Building a Foundation: Why Early Faith and Kids' Church Matter

As parents, there are things we wish we could go back and do differently. One of those is how we introduced our children to Jesus. We didn’t take them to church consistently, and when an attempt to read a Bible story together went sideways, we stopped trying. Looking back, we wish we had kept going. We wish we had made prayer, Scripture, and conversations about Jesus a more natural part of our home. In this episode of Kingdom Chaos, we talked about that regret and what we’re learning as grandparents: the small things we do to share our faith with children can stay with them longer than we realize.

We can’t change how we raised our kids, but we can be intentional about how we show up now. Our grandchildren’s parents are doing a great job teaching them about Jesus, and we want to walk alongside them. Brad and Ashley make faith part of life at home through Bible studies, church, and even their homeschool curriculum. As grandparents, we get to support that foundation, encourage their efforts, and keep those conversations going when the kids are with us.

When our oldest granddaughter, Everly, was a baby, Troy cared for her one day a week during her first year. He would play animated Bible stories from The Beginner’s Bible. At the time, it might have seemed like a simple way to fill part of the day, but those stories became familiar to her. Even now, she recognizes the music and stops to watch when those videos come on. Recently, she walked into our house, heard a Bible story playing, and immediately asked Pops whether it was a particular story. She was right. It reminded us that we don’t always see what a child is taking in, but those little moments can leave an impression.

One of our favorite parts of this episode was hearing seven-year-old Everly tell the story of the Good Samaritan. She needed a little help remembering some details, but she understood the heart of it. A man was hurt, others walked past him, and the Samaritan stopped to help. When Troy asked what the story taught her, her answer was simple: when you see someone who is hurt, you should help them. Whether you know them or not, you should still love them. Hearing her explain that reminded us why these stories matter. We want our grandchildren to learn who Jesus is and begin to understand what His love looks like in their own lives.

That understanding grows through repetition. We talked about how learning Scripture can be like learning math. You begin with counting before moving on to addition, subtraction, and eventually more complicated concepts. Children need a foundation they can understand, too. A simple Bible story gives them something to build on. As they hear it again and grow older, they can begin to understand more about the people, the context, and what God is teaching them.

For our grandchildren, kids’ church has been an important part of that process. They enjoy the songs, the activities, their friends, and lessons taught in a way they can understand. After church, we ask what they learned, and they love telling us. Sometimes they leave out details or need us to help them along, but the conversation itself matters. It gives us a chance to listen, ask questions, and connect what they heard at church with what we talk about at home.

Still, one hour at church each week can’t carry the whole responsibility of teaching our children about Jesus. They watch how we live throughout the week. They hear how we talk