Encouragement to keep faithfully teaching + sharing God’s Word with your kids (even when it feels hard or weird)

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I have a bit of a confession to make.

Sometimes reading the Bible to my kids feels, well, awkward or stilted. I want to share the story or passage in an approachable way and, in the end, I feel like I muddled through a strange tale about a talking snake, or a man who walks on water, or demons entering pigs. Even though I hold strongly that the Word of God is perfect, true, and God’s inspired Word, it is definitely filled with many crazy and hard-to-understand parts.

And that can trip me up. I want it to feel natural and simple—but sometimes, it just feels weird trying to explain or unpack part of the Bible that I struggle to understand myself or seems hard to bring to the child’s level. 

I feel like it’s up to me to have the answers or be able to articulate the Bible clearly.

Another confession.

Sometimes I try really hard to make learning the Bible fun and engaging and it ends up exposing what sin looks like (hello crabby and frustrated momma!) in a better way than a cute Bible craft can (ha!). My curated plans meet the reality of children, and I find myself smiling through my teeth and saying “Time to learn about Jesus and you.better.listen.and.like.it.”

In the end, I feel defeated because the last thing I want is for my kids to feel like reading the Bible is drudgery or learning about Jesus is a task. 

I want them to have a hunger and thirst for the Word of God and a desire to know about the One who wrote it. 

Maybe you can relate to this. 

Over the years, I have found some helpful tips, resources, and reminders that have helped me when I struggle or wonder if I’m doing it right. I thought I’d share them with you (and you can share your tips with me too!).

  1. It’s not my job to change my kid’s heart or give them ears to hear. That’s God’s role. When I remember this, it gives me the freedom to simply walk with Christ, share my life and learning with my children, and prayerfully ask God to work in them. You saw my list up there--those challenges often come when I’m trying to take on more responsibility for my children’s faith than I ought to. I’m often reminded of Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 3:7:

“I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.”

  1. Be honest. If you don’t understand something about a passage, tell your kids. Admit when you find something challenging to obey or understand in the Bible. Realizing that we don’t know or understand everything shows that we approach God’s Word with humbleness and ask Him to help us understand it.  Study it together!

  2. Just do it. Okay, okay. I know that sounds a little silly, but often, when I feel discouraged because my kids don’t seem interested, I tend to give up and say, “Oh well! No one is listening so I just won’t do it!” I’ve realized that there won’t be amazing learning or lightbulb moments for my kids (or myself!) every day (or even every week or month). They will be distracted, sometimes disruptive, or bored. But God tells me in His word to share with others about Him--and my kiddos are part of that. If you are like me and struggle with this, ask God to help you be faithful (especially when it’s hard or you yourself are feeling spiritually parched). Ps. Sometimes it is wise to stop reading or sharing if your kids are all over the place--but don’t let that stop you from picking it back up at a later time :) 

  3. Use tools to help you teach your kids about the Bible and the Gospel. Grab a storybook Bible, kid-friendly devotional book, or a Bible reading plan to help you know what to read. I often find that when we are working through something, my kids are more likely to ask “What’s the next story in….” or “Mom! We haven’t read from ____ yet today!” Ps. At the bottom of this post are some of my favorite tools we’ve used! 

  4. Pray. Pray. And Pray. Like I mentioned before, I often get stuck when I’m relying too much on myself and thinking it’s all up to me. While I do think that we have a responsibility to teach our kids the truths about God (see Psalms 78:1-7), we can’t manufacture faith in our children’s hearts. But! We can pray for wisdom, gentleness, and patience as we teach and share with them. We can also pray with our kids and ask God to help us study and learn from His Word.

  5. Spend personal time studying and learning about God through His Word. I’ve found that if I’m consistently in the Word, it’s far more natural to simply share with my kids what I’m learning about and how God is working in my life. 

  6. Focus on God and the Gospel. Well, I bet you’re thinking, “Nicole, isn’t that pretty obvious?” Let me explain. I think we (or at least I do!) get befuddled when we try to impart too many lessons or ideas when we are reading something about the Bible. I’m learning how to better whittle it down to “What does this passage/story teach us about God?” or “How does this show God’s big story (aka the Gospel)? 

  7. Engage your kids at their level. Maybe you have a little one who loves music and singing? Sing the scriptures! Maybe you have an analytical child who has a lot of questions--perhaps deep dive into theology with them. Do they need to keep their hands busy? Give them something to play with as they listen to you read the Bible. Meet your kids at their level and remember that we all learn differently--their style may be very different from yours! 

  8. Remember that it's not about the boxes. I’ve fallen into this more times than I care to admit. I want to be sure that I’m doing the “right Christian mom thing” and teaching my kids the Bible. So, I bring out the Bible, read something, and we move on with our day. The end. Check. Maybe it sounds like I’m repeating myself, but I’m going to say it again, pray! Ask God to bring life and excitement for sharing the Word with your kids--He has definitely met this need many times for me when I’ve been in a rut or going through the motions. 

  9.  Trust God’s Word to do what God says it will do. It’s a light. It’s God-breathed. It’s truth. It’s a useful for teaching and correcting. It endures forever. It’s flawless. It is right and true. What a joy it is to have God’s word and to be able to know God through His word! If you feel discouraged, remember this: God’s Word never returns void. And even our most muddly-fuddly, awkward storytelling, and strange explanations can be used by God. 

As I wrap this up, I want to leave one last encouraging word to you. And I’m telling myself this just as much as I’m telling you.

Stay rooted. It’s easy to get distracted and discouraged. Maybe you see a mom teaching her kids 25 memory verses a week, or they do a fun weekly Bible skit or lesson, or whatever she is doing just seems...well, better than what you are doing.

It is not your job to do more; it is your job to be faithful. More hustle on our part does not produce more faith in our children’s hearts.

God has given you these little ones in your home, and He has given you His Word to guide you. He loves and created your children. 

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So stay rooted. Open up that good and precious gift and read it. Ask God to help you understand and apply it. Study it. Live it. Be in awe of the One who breathed it. Tell your children what it says, talk about it throughout your day, joyfully share the Good News, and keep watering those cute little plants that live in your home. Let’s encourage one another as we do this in our homes :)

Some of our favorite Bible tools + resources:

Ps. Don’t forget to download your free “God’s Word” printable—a print full of everything God’s Word is! I stuck mine of my fridge so that it will daily remind me to trust + stay rooted in God’s word :)

Have a good one!

Nicole