Creating Connections
Parents continue to be the greatest influence on their children’s faith.
The time a child will spend at church is a small fraction compared to the time the child will spend with his or her parents. Congregations have a great opportunity to partner with parents and empower them to pass the faith on to their children. What happens at home is just as important as what happens at church on Sunday.
Let’s help families create connections
Congregations can assist parents to have the opportunity to share their faith with their children in ways that will encourage a faith that lasts, a faith that sticks.
Below are four ideas that Congregations can start with….
Connecting Sunday Morning with Monday-Saturday in the Home
- Make Sunday worship a prime time for resourcing families.
- Model and resource the 4 Keys: caring conversations, devotions, rituals and traditions and service.
RESOURCE: Growing Faith at Home
Use the Seasons of the Church Year to Help Households Live Faith-fully
- Advent, Lent or Pentecost Workshops / cross+generational events.
- Provide seasonal household devotional resources. Make it easy for them.
RESOURCE: GIFT – Generations in Faith Together
Use Baptisms and Marriages as Key Strategic Opportunities
- Use baptismal preparation to give parents guidance and resources for the future.
- Use marriage preparation to help couples think about the future “shape” of their family life.
Build Parent and Household Dimensions into your Ministry Activities
- Provide ‘at home’ materials for households to use together.
- Bring together kids and their parents – help them “do the faith” with one another.
RESOURCE: Growing Faith at Home, Faith5, GIFT events
