From the archives of Oral Roberts
Someone once asked a Texas rancher why he had such good sheep. He replied, “We take care of the lambs.”
If we are to raise our children to be strong in the Lord, we must begin when they are just young lambs. It begins at the time God places them in our care.
Proverbs 22:6 says, Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.
Our calling as parents is to establish a Christian home where Christ is held up, loved, and served. What good does it do for parents to give their children every material advantage in the world if they neglect their spiritual training?
A young mother was endeavoring to teach her son to pray and trust in the Lord, and she wondered at times if she was being successful. One summer night during a violent electrical storm, she learned the answer, and it brought joy to her heart.
Concerned that perhaps her young son would be afraid of the thunder and constant flashes of lightning, she quietly stood outside the door of his room. After a deafening clap of thunder, she heard him say, “Attaboy, God! Do it again!” There was no fear at all in his voice, just confidence. Why? He was talking to a friend—God.
As soon as a child can hold a conversation with you, he can learn to pray. After all, isn’t prayer just talking to God? If you encourage your child to talk to God just as he talks to you, he’ll learn to go to God when he has a problem. And he’ll know that when he prays, God is listening. Children have such simple, pure faith. We need to capture it for God.