After an exhausting ministry engagement, I retired to the couch, trying to flesh up my next devotional posts. My older daughter came around with these words; “Daddy, can we quickly use this free time to do Bible study?” In my mind, I was like; “Which free time? If you know how tired I am, you won’t be talking about Bible study.” But I did not let out the words. Instead, in my tiredness, I gave her and her sister a passage to read and come back for discussion. In about 15 minutes, they were done reading. I had to put myself together for a quality Bible study time with them. It blessed me as much as it blessed them.
Friend, children want to learn the Bible. The truth is, children would desire more of what you expose them to (2 Timothy 3:15). Expose them to excessive movies, and they would desire more of it. Expose them to God’s word, and they would be the one asking you for more. We are all products of our exposures (Acts 16:1-5). If you were wrongly exposed, kindly do well by not repeating the same pattern with your children or any other child around your sphere.
It is easier to train a child than to repair an adult (Proverbs 22:6). Children are in their formative season. With the right guidance, they have a chance to a great future (Galatians 4:1-2). This is why parents must not be absent from their responsibility at home. You cannot be too busy to take care of the spiritual and mental well-being of your children.
What your child needs is not only money or material things. He needs love. Love for a child is spelt as TIME. I often shiver when I read in scriptures that the sons of Eli were sons of Belial (1 Samuel 2:12). How can the children of a pastor or any Christian, for that matter, be the children of the devil at the same time? The problem is lack of time and attention. Don’t try to save the world and lose your family. Don’t cook serious revelation for the Church while your children are starving (Acts 21:8-9).
Children want to learn the Bible. Like Timothy, God wants us to learn Him from our childhood (2 Timothy 3:15). Some of us have missed this opportunity, and we must not deprive our young ones. Let’s engage them with the Bible. Let’s attend churches where attention is given to scriptures. As we hire home tutors to teach them mathematics, hiring Bible study tutors won’t be a bad idea, too. Where your heart is, your treasure would go there (Matthew 6:21).
Finally, know the Bible for yourself as an adult (2 Timothy 1:5). You cannot give what you don’t have. Every adult must be a reservoir of the right knowledge so that young people can come drink to fill. There are questions in the heart of these ones. There are contemplations going on in their minds. The devil is out there to deceive and derail them. We must intentionally engage them before the devil entangles them. May the Lord help us.
‘Demola Awoyele
Lead Pastor,
Destiny Impact Church
Akure, Nigeria