Disclaimer: I’m talking about religion. These are my beliefs, and though I hold them dear, I also respect your beliefs, non-beliefs and personal decisions.
I grew up in church. We attended every Sunday, there was youth group midweek, and more often than not, I was volunteering as well. Mr O and I met at church, we were married in the same church, and (since Mr O is a pastor), our faith is a very important part of our lives. It was vital to my state of mind during our infertility journey, and I believe wholeheartedly that Little Oats is a gift from God.
When we had Little Oats, we knew that we wanted her to grow up knowing the God that we know. We wanted her to have a church home that she would feel safe in. We knew the importance of having other adults in her life who would guide her (especially when she won’t listen to Mom and Dad). And since we both believe that God comes first in our lives, we knew He would be a big part of Little Oats’ story. To incorporate our faith into our lives, there are a few steps we take:
1. We go to church: As a toddler, Little Oats learns three crucial things at church: that God made her, that he loves her, and that he wants to be her friend forever. Though the ins and outs of Christianity are much more nuanced than that, doesn’t it all boil down to those truths? Little Oats has the same three group leaders each week; they constantly are excited to see her, they go out of their way to make her feel welcome, and they love what they do.
2. We pray together: Whether for small things like a good night’s sleep, or the bigger issues in our lives, Mr O and I pray with and for Little Oats before bed each night. We also say grace at dinner ( and if Little Oats is particularly hungry, she cuts it short by yelling ‘Amen!’)
3. We lead by example: I could tell Little Oats all day long the importance of reading her Bible or praying…but if she doesn’t see me making time for those things in my day, I’m just a hypocrite. By making sure that our own faith is in check, we provide an example for Little Oats to learn from.
Is faith part of your lives? How do you teach your little ones what you believe?
watermelon / 14467 posts
Faith is a part of my life but not my husbands. I’m struggling with getting H and myself to church right now, especially because her nap falls right between services and that makes it hard to go. I’m going to talk to my friend at church/work and see if she’ll be my accountability partner and attend Sunday School with me, because then H will be there for her nap.
cherry / 241 posts
Yes, incredibly important! I grew up in church–it was always a VERY important part of my life. DH did too, but experienced some hurt on behalf of “the church,” and is still trying to deal with those feelings. He has a very vibrant prayer life & intimate relationship with the Lord, but sometimes has difficulty with all the “organized” aspects of it. But, he agrees that it’s important for our LO to be raised in the church and goes along with it (for the most part) for her sake.
We do a lot of the same things you do–but I’ll admit (LO is 11 months old), we really need to do a better job at putting forth a conscious effort of leading by example as she gets older!
Thanks for this post!
It’s nice to know there are like-minded people here.
persimmon / 1281 posts
We go to church every Sunday as well (DH goes every day as he is a student preacher, hired by the church). It’s important for us to raise DS in church for the same points you mentioned. I will also add that as Christian parents, family is ministry, and we aim to raise disciples of God, thus for us, bringing DS to church regularly and living out our faith in our day to day lives is critical.
guest
Hi Mrs O,
Great post! Faith is so important in our family. We go chruch every sunday, read the Bible every night to our kids and they watch veggie tales as well.
But I think I need to do more, it would be great if you could give some tips on how to teach the bible to little ones. My prayer is to let them so in us that our faith is part of our daily lives, basically a lifestyle.
