Ways To Remind Your Kids About God Throughout The Day

As someone who grew up in a Christian home, I saw firsthand the ways my parents made sure to integrate their faith in our lives and how important it is to remind our kids about God throughout the day. Now that I have kids of my own, it is an absolute priority for me to be intentional about my faith daily.

Why we should be intentional

I think the first thing that really hit me once I had my firstborn was that I needed to get serious about my faith. Why would I believe something if I didn’t think it was important enough to teach my kids? And if I really wanted to teach my kids, I better truly believe it myself.

It’s not like saying “I’m a fan of Star Wars so I want my kids to become Star Wars fans too.” Whether or not you like Star Wars isn’t an eternal spiritual matter haha. As someone who has chosen to believe and accept that God and his word are ultimate Truth, it is imperative that I share that Truth with my children. Planting and nurturing the seed of truth in their spiritual lives is my responsibility as a parent, and I can only pray that they take that truth to heart and find their salvation in Jesus.

Leading by example

One of the many reasons children don’t take on the Christian faith going into adulthood is that their parents didn’t lead by example. Many parents are Christians “in name only”, only act like Christians on Sunday morning, or only on social media where they can exhibit their “best self.” There are plenty of warnings in the Bible about hypocrisy, and hypocrisy is one of the main accusations the world has against Christians.

If you really want your children to adopt the Christian faith on their own, you need to live it out yourself. When your children see how you truly believe what you teach and observe the good fruits from your spiritual walk, they will be encouraged and want to partake as well.

Daily reminders

God is not only present on Sundays in church or during designated devotionals. He is the creator of the universe and rules all day, every day! That’s why little reminders throughout the day are so important when it comes to cultivating our kids’ (and our own) faith. Here are some great ways to do that:

Bible time

In a recent blog post, I talked about How We Do Bible Time With Toddlers. It is SO important to spend time in God’s word daily, and having that time with our kids is a great way to do it! This allows them to participate in study, ask questions, and learn together with you.

The Bible should be our primary source of information regarding our faith, and the more time we spend reading and learning about what it says, the stronger our faith and biblical knowledge will become.

Observing creation

One of my favorite reminders of God for myself and my kids is to observe God’s creation. Every time we are outside and looking at the clouds, trees, plants, animals, etc. is an opportunity to say “did you know God made that? He made everything! Isn’t that so cool?” My kids get all excited because seeing things in nature helps make the concept a bit more concrete for them.

We also love to sing the “Creation Song” on a regular basis which also helps solidify this concept. You can find videos and lyrics of this song if you’re not familiar with it here, and you can also get coloring pages and wall decor of the Days of Creation in my Etsy shop!

Singing songs

Speaking of the Creation Song, there are SO many songs you can sing throughout the day to remind your kids about God’s work in our lives. Mission Bible Class is one of my favorite resources for children’s Bible songs (they even have songs in other languages!). You can also just sing any hymns or Christian music you like. I have a Spotify playlist of worship songs I enjoy here.

There are also other musicians making kid-related Christian songs, like Listener Kids or Rain for Roots, among many others.

It’s also important to explain to your kids what the songs mean, if they are old enough to understand. We need to know why we sing what we sing, so that we know if we really mean it or not. It’s also fun to take some songs and find the scriptures that they reference in the Bible itself!

Serving others

For kids (and even sometimes adults) it’s easy for the world to revolve around the self. When we’re young, all we know is survival and serving ourselves. We need to eat, we need to sleep, we need to be loved and nurtured. That first time a kid experiences another child take something away from them? That’s shocking! In a child’s mind, everything he touches is his and nobody else’s. That’s just how kids work.

But when we model acts of service for our children, or even have them participate with us, they can see how God has intended for us to work together as a community. They will see that when we as Christians serve others, we shine Jesus’ light. Working with our children to be selfless and serving others is a great opportunity to emphasize the spiritual and Biblical significance of these acts. It also shows how God is working through us to help people, and how all people are made in his image.

Opportunities to serve others can come up daily! You may be out and about with your kids and encounter someone in need. Perhaps you and your kids can go do some volunteer work. Even writing a nice note to send to someone on a day you’re at home can be an act of service.

Owning our faith

Back when I was in college, I remember hearing the question: “is it your faith or your parents’ faith?” Kids that grew up in church, including myself, definitely struggle(d) with this question. It was like an existential crisis lol. Were we truly believers, or were we just believing what our parents did because it was easy?

I believe there’s a point at which we all must decide whether or not we are going to take these truths upon ourselves and obey the gospel. A very young child doesn’t quite have the mental capabilities to comprehend such an abstract concept, which is why it’s so important that we as parents decide whether or not we’ve owned our faith. When our children see how much we’ve truly committed to Jesus in our everyday lives, they’ll know how big of a deal this is.

Not “checking boxes”

It’s not about dragging your kids to church kicking and screaming every time your congregation meets. It’s not about shipping them off to church camp or Vacation Bible School. It’s not about sending them to church with grandma without you. We shouldn’t be forcing our children to sit down and be quiet while we read the Bible at them, but we also shouldn’t leave them to fend for themselves and never teach them anything.

I don’t want to just check off some boxes each week. I’m not trying to gain “Jesus points”. What I want is for myself and my children to have cultivated a strong relationship with the Lord. One that craves spiritual growth. I want my kids to look in awe at God’s creation the way I have come to do. I want them to pray continually, silently and together, all throughout the day in an ongoing conversation with God.

I don’t want them to have some “spiritual/emotional high” or “church camp high” that leaves as quickly as it came. I want them to choose to put Christ on in baptism, understanding what that means, and commit to their walk with him because they–not just their parents–knew it was true.

God is real. Eternity is long. I want to do everything I can to prepare my kids for it!

What are some other ways you like to remind your kids about God throughout the day? Let me know in the comments!

God bless,