The Parenting Moment
You have taught them the memory verses. You have driven them to church every Sunday. You have set the rules, explained the consequences, and prayed over their beds at night. And yet, somewhere deep in your heart, you wonder — do they actually know Jesus? Or do they simply know how to behave around people who do? This is the quiet tension so many Christian parents carry: raising children who know God’s voice, not just God’s rules.
It is not a failure to ask this question. In fact, it might be one of the most spiritually aware things a parent can do. Because the goal was never a well-behaved child. It was always a child with a living, breathing, personal walk with the living God.
Biblical Foundation
“The Lord came and stood there, calling as at the other times, ‘Samuel! Samuel!’ Then Samuel said, ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.'” 1 Samuel 3:10
The story of young Samuel is one of the most tender portraits of a child learning to recognise God’s voice in Scripture. Samuel was raised in the house of God, surrounded by religious ritual and priestly routine. He knew the temple. He knew Eli. He knew the lamp of God. But he did not yet know the voice of the Lord personally — until the night God spoke directly to him. What is remarkable is not just that God spoke, but that Samuel was positioned to listen. He was present, he was teachable, and when he finally understood who was calling, his response was one of open surrender: “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.” That is relational faith in its earliest, most beautiful form.
Notice that Eli’s role was not to answer for Samuel, but to equip Samuel to answer for himself. He did not say, “Here is what God wants you to know.” He said, in effect, “Go back, be still, and when He speaks — respond.” This is the heart of intentional Christian parenting. Our calling is not to be the permanent mediator between our children and God. It is to introduce them to a Saviour they can speak to directly, and to create the conditions in which they learn to hear Him for themselves.
Practical Wisdom
- Create space for stillness, even with young children. From an early age, teach children that God speaks in the quiet. A simple two-minute “listening prayer” — where you sit together, ask God to speak, and then wait in silence — trains their hearts to expect His voice rather than simply recite words at Him.
- Teach them to journal what they sense from God. Even young children can draw a picture of what they feel God is saying to them after reading Scripture or prayer. Older children can write it down. This builds the habit of responding to God personally, not just performing religion publicly.
- Ask faith questions, not just behaviour questions. Instead of “Did you behave well today?” try “Did you notice God in anything today?” or “Was there a moment where you felt Jesus near you?” These questions shift the conversation from compliance to communion.
- Let them see you respond to God’s voice yourself. Share age-appropriate moments when you felt God prompt you — to forgive someone, to give generously, to be brave. When children see a parent actively listening to and obeying the Holy Spirit, it becomes a lived reality rather than a Sunday concept.
- Celebrate their spiritual moments, not just their moral ones. When your child says, “I felt like God told me to be kind to that child at school,” pause everything and celebrate it. Affirm their spiritual awareness loudly and warmly. What we celebrate, we cultivate.
Encouragement for Parents
If you have been raising a rule-follower and are now longing for something deeper, take heart — it is never too late to make the shift. You do not need to dismantle everything you have built. Rules and boundaries still matter; they form the safe walls within which faith can grow. But you can begin today, in small and gentle ways, to open the door to something more. Ask your child what they think God is like. Pray together in a way that is real and honest rather than formulaic. Read the Word not just to inform them, but to invite them into a conversation with the Author. The Holy Spirit is already at work in your children. Your job is simply to point them towards Him — and then get out of the way.
You are not raising a project. You are raising a person whom God knew before the foundations of the earth, and He is infinitely more committed to your child’s walk with Him than you could ever be. Trust Him with the process. He who began a good work will be faithful to complete it — in your children, and in you.
Family Prayer
Heavenly Father, thank You for knowing my children by name, just as You called Samuel in the night. I pray that You would make Yourself so real to each of them that they would not simply know about You, but would know You — deeply, personally, and truly. Teach them to hear Your voice. Give me the wisdom to point them towards You rather than replace You in their lives. May our home be a place where the Holy Spirit moves freely, where stillness is valued, and where Your Word is not just a rule book but a living letter from a loving Father. Raise up in my children hearts that say, “Speak, Lord — I am listening.” In the name of Jesus, Amen.
If this post stirred something in you today, we would love to hear from you. Leave a comment below sharing one way you help your children connect with God personally — your experience might be exactly what another parent needs to read. And if you found this helpful, share it with a parent in your life who is longing to raise children who walk closely with Jesus.