Although many have tried, there is no official Christian parenting handbook other than the Bible. As glib as that may sound to you as a parent struggling to raise your children to be strong, faithful productive Christians, there is an important truth in that sentence. Everything your kids need to lead the Christian life – in the ways God wants them to do – can be found in the Bible.
Things start falling apart in our lives as Christians when we believe Satan’s lie that we can get all of the Bible we need from a sermon on Sunday morning and some Bible classes. With 66 books and 1189 chapters, the Bible has a lot of material in it to learn and understand. Even the best church doesn’t have the time to do that thoroughly. You and your children absolutely must engage with scripture on a daily basis if you are to grow spiritually and remain spiritually healthy.
What if your family is already great at having times each day when you share a passage of scripture as a family? Is that enough? It’s phenomenal and you are probably already doing more than 98% of Christian families. Here is something to consider though. Unless your children develop the habit of independently reading and studying the Bible, they may struggle to engage with the Bible daily when they leave home and you are no longer there to remind them or do it with them.
So how can you help your kids develop strong independent Bible study habits? Here are a few of our favorite tips.
- Provide each child with a personal Bible in an easy to read version. The NIrV is the best at providing a translation at a third grade reading level. (I don’t like paraphrase versions as they tend to add the editor’s bias.) If your children are older and strong readers, they may want an American (or New American) Standard Version or ESV. They may also appreciate have various study aides included in their Bible.
- Bible apps are great for convenience, but not for storing the information in their long term memories. You can’t beat the convenience of a Bible app. Studies have shown, however, that people remember more of what they read in paper books versus ebooks. Since you want your kids to remember and use what they read, encourage them to use their paper Bibles for independent study.
- Don’t expect them to read the Bible sequentially – especially the first time. It’s just too easy to get bogged down after the more interesting books of Genesis and Exodus. Start them in story heavy books like the Gospels, Acts, Ruth, Esther, etc. Or steer them towards practical books like Proverbs and James.
- Remind them the Bible is a library – not one overwhelmingly large book. Celebrate when they finish reading a book of the Bible just like you did those early readers when they were learning to read.
- When they are just starting, don’t make daily reading goals too high. If they are using a plan, find one that has no more than a chapter a day. Struggling readers, may only be able to handle a verse a day independently. If they read more than that – great. If not, they are still developing the habit of daily exposure to scripture.
- Help them choose a time and place for daily Bible study that is attached to something they already do every day. For example, they may want to put their Bible on their pillow when they make their bed in the morning, so they will remember when they go to bed. Or by their place at the breakfast table. If Bible reading is attached to another habit, it is more likely to happen.
- Make it fun. Have family challenges or goals. Celebrate milestones – like when everyone has finished reading a book of the Bible or has read the Bible every day for a week or a month.
- Use reminders other than nagging. Some apps will text you a reminder towards the end of the day if you have forgotten to read the Bible. Others can email scriptures daily. Or they might want to set an alarm on their phone. In the beginning, you can even turn on a special worship song that serves as a reminder for everyone in the house to use that time for Bible study and prayer. Try to avoid making it a power struggle. When that happens, they may decide to never read the Bible just to spite you in some way.
Establishing a daily Bible study habit with your kids will take some time and effort – especially if you already struggle with it yourself. Making it happen, however, will help you and your children become more spiritually healthy.
