Three Easy Ways to Incorporate Faith Into Your Kids Lives

There are so many things that we can hear from people all around us that we should be doing to build up our children’s faith. There are so many things that I as a mother can look at and feel that I can improve on with my children and our routines. Especially as a Catholic family where there are numerous feast days and Saint days to celebrate, or daily masses to attend and so on, there are many things that can make me feel like perhaps I am not doing enough or should do more.

However what I have learned over time is that sometimes your best is just enough right now; especially in this season of motherhood. We are all familiar with this season - the trenches some call it - where you’re raising several little ones, tripping on wooden toys and waking up all hours of the night. It’s a tough season and one where we definitely need guidance and grace. We need so much time with Jesus, but sometimes can hardly find the minutes to pencil Him in.

This season of motherhood is one where I feel like God sees us, He knows our heart and desires. He knows if we wanted to do better but didn’t quite “show up” today. He knows that maybe we set our alarm to wake up earlier but then the baby kept us up all night and we decided we really wanted those extra 15 minutes of sleep. He knows that maybe we set out a scripture activity to do with our children but then homework was such a disaster that we decided to wait. He sees us and loves us know matter what. We are so blessed to receive His grace and mercy over and over.

When you’re stuck in the trenches of motherhood, but wanting to ensure that you’re building up your children’s faith and creating a Christ centered home, I simply feel like there are some basics you can stick to that for now may be enough. As Christians we know we are broken and never perfect, so thankfully we can usually be aware that YES there is more we can do, but God loves us in each season and sometimes the basics is all I have flowing from me.

Three Easy Ways to Incorporate Faith Into Your Kids Lives

Go to church. This seems so obvious, I know. But let’s stop and think about how easy it is to avoid church for numerous reasons. For starters, most of us avoid it with little ones because well…they are little; they are loud, they can’t sit still and honestly just trying to get their shoes on to leave the house is a headache. Or perhaps we just want to sleep in and then laziness kicks in and the idea of getting everyone dressed sounds hard. I’ve been in all of these scenarios, but what I have learned over time is that the effort is worth it. There is nothing sweeter than to hear the sound of your little children singing hymns and praising God through the songs that they have become so familiar with each week. Something as simple as seeing your four year old recite a prayer that you didn’t even know they knew so well, shows that your efforts are paying off. They are not just sitting there bored or talking too much during the service, they are actually already familiar with their faith, their church and their Father all because you made the effort to do the most basic thing — take them to church. Let them stare at Jesus on a cross, let them see Mary in all of her beauty and let them see people praising God. They need to see this to continue to spread His name as they get older and have their own children.
Let them see you pray and read scripture. There are numerous times where my children can wake up and ask to watch morning television, but if I’m not finish with my prayers or Bible, then they have to sit there in silence with me. It dawned on me one day that in the future this will be significant to them. It has very little meaning to them now I’m sure, they are just anxiously awaiting for the tv and enjoying the cuddles in the meantime. But looking back on my own childhood I can remember so often being told on the way to school that I couldn’t talk because my mom had missed her morning prayer time and needed to pray. I didn’t think much of it then, perhaps some days I prayed on my own too or perhaps i just stared out of the window waiting for her to be done so I could talk. But I do know now as an adult that I can look back at that and my own mother’s relationship with God and realize how much it shaped and molded her and got her through thick and thin. It reminds me daily that having Christ as the center of your life can get you through anything. So while you may not have a designated prayer time or you may not to get to spend an hour each morning with your Bible open, whatever little bit your children see can help shape their own future faith and relationship with God. You can flip pancakes and read a chapter from the Bible. #holypancakescomingrightup
Remind them who Jesus is by speaking his name frequently. We aren’t a perfect household. While most nights my four year old says her prayers with me before bed, my six year old chatter box daughter will forget to and fall straight asleep. But by bringing Jesus into all aspects of our life - discipline, creation, safety, love and so much more…my children are reminded of His constant presence and love for us. A simple game in the car of “Raise your hand if you love Mama” followed by “Raise your hand if you love Jesus,” always places Him right in the mix of things. Reminding them when they hurt others, say hurtful things or disobey that Jesus wants us to treat others with love and kindness and obey our parents, keeps Him at the forefront. Make Him a part of your home by having a photo of Him, a cross, or a statue out somewhere. If we have family photos and trinkets out then we should have our Father out there too. We should speak His name regularly so our children see Him as their Father!

While we should always be striving to do more to grow in intimacy with Jesus, sometimes our best is what we can give. And sometimes the basics of Sunday mass and moments of scripture, praying and praising throughout our week is enough to start building a solid foundation for our children. After all, they are the future and we deserve to give them the best future we can with Jesus as the one they seek and live for! Let them see us in our brokenness, our weariness and our constant desire to do more. They will appreciate everything that we did do in a hard season of parenting and it will be a foundation they can build upon once they have their own children too.