Nurturing a Love for God in Your Family
Not long after having children, I realized the incredible impact that parents have on what our children grow to love. From sports teams to snacks to movies to the ways we spend our days, our children are naturally drawn to love the things that we love. For Christian parents, our greatest desire in raising our children is that they would grow to know and love the Lord above all else. So, we must ask ourselves, do our children see us loving God?
In Deuteronomy 6, Moses commands, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might” (Deut. 6:5). He then commands parents to teach their children to do the same: “These words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children” (Deut. 6:6).
As we consider how to nurture a love for God in our families, notice the order of this command. God’s Word must first dwell in the hearts of the parents before it is taught to their children. Our children are paying attention to the things we do, the things we talk about, and the things we make time for. They see what brings us the most joy, where we seek comfort, and how we respond to disappointment and suffering. They see how we cling to God’s Word, how we draw near to God in prayer, and how we speak about His wondrous works in our lives. Our loves show our children what we believe to be most valuable and what we should turn our affection toward.
Therefore, we must first cultivate our own love for God in order that our children may grow to love Him. We will not always model our faith perfectly, and we are not expected to do so. But God gives us the opportunity to show our children what it looks like to live out our love for God. When we fall short, we can model repentance, confess our sins, seek forgiveness, and rest in Christ’s finished work on the cross.
As parents who seek to love the Lord with all our hearts, souls, and might, we find comfort in knowing that the Lord loved us first and that our efforts are anchored not in ourselves, but in His grace alone.
God’s Word must first dwell in the hearts of the parents before it is taught to their children.
Moses continues, “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” (Deut. 6:7). Teaching our children to know and love God means that we must teach them God’s Word. We are called to teach our children in such a way that they understand who God is, what He has done, what He requires of us, and why He alone is worthy of our worship and praise. This includes family devotions, Bible reading, and Scripture memory, but Deuteronomy 6 also calls us to display the kind of love for God and His Word that permeates everyday moments.
When our children are afraid, we can talk about how God is our refuge and strength in times of need. When our children experience success, we can consider how God is the giver of good gifts. When plans fail or disappointment comes, we can remind our children that God is sovereign over all things and that His purposes cannot fail. When our children have questions, we can open God’s Word with them. These ordinary yet diligent conversations remind our children that talking about God is not strictly for Sundays and that His truths and promises can meet us anywhere, anytime. And as they continue to see the world through the lens of the Bible, we can hope and pray that God will continue to reveal Himself to them through His Word.
Though the home is an essential place for cultivating a love for God, parents were never meant to do this alone. God has graciously gifted us with His church, His people. Our children don’t only need to see us love God; they need to see us loving and being loved by God’s people too. Being a part of a church allows us to sit under the preaching and teaching of God’s Word together, join fellow Christians in prayer and singing, and participate in the sacraments.
Our children need to see examples of those old and young, in different life stages, from different families, all worshiping the same God. They need to see examples of God’s truths lived out in community with others—bearing one another’s burdens, seeking forgiveness, caring for those in need, and persevering through hardship together. Christ has called His people to gather, and our commitment to our local churches can help stir our children’s affections for God and His purposes.
We cannot guarantee whether our children will ultimately follow Christ. Salvation belongs to the Lord. But we can faithfully place before them, day after day, the beauty and joy of knowing God. We can pray for their salvation, teach them God’s Word diligently, point them to Christ, and invite them into a life lived for Him. May our homes radiate with love for God, and may God, by His grace, use our imperfect faithfulness to stir in the hearts of our children a love for Him that lasts generations.
