Teaching children to worship helps them develop a relationship with God. But it also prepares them to live a life of victory in the spiritual realm.
O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is Your name in all the earth! You have set Your glory above the heavens. From the lips of children and infants You have ordained praise because of Your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger (Ps. 8:1-2, NIV).
“FROM THE LIPS OF CHILDREN AND INFANTS” Jesus is very comfortable with children. In the book of Mark, we read of a day when Jesus was completely happy to have a bunch of wiggly kids in His lap, kissing Him and telling Him secrets. Mark 10:16 tells us that “He took the children in His arms, put His hands on them and blessed them.” It was the adults around Jesus who were bothered by their noisy, unashamed, nonreligious enthusiasm.
Young children are ready to jump into the lap of Jesus. We can spend too much time trying to turn them into little adults who know all the rules of conduct.
In fact, worship can get so boring and stiff, kids lose interest. But being in the presence of Jesus is never boring, and He is very willing to touch them!
Actually, you can bring your child with you into the Lord’s presence in a very simple way. Just put the child on your lap, perhaps in a rocking chair, and sing Christian lullabies or worship songs. As the child grows, he or she will want to sing along and will begin to request certain favorites. They will look forward to this special snuggle time with you and the Lord.
As your family grows, you may need to move from the rocking chair to the floor or bed, but try to make this period of the day an unhurried time and as consistent as possible. Ten to 15 minutes every night can make a huge impact on your family.
You may be tired and ready for the little rascals to go to sleep. The television will call your name. The phone will ring. But make family worship time a priority!
“YOU HAVE ORDAINED PRAISE” Worship is a spiritual experience that we will be learning about all our lives. When we get to heaven, we’ll see that on earth we’d only just begun to glimpse the awesome wonder of the presence of God.
