. And I wonder, am I doing all I can in raising kids that love Jesus? I have an 8-year-old and a 3-year-old, and the other day, my 8-year old asked me “Mom, what are the 10 Commandments”? My kids should know this stuff, right? What’s worse is I am a former Children’s Pastor. Ugh! Oh, the horror! This has parenting fail written all over it, doesn’t it?

Perhaps for you it isn’t the 10 Commandments, perhaps its something else you think they should already know. In my mind, my kids should know all of the books of the Bible, know what a catechism is and have all of Jesus’ genealogy memorized… by age 5. That’s not too much to ask, right?

I then have to stop myself and ask, where is this coming from? Why do I think that my kids need to know all of this? And why do I feel like a failure as a parent if they don’t?

I know that just like me, you want your kids to grow up to be adults that love Jesus and follow him. I know we want to do everything we can to show our kids who Jesus is and how much he loves them. But I also know there are many ‘voices’ out there that have opinions on what that whole process should look like and consist of. And so begins the mom guilt.

As a mom, there are so many pressures we feel. We feel real pressure make sure we are raising kids who love Jesus. We put pressure on ourselves to be the best mom we can be. To feed our kids only the best of foods. To instill in them the best character traits one can have. And if our kids show signs of being… well… a human-being (flawed) we freak out. Then we start hearing about what other moms are doing to raise their kids and teach them about Jesus and see that we aren’t doing any of that. Not even close. And what’s worse, it seems daunting to catch up to others. We start questioning whether we have what it takes to be a good mom.

Well, let me tell you something, Mama… You’ve got what it takes.

God hand-picked you from the beginning of time to be the mom of those kiddos who are right now probably asking for a snack for the 334th time today. He will also equip you to have the right words at the right time to help your little one encounter Jesus every day, in the seemingly mundane-ness of life.

So, what did I do to rectify my kids’ 10 Commandments situation? (My Children’s Pastor ego just couldn’t let go after all.)

I looked around for what I already had. My daughter had an Kids Adventure Bible and I had purchased the Exodus Kids Read Truth Lent cards (from She Reads Truth). We also had the Bible App for Kids on my phone. We then just read her Bible, talked through question on the Kids Read Truth Cards and tapped our way through the Bible App for kids to explore what the 10 Commandments were and where they came from. It wasn’t polished or perfect but it turned out to be a great time of learning, talking and sharing about what Moses’ story and the commandments mean for us today.

I’ve worked with families in my 7+ years as a Children’s Pastor. In that time I’ve learned 3 things we can do to raise our kids to love Jesus.

3 Ways to Raising Kids That Love Jesus:

1. Start doing what works for your family.

   That will look different from mine, and from the other mom that you sit next to in the crying room at your church. If you have a daily, weekly devotional time with your kids and it works… keep doing it. If you just haven’t fit that kind of consistent devotional time with your kids, that’s ok. You are not alone. Find something that works for you and your family’s schedule and do it. You are well on your way to raising kids that love Jesus. It’s probably going to seem like no one is listening but they are just keep doing it.

   For more details on what this could look like visit Start Raising Kids that Love Jesus.

2. Stop doing what isn’t working for your family.

   If it isn’t working and it’s just causing more stress and chaos than normal, then do something else. Try new things till you find what works.

3. Strive for connection, not perfection.

   This one is key to raising kids that love Jesus. If you are trying to download all the Biblical information into your kiddos but you aren’t connecting with them, the information will bypass their heart. Transformation happens through relationship connections. When your kids know you not only love them but you like them, what you say to them will come alive in them.

I’m on this Mom journey too. And when it comes to raising kids that love Jesus, I’ve been tempted by the comparison trap just like you. I know how the mom pressures feel. It’s heavy stuff. And so it is my hope to share what I have learned and am learning, and even pass along some resources to help make it easier for you be the mom you already are. Strong. Loved. Enough.

I’d love to hear more ideas of what you do at home with your kids! Share them in the comments.