God bless you.
blogger / pomegranate / 3201 posts
We do not go to church every Sunday, but we do go occasionally. Liam goes to a Catholic preschool and they teach them prayers. We say a prayer every night before bed and sometimes before we eat (if we remember). Liam was baptized and I’m planning to send him to Sunday school to get his first communion. My husband’s mom is very religious, but the rest of our family is more like us.
apple seed / 3 posts
My household too is run by Faith. We believe this teaching opportunity for our little boys is invaluable. Mommy & daddy believe in a higher power, and that we too abide by rules & guidelines {commandments} from a loving Heavenly Father. When we are obedient, we are blessed. Alternatively, if we disobey there are consequences. Not so different from raising little ones, no? Thank you for sharing.
wonderful kiwi / 23653 posts
My husband is a pastor and we plan on starting a church in the near future so our life centers around our faith! I know being a pastor’s kid is both a privilege but also a difficult journey so I hope & pray that God will be the one to guide our kids to Him, and also that we’re able to be good role models for them.
grapefruit / 4441 posts
I am more religious than my husband, so it’s usually just LO and me going to church. I try to go at least every other week. Right now she just goes to the nursery, but when she turns 3, she will start Sunday school. Every night, I talk to her about God, and tell her that God made her, loves her, and will always take care of her… and we say prayers together.
blogger / apricot / 367 posts
So glad you wrote this post. We are involved in our church and hope that our girls can grow up to share our faith too. It’s been so endearing hearing them say prayers together as they get older…
pomegranate / 3225 posts
I worry about this a lot because I am having trouble finding a progressive/liberal church in my area. The conservative Christian church is nothing I want my family to be a part of. So where does that leave me? I’m not sure…
coffee bean / 33 posts
ok, i had to look at your past posts just to see where you are from?!! Our family regularly attends North Point Christian in Atlanta and their main teachings for children is that God made you, that he loves you, and that he wants to be your friend forever. The exact statement you made. It made my heart smile :). My husband and I grew up in church then left during our “wild years” and now are back as a family. So glad to know other churches out their are teaching the same core values to our little ones!
pomegranate / 3643 posts
I’ve been thinking about how to raise kids in the faith. I want to do all I can as a parent to show then God’snloce and encourage them to love others. I know there is only so much you can do. DH and I are the only practicing ones out of our siblings and we were all raised the same.
Lately we’ve made a few couple friends and none are religious. Which is totally fine, but sometimes the conversation veers in to criticizing the church and that’s hard for me. It would be so nice to know other young couples in the same vein as is but we don’t. I know that means it’s probably our job to just love people where they are at, but it’s nice having someone to share with too.
blogger / honeydew / 7081 posts
@ahead: our church is a Northpoint strategic partner! I’m in Canada- but was in ATL for Orange conference last year.
pear / 1787 posts
i grew up in the church and have many family members in the ministry but haven’t attended in years for various reasons. i consider myself Christian but my DH, though spiritual, doesn’t feel as strongly about it. i have always told him i want my kids to go to church every Sunday but now that i’m pregnant, i’m struggling with this. i really do see the value of fellowship and the church community… but i struggle to find time for it myself. i want to raise my kids with Christian beliefs and instill those principles and values in them but i’m finding it all hard to reconcile. i probably need to start going on my own. your post gave me a lot to think about, so thank you!
pear / 1622 posts
Excellent post! I had my LO a month ago and would really like to start attending church services again but I am not sure how many months I should wait before taking him. Do you have any recommendations? How soon did you start saying prayers with your LO as part of preparing for bedtime?
guest
@mrstictactoe – Jealous you have a Catholic preschool in your area! We don’t and organized stuff for kids doesn’t start till 4!
I try to take my almost 2 year old to church some Sundays but she is so active it gets hard! I need to be better about paying with her regularly. I’ve taught her to say Amen and the sign of the cross, but that’s all so far.
coconut / 8079 posts
Love this post! Thank you for sharing!!
coffee bean / 33 posts
wow how amazing! I love that what started out as a somewhat small church has grown and reach you all the way in Canada!! I have been with Northpoint since 2005 so its amazing to see the work!
grapefruit / 4311 posts
@kml636: We attend Christian Church/Disciples of Christ denomination, and for a small town in the south, I found it to be very progressive – I don’t know if that holds true for the denomination as a whole, but I’m guessing it does! Might be a starting point for you!
guest
Wonderful blog. May we please have permission to print it in our next church newsletter?