How to guide children to trust God?

Children are naturally trusting. Talking to them about trust directly can help them understand what it means to trust God. You might begin by talking about why they trust their parents. The answer to this is, of course, simple. They trust their parents because their parents care for them, provide for them, keep them fed, clothed, and protected. Their parents have always done this, and because it’s the way it has always been, they trust it’s the way it will always be. They know that their parents love them, and so they trust them to have a plan, and they don’t typically worry about the details of the plan. They just trust that their parents have their best interests at heart, and they go about their lives. (Of course, there are exceptions to this rule, which require more sensitive handling.) Because God isn’t someone tangible that they see and can touch, sometimes children have a hard time grasping the concept of trusting God. You can help them with this, with a few simple concepts.

• Teaching children to trust God starts with teaching them that God made everything. This is an easy concept for children to understand, and you can teach them that God made them and loves them. Teach them to see God in the world around them, and in the people they know. God made the world and everything in it, and because he loves his creation, our faith in God should inspire us to love it as well. Children see the world with wide eyed wonder, so it’s not hard to guide them into an understanding of God’s goodness as they learn to love animals, plants, the sky, the earth, and the people all around them. Children with a healthy respect for God’s creation can help them to be good citizens of the world, and can teach them to love the people in it.

• Children need to know what the Bible says about trusting God. As children are taught the gospel, there needs to be an emphasis on trusting God at all times. God’s word is eternally true and never changes, and we can trust that God will do the things he says he will do. Even in difficult times, we can trust God, and it’s important to teach children to pray in those hard times for peace, for faith, for strength, for wisdom, and for protection.

• Pray with children and remind them of answers to prayers. As you pray to God with your children, make sure to begin with repentance, then take the time to praise God, and to thank him, rather than simply making prayers a list of requests. Then, when you see answers to your prayers and your children’s prayers, make sure you point these things out to your children, to help build their faith in Jesus Christ, and strengthen their relationships with God. When you see or hear of answers to the prayers of other people in your life, share those with your children, too, to help them see that God cares for everyone.

• Help children understand that God is outside of our understanding. While we often try to make God fit into a box that we can understand, the truth is that we can never truly comprehend the vastness of God. Our job is to follow God’s commandments and trust that he is in control. Teach your children that God’s plan is bigger than their plans, and this will help them to learn to trust.

At CEF Norcal, we’re determined to share the Gospel in any and every space we can. Our missionaries are constantly on the lookout for new ways to reach children, whether by sharing the Gospel with families at local fairs, partnering with churches to do drive-through Gospel presentations, or hosting one-time party clubs in public schools. With your help, we believe that this year we’ll reach even more children for Christ. To learn more about the work we’re doing and how you can help increase the witness of our ministry, visit our website. Or consider volunteering with us or applying to be a hands-on missionary, a teacher, someone who helps support a local club, or a committee or board member.