Skip to content
  • Parents
    Find out how Faith in Kids can help…
    Help with...
    Resources
    Books
    Blogs
    Sharing Faith
    Navigating Life
    Other Blogs
    Training
    Upcoming Events
  • Kids' Leaders
    Find out how Faith in Kids can help…
    Resources for...
    Home
    School
    Church
    Our online training archive
    Blogs
    Keeping Going
    Navigating Ministry
    Other Blogs
    Training
    Upcoming Events
    Our Training Streams
  • Church Leaders
    Find out how Faith in Kids can help…
    Resources for...
    Home
    School
    Church
    Our online training archive
    What we're about
    Partner with us
    Blog
    Training
    Upcoming Events
  • |
  • Podcasts
  • Resources
  • Blog
Give
X-twitter Facebook Instagram Youtube

Blog

blog

Parenting with Purpose: Who is in Your Child’s Ear?

  • Home
  • Blog
  • Sharing faith

Who is influencing your child?
Nail it down. Name the four greatest influences on your child?
What do you think?
Friends?
TV? Films? Books?
Teachers?
Peer group?
Social media?
All these things and people do have an influence.
But still the biggest influence on your child’s life is YOU! Their parent. You are the one who is there at breakfast. You are the one who is there picking up the pieces from the scraped knee. You are the one dealing with the homework meltdown. You are the one who sits next to them in A&E. You are the one they cry with after every flavour of heartbreak. You are the one they argue with over the boundaries you set. You are the one to give the reasons why we are not, “like everyone else.” Just this week a Mum explained to me that her son was sure he was the only one in the class not playing Fortnite at home. My daughter tells me that she is the only one without a smartphone.

You. The parent are the biggest influence in their life. They might not acknowledge or realise it. You might not see it. You might wince, worrying about the consequences of this being true, hoping someone better than you is a greater influence. Or you might wish that it was the case, feeling like you are the last one they turn to for answers. But it is true. The Bible tell us that it should be true.

1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2 ‘Honour your father and mother’– which is the first commandment with a promise – 3 ‘so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.’
4 Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord. (Eph 6: 1-4)
Can you imagine when this letter was first read to the Church in Ephesus? Children were stood there next to their parents as Paul’s letter was read, slowly. Children were spoken to directly. Told to obey their parents. Told to honour them. Told to turn to them as their greatest influence. Mums fought the temptation to nudge their nearest child, raising their eye brows and mouthing, “See!”. Dads just nodded with approval, thinking, “Finally, someone else is saying it.”

Then the parents were addressed. And the Dads looked awkward, shifting their weight from one foot to the other. “Do not drive your child to explosive frustration; instead, raise your kids to know and love Christ, with patience and care, taking every opportunity.”

Did you hear that slightly painful instruction? Don’t just shout the next command at them. Don’t just scream another order into the living room. Don’t start the next sentence with, “How many times do I have to tell you…” or “I can’t believe you would have….”
Paul Tripp (in “Parenting”) predicts the outcome of such talk, “No child hears that kind of talk and says to himself, ”What a wise and loving parent! I know I can share my heart with this person. I just wish he would say more of these things to me! I am so thankful that this person is my parent! I think I’m beginning to see my heart.”

It’s harder to find the opportunity and the right words don’t just tumble out, but where possible, try to talk to your child in such a way that they are brought up knowing the Lord. You might want to leave it for a few hours (or days) for the anger to pass, but take the moment to use your wisdom, knowledge of God and of your child’s heart to offer better words.

Oh, and just in case you don’t believe God’s final authoritative word on the subject, the graphs agree! Your are your child’s greatest influence. Would you know it? The world happens like the Bible says it does!

who shapes belief

Children were asked, “What/who have shaped their spiritual beliefs”

Figure 1 Australian Communities Report. This is how the children responded to being asked what/who had shaped their spiritual beliefs. Quoted in “Youth & Children’s Ministry” from www.effectiveministry.org p12 from McCrindle Research

who show what faith is

“Who were the most significant people to show you what faith was about?”2

Figure 2 Quoted in “Intergenerational Ministry” from www.effectiveministry.org p16 from McCrindle Report: ‘Social Shifts, Social trends, 4 Decades of Change: Christianity in Australia Today’ (Christian Venues Association”

share
  • view all blog posts

Share Faith in Kids

Recommendations
  • Resources
  • Books
  • Podcasts
Support Faith in Kids
  • Prayer
  • Vision sponsors
  • Fundraising event
  • Vacancies
Upcoming events
  • View upcoming events
About us
  • Who's who
  • Vision, mission & values
  • Annual reports
Contact us
  • Get in touch
  • Register for updates
Legal
  • Complaints Procedure
  • Privacy Policy
  • Safeguarding Policy
  • Cookies

All content © Faith in Kids 2025.

Faith in Kids is a registered charity (charity no 1176335).

DL Popup
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent. Read More
Cookie SettingsAccept All
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
PHPSESSIDsessionTo identify your unique session on the website
SESSsessionTo ensure that you are recognised when you move from page to page within the site and that any information you have entered is remembered.
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
CookieDurationDescription
__utmapermanentThis cookie keeps track of the number of times a visitor has been to the site pertaining to the cookie, when their first visit was, and when their last visit occurred. Google Analytics uses the information from this cookie to calculate things like Days and Visits to purchase.
__utmbsession__utmb is a Google Analytics cookie. It takes a timestamp of the exact moment in time when a visitor enters a site.
__utmc30 mins__utmc takes a timestamp of the exact moment in time when a visitor leaves a site.
__utmz6 monthsKeeps track of where the visitor came from, what search engine you used, what link you clicked on, what keyword you used, and where they were in the world when you accessed a website. This cookie is how Google Analytics knows to whom and to what source / medium / keyword to assign the credit for a Goal Conversion or an Ecommerce Transaction.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT
  • Context

  • Resource type

  • Topic

  • Bible Book

Parents
Find out how Faith in Kids can help…
Help with...
Resources
Books
Blogs
Sharing Faith
Navigating Life
Other Blogs
Training
Upcoming Events
Kids' Leaders
Find out how Faith in Kids can help…
Resources for...
Home
School
Church
Our online training archive
Blogs
Keeping Going
Navigating Ministry
Other Blogs
Training
Upcoming Events
Our Training Streams
Church Leaders
Find out how Faith in Kids can help…
Resources for...
Home
School
Church
Our online training archive
What we're about
Partner with us
Blog
Training
Upcoming Events
  • Podcasts
  • Resources
  • Upcoming Events
  • Blog
Give
X-twitter Facebook Instagram Youtube

Before downloading, please provide a few details

Your Role *
Mailing List

Submitting this form will set a browser cookie so we only have to ask you once.

Fields marked * are required.

Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.
Name *
Your Role *
Choose a password *
Mailing List
Loading