God’s command to “make disciples” includes a variety of people. God has strategically placed co-workers, friends, family, neighbors and acquaintances in your life. While all of these groups are your mission field, your family will provide you with an element of disciple-making you cannot experience anywhere else.

Discipleship in the home is as important for you as it is for your kids. Our heavenly Father entrusts us with children for many reasons. They need food, shelter, encouragement, nurturing, love and more. In other words, they need a home. There are numerous ways in which they need us to tend to their needs but none greater than their need to be discipled. When you intentionally disciple your children:

1. Their questions connect you to their hearts
As your children’s curiosity about God and His Word grows, you will be able to discern how the Holy Spirit is working in their hearts and minds. The questions that they ask from their Bible reading, sermons and spiritual conversations with other believers, will help you connect to their hearts and know the next steps to take in their spiritual development. The Lord has placed you in their lives for their benefit and for you to receive a blessing.

2. You are challenged to take your Bible knowledge to the next level
Children can be full of difficult questions about the Bible. When they stump you with a question you do not know how to answer, do not be afraid to say, “I do not know, but let’s find out together.” This allows you the great opportunity to explore God’s Word and learn together. The more you explore Scripture with your children, the deeper your spiritual conversations will go. As your conversations deepen, they will produce more questions and challenge you to know the Bible more.

3. You have the opportunity to grow in wisdom
Preschoolers and young children look at the world literally. Therefore, they need your help putting Scripture into words they can understand. With your years of experience and wisdom with the Bible, your children will not just see it as a storybook but as God’s powerful, living Word.

As children grow into their teenage years, they can struggle with a variety of personal and social issues. Connecting the Bible to what they are walking through can be hard. You have the wonderful opportunity of showing them how people in the Bible faced similar life issues. Through your wisdom and Bible knowledge, you will be able to help your children navigate life’s difficulties so that they can experience God’s kindness, care and security in their lives.

Connecting to your children’s hearts, taking your Bible knowledge to the next level and growing in wisdom are only part of the benefits you receive when you disciple your children. However, despite all you receive, nothing compares to what your children receive. When you intentionally disciple your children, they have a front-row seat to see the Christian life lived out each day, which can be passed down for generations.