Wow, this is a big topic! We discussed this in my moms' group today. Thanks Minhee! This could be a whole series of books but I'll just mention briefly what jumped out at me.
Number 1: Loving your kids models God's love for us. Taking care of their needs and showing them love and compassion is helping them to build a positive model of their relationship with God.
Number 2: You must have your own active faith before you can teach others.
Number 3: Model! Don't tell your kids about situations they should pray about or how to have faith, show them! Pray with them, read with them, live it out in your life and explain it to them.
Number 4: Be intentional about your parenting and your actions. Think about what you want to teach your kids and then figure out how to go about that. If you want your kids to learn to pray before meals, think about WHY you would do that. Why do you do some of the rituals you do?
I've been thinking about different family traditions and rituals people have to help teach faith, thankfulness, generosity, etc. While my kids are fairly young for much of it, it is exciting to think of the things we can incorporate in our family soon. I'm always looking for great ideas. I've loved some of the Thanksgiving ideas I've read on various blogs lately about teaching kids to be thankful and teaching them about giving. What do you do in your family to teach faith or thankfulness?
