How do I develop a love for reading the Bible in my child?
I was recently asked to comment on this question and it is a good one. Many parents want their children to have a love for the Word of God, to read it, study it, meditate on it and memorize it. They want to do whatever they can to instill a desire to read and grow in the Word.
So how do you make someone love anything? That’s right, you don’t! We can’t make our children love the Word any more than we can make them lovers of the broccoli on their plates at dinner. The love of something can only be grown in them, usually over a period of time. We can, however, influence someone’s love of something. If we love baseball and are passionate about it, very likely our spouse will soon begin to enjoy it with us. Because they love and respect us, they begin to see the thing the way we see it as we communicate our love in many ways. So it is with the Word. If we want our children to love the Word, then it starts with us. Do WE love the Word? Do WE talk about it with passion every chance we get? Do WE spend time learning and reading and growing in the Word? We can have a great influence on our children by the way we treat the Word in our own lives.
The Bible tells us to “Train up a child in the way he should go. And when he is old, he will not depart from it.” (Proverbs 22:6) If we intentionally train our children to daily read and depend upon God’s Word, they will develop a love for it that will continue all their lives. The more they love the Author of the Word, the more they will love what He has to say to them through His Word.
Here are some things to consider in demonstrating your love for the Word to your children:
1. Make it a Gift
Give them a Bible as a special gift for an important event in their lives. Make a big deal of how precious this gift is and how it is something they can use all their lives. Make sure it is a quality Bible so it will last many years.
2. Share your Notes
Show them your Bible and how worn and well used it is from many years of use. Promise that someday, you will give them this very Bible that you have loved and cherished.
3. Lead by Example
Lead by example. Show them how you set aside time every day to read and meditate on God’s Word. When they see you deep in meditation and study, they will know that this book must be important.
4. Cover to Cover
Make a goal to read through the whole Bible with your child, every book, every chapter, every verse. It is not just some of even most of the Word that is valuable, it is all the words of God.
5. Read and Share
Share every day something that God has touched you with from His Word. Ask God to give you a word from His Word each day for your children as you begin your devotional reading. Soon they will begin to look forward to the word of encouragement from the Bible that you will share with them.
6. Live Deut 6:7-9
Look for ways to mention God’s Word in application to their lives every chance you get. As Deuteronomy 6:7-9 says,“You shall teach them (God’s words) to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.”
You should look for ways to talk about God and His Word all the time. When you see something beautiful, mention how God has wonderfully created everything as it says in Genesis 1. When you see someone in need on the corner, share how God wants us to care for the poor and the weak. When they are struggling with a trial, remind them that God does not leave them to struggle alone.
7. Memorize Together
Memorize God’s Word with them. Find beautiful passages that they can enjoy and relate to and commit them to memory. Review these verses frequently and explain why they are so meaningful to you and them.
So Mom, Dad, if you love the Author of the Bible with all your heart, soul, mind, strength; you will have a great impact on your children becoming lovers of the Word.
