The kids and I have had morning devotions together since they were in their high chairs. It started out with just Hannah and then we added a new baby to the table every year! We started out with a little board book full of morning prayers for the day, scriptures, and songs. It was very simple. I just held up the book so my babies could see the pictures while I read or sang. We had lots of fun every morning and the children learned simple children’s prayers, a few verses, songs, and the Lord’s Prayer. Through this little book, the kids learned about how God watches over them, how he made the sun to rise, the moon and stars to shine at night, how he made the animals, how he is our friend, how he hears our prayers, and how much he loves us. Though I used it for years, the kids never tired of my pulling it out every morning.

As they’ve gotten older, we’ve graduated to more detailed morning devotions. We read through a couple of Bible storybooks and Right Choices by Kenneth Taylor. Then, last year we started Leading Little Ones to God. (We are almost finished!!)

I am wondering, now that I have two children who have made professions of faith, how to transition them to private morning devotions. I thought that the habit of us doing them together at the breakfast table might naturally translate into them doing their own now that they are older. I have realized, however, that much like teaching my children to brush their teeth every morning I will need to teach the habit of personal daily devotions.

Noel Piper writes in her book Treasuring God in Our Traditions,

We stuck “Talitha’s [their adopted daughter] Morning List” to the fridge with a magnet as soon as she could try to read it. Each morning after Talitha has taken care of things, including “make up bed, dirty clothes down chute, breakfast, feed Sable, vitamins, brush teeth,” she comes to “Bible time.” At this point, she picks up her Bible and goes to a cozy corner by herself to read and pray. She knows we won’t interrupt her during this quarter hour. This habit with God’s Word began for her, as it did for her brothers, before she could read. Like them, she listened to Bible stories from cassettes or CDs.

It only takes a few seconds of thought to realize that it is smarter to get a three-year-old started with good lifetime habits than to spring a new regimen on a teenager. One old saying is, “As the twig is bent, so grows the tree.” Wise Solomon said with the authority of Scripture, “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he ill not depart from it”(Proverbs 22:6). Why would we wait to train up our children in this essential discipline? Do we think younger children don’t yet need time alone with God?

That’s one of the great values of God-centered traditions: A child is learning the habits he will need as an adult. When we train our children in godly patterns, godly traditions, we’re helping them get ready to move with responsibility into adulthood. I can’t guarantee that my children will move seamlessly from the “Bible time” I schedule for them as children into personal devotions on their own initiative as teenagers and adults. But the steadiness of a daily childhood habit is a good basis for future disciplined living.

My children have five jobs they must perform every morning: make bed, get dressed, wash face, brush hair and teeth, feed pets. For Hannah and Benjamin I am going to add “Bible time.” I’m not sure they need another book for this. I think reading some verses straight from their Bibles and then spending some time in prayer will be sufficient. The question then becomes, how will they decide what to read? Should I just select a portion of our family reading from the night before? It may take a little extra time on my part, but it’s no big deal to tack it onto my daily lesson planning time.

I just have to share a quick story! Tonight, we were talking about how God gives us joy through prayer. We pray. He answers. We experience joy in Him. Benjamin had a wonderful testimony today because he prayed when he was anxious about something today. I took the kids to their swimming lesson evaluations this morning. Getting into a pool is usually a painful ordeal for Benjamin because of his eczema. The water really burns! So, he explained to me that as he was sitting on the side of the pool waiting for his evaluation, he prayed that God would keep the water from hurting when he jumped in. God always answers our prayers, but this time Benjamin received a big YES from God, and he was filled with joy as a result! The water didn’t hurt and he was able to swim and perform for the coach without any pain. So, tonight as we were sharing about prayer and joy, Benjamin got excited about making the connection between his prayer and what happened for him. YAY, GOD! I want more testimonies like this one for my kiddos!

For Abbey and Noah, my non-readers, I may have to look into the CDs Noel mentions. The resource section in the back of her book lists a few of her favorite audio publishers. To read Noel’s recommendations for solid biblical children’s audio resources, go to Desiring God’s website. I only found one of the resources she mentions through a Google search. Several moms have written very positive reviews of The Word and Song Bible by Steve Elkins on Amazon. I don’t know if this is the way for us to go, as it will include either unsupervised use of headphones or instructing them in how to use my CD player. Ahem, Noah isn’t the most careful five-year-old on the planet. I foresee this being something we would end up doing together rather than it being a time of personal devotion time. Does anybody else have a good idea?

I know from personal experience that affection for God is something that is caught more than taught. In the past, Hannah has caught me during my devotions. When she was really young, oftentimes she’d get up from her nap to find me at the table with my Bible and notebook. So, she’d get her little Bible and I’d give her some paper and a pencil and she’d mimic me until I finished whatever I was doing. It has been a very long time since I was “interrupted” like that. So, whatever we decide will work best for us, I am committed to setting the example a Christian mother ought to set for her children. I am not perfect and I don’t put my hope in my own abilities to “win” my children. However, I want to be honest when I instruct them to do as I do.

After my little ones leave this nest, I want our daily habits to be so ingrained in them that they can’t get up in the mornings without thinking about Jesus. That even if they decide they’re too busy for personal devotions, God will use their memories of their little “to-do” lists from childhood and our breakfast devotions to draw their hearts back to himself.

I would love to read about how you do it at your house. Share in the comments or leave a link to your blog post…How do you encourage your children in their daily devotions?