Teaching Your Children How to Praise.

Raising children is a phenomenal responsibility filled with numerous challenges. As parents, we all hope our children will become good citizens capable of making useful contributions to society. But as Christians, we bear the even greater responsibility of teaching our children about Jesus and facilitating the growth and development of their personal salvation.

 

One of the most fundamental actions of serving God is praise. When we praise God we join with all of creation to acknowledge God as our Lord and Savior.

 

We can humble ourselves before Him and give Him the adoration He is worthy of.

 

Praise is also a weapon that we can use against the enemy that tries to keep us depressed and ashamed. Praise puts us

in God’s presence and gives us access to the joy of the Lord which is our strength. It is imperative that we praise God

and teach our children to praise Him too.

Along with all of the benefits and power we receive through praise, children have an even greater endowment.

Jesus himself tells us in Matthew that out of the mouth of babes comes perfect praise.

 

Psalms 8 also tells us that God has ordained strength out of the mouths of infants and suckling’s. And that strength can still the enemy and the avenger.

 

Often we as parents look at our children and see fragile defenseless babies who depend on us for everything. It is

amazing to me that God would put the power to still the enemy inside of our children and give us this great charge to

train them in the way they should go.

So today I urge you to train your child in the way that they should go. I encourage you to teach your children to praise

God. I also share with you a few insights from my personal experience in hopes of helping us Christians raise a

generation of children that will rise up and praise the Lord.

 

Put your children in an environment of praise.

 

Look at your children and pray that God opens up your eyes so that you can really see them.

 

They may already be praising God. I go to a church with many children under the age of 5, and these children love the

Lord. They sing the praise and worship songs, dance, and enjoy God’s presence as He enters our sanctuary.

 

As we, the adults, begin to lift our hands in praise, they join us. This environment has largely contributed to the

spirituality of my kids. Before I intentionally started teaching my children to praise God, they learned some things just

by watching me and the other people in the church.

Be Deliberate in teaching them.

 

If we want our children to know God and praise Him, then we have to be deliberate.

 

We can’t just sit back and hope our children pick up the habit. We have to be active in teaching them and showing them what it means to praise God. When I was a little girl, I remember sitting in the pews watching my mother and the other women in the church dance around the sanctuary.

 

Time after time the Spirit of God would move and the women would dance before the Lord. I could see God moving, but I didn’t know how to participate. Then one day my mother grabbed my hands and pulled me out into the isle. She told me to dance and began to lead me around the church and teach me.

 

I was self-conscious and afraid I would look silly in front of all of my friends, but my mother’s encouragement was enough to help me overcome those fears. Now, if I feel the unction to dance, I dance, and I’m not afraid. I also grab my kids and encourage them to join in.

 

There is something special about being that positive example for my children.

When I see my children raise their arms after seeing me or shout hallelujah I know that God is pleased with us.

Praise God at home

Home is where we are the most comfortable. It is the safe environment that we create for our self and our family.

Home is where our ministry begins.

 

By creating an atmosphere of praise in our home we give our children more opportunities to praise God, and they have the chance to praise Him in unconventional ways.

 

For example, I love playing instruments but my children are still too young for me to start teaching them, so I grab a pair of chopsticks for each of us, a few hard back books, turn up the Gospel music, and we “drum” on the books to the beat of the music. They love it, and when they see chopsticks they want to praise God.

If we don’t have chopsticks, we dance, and I whirl them around to the beat of the music. I sing the songs to help them learn the words, and they just fall into place.

 

They say and do the right things just as naturally as they breath.

 

I over exaggerate my actions to help encourage participation, but when they join in, everything they do is genuine and perfect.

Sometimes we don’t know what our children are capable of, and we underestimate their ability to understand and contribute to what is going on when the Spirit of God is moving.

 

But just as we hunger and thirst for the Spirit of God so do they.

 

And their praise is vital to the body of Christ. We have to teach the next generation to enter into God’s presence; it won’t happen by accident.

 

 Guest Post: Carmen Trujillo –  

“I walk in a spirit of excellence pursuing the purpose God has for my life. My music and ministry is dedicated to the uplifting and edification of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”

I have been blessed by my sister in Christ; Carmen Trujillo to guest post for Married by His Grace. Carmen participates in the Praise and Worship team at the church she attends and also teaches ages three to thirteen music. Her passion is to teach children the importance of praising and worshiping the Lord with a grateful heart.

You can contact Carmen Trujillo more about serving God with an abundant heart for music on Facebook  Twitter Instagram