Introducing a faith path for family discipleship.
Once upon a time, in a land not too far away, there was a farmer. The only thing this farmer had left in the world was a small garden and a fist-sized leather pouch of seeds.
But she wasn’t worried.
She had confidence that her soil was good. She had confidence that the sun would shine and the rains would come and in due time, she would receive a harvest many times bigger than her small leather pouch could hold.
So she borrowed a spade and turned the soil, chopping up clumps, pulling out stubborn roots, and sprinkling in some compost. Then she borrowed a hoe and made neat, straight rows in the dark, moist soil.
Last, she pulled out her prize possession: the small leather pouch of seeds. She sprinkled them into the furrows and brushed soil over top. When she had covered the very last seed, the leather bag was empty.
But she wasn’t worried.
Each day she went to check her garden. Sometimes a bird would come to peck a seed out of the soil and fly away with it.
But she wasn’t worried.
She stood watch, making sure the birds didn’t take too many.
After a week, the first tiny shoots came up. But they weren’t all from the seeds she had planted. It was hard to tell at first, but as they grew larger, she could spot the difference between the weed sprouts and the desired sprouts. Gently, she pulled out any weeds that could come out without uprooting the tender sprouts beside them. Some would have to stay until the sprouts were larger and could withstand more tugging.
But she wasn’t worried.
Then she noticed one section where the sprouts struggled to come up. She dug her fingers into the soil and discovered many rocks in that corner of the garden. The sprouts that grew here would need to grow extra sturdy.
But she wasn’t worried.
The rains came and the sun shone and her soil was good.
The sprouts grew and their stems lengthened and their leaves unfurled.
And in due time, they produced seeds of their own, a full harvest that was many times bigger than her small leather pouch.
She was called to sow those seeds, but she had confidence in the One who controls the weather. She cared for her seeds with consistency, creatively responding to struggles that came up.
Likewise, we as parents are called to sow the seeds of faith in our children, but we can have confidence that the One who began a good work in our families will carry it onto completion. We must nurture those seeds of faith through consistent habits, but we also need to be creative in the way we present faith to our kids, and the way we deal with struggles.
In the parable above, the results weren’t up to the farmer. She couldn’t make the birds stop pecking or the weeds stop growing or pulverize the rocks.
“For as the soil makes the sprout come up and a garden causes seeds to grow, so the Sovereign LORD will make righteousness and praise spring up before all nations.”
Isaiah 61:11 (NIV)
God is the one who makes righteousness and praise spring up like a sprout from the soil, but someone had to put the seed there in the first place.
Is that person a Sunday School teacher? Sometimes. But I believe the best person to sow the seeds of faith in our children and to cultivate them to fruitfulness is the person who’s with your child the most: YOU. The parent, grandparent, or guardian.
No matter who you are, how long you’ve been following Jesus, or how many faith questions you have, God has given you, as parent or grandparent, the mandate to teach your children of His mighty acts.
- I believe that you can develop the confidence that you are following your calling as spiritual leader even amidst your busy life.
- I believe that you can connect with your kids and with God in an authentic way.
- I believe that guiding your children into a relationship with Jesus can be more than just an item on your to-teach list.
But with so many books and blog articles and podcasts, how do you know where to start?
Start with the faith path.
The stages in this family faith growth path are all about helping you, as a parent, start small habits that grow, and focus on ideas that will truly make a long-term difference in your kids.
Spend some time figuring out which stage you are in, or if you’re straddling several stages, which milestones and action items you have already taken.
The clearer you are on which growth stage you’re in, the better you’ll be able to see where you want to go. And the growth path is here to help you with specific milestones and action items to help you grow from one stage to the next.
But it’s not JUST about the kids.
It’s also important to be growing in faith yourself, because in all the verses in the Bible about teaching the next generation or teaching our kids, it always starts with our own faith.
We have to praise Him and serve Him and love Him if we are to truly lead our children. That doesn’t mean our faith-life is perfect. It just means that it’s there.
Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.
Deuteronomy 6:4-9
First, we love the Lord. The commandments are on OUR hearts.
Then, we impress them on our children by talking about them at home, on the road, when they lie down, and when they get up.
Why is it a faith PATH?
I believe that we are called to share the love of Jesus with our kids, but that we don’t all start at the same place.
- Maybe you found Jesus later in life, and are just learning what it means to be transformed by him.
- Perhaps you grew up going to church, but your parents never talked about faith with you.
- Maybe your family did nightly devotions after supper but you were bored to tears because it never felt applicable to your life.
I believe that you and I are on a journey. The end goal is a family that is like a fruitful tree, but we ALL start with just a seed!
That’s why it’s a path, not a prescription.
The best way to grow, no matter how much you know about God
The easiest way to help your kids grow deep faith roots is to cultivate tiny, consistent habits that add up over time. Starting LITTLE is always the best place to start any new journey.
These LITTLE habits will grow like roots in your family, and they allow you to be more creative and go deeper with your kids as you develop confidence in God’s faithfulness and in your leadership skills.
Check out my free resource: Start LITTLE: 5 Quick Wins To Deepen Your Family’s Faith
Imagine if…
…you felt confident when teaching your kids to know and follow God.
…it felt natural to talk to your kids about God.
…you were actually able to stick to a faith habit that brought life to your family.
When you join the Little Shoots Deep Roots community, you will learn to lead your kids spiritually through little faith habits, without feeling like you have to do it all or know it all.
I’m all about making family faith fun and simple so that your kids love it, and you can feel confident that you’re nurturing deep faith roots in your family.
If I can, you can too…
When my kids were little, I desperately wanted to nurture deep faith roots in their lives, but I couldn’t find the right tools. I flitted from creative idea to devotional book to the next big idea, but I had no routines. I never got past day 5 of a devotional book, I couldn’t remember to pray for my kids at night, and I felt like a failure.
I was the Children’s Ministry Director at my church and I couldn’t even figure out how to teach my own kids about God consistently! Deep down, I wanted my husband to simply take over and be the spiritual leader so I wouldn’t have to change, but I learned early on in our marriage that he wanted to leave the direct teaching to me.
Little by little, I began to recognize the power of tiny little faith habits in our lives. I learned how to tuck in a 30-second prayer at bedtime and was delighted when that tiny habit eventually led to a robust nightly conversation about faith. I researched habit formation and found a way to make morning devotional time a habit for us.
Through it all, I discovered that tiny little faith habits are the best tools for growing deep faith roots in my family. They provided the structure we needed, freeing me up to get creative and have fun.
I finally tuned out the voices telling me that I had to do big things in order for my family to thrive spiritually, and I learned to trust in God’s calling on my life as the spiritual leader of my children.
We still have a lot to learn, but by God’s grace, we are growing roots that will last.
Ready to get started? Nab my free printable: Start LITTLE: 5 Quick Wins To Deepen Your Family’s Faith and start your journey today!
This is such a great article and message. Small things, added up over time, make a big difference. Sometimes we won’t see the fruits of our labor for years and years. But our children are absorbing and learning and growing, little by little. Thanks for the reminder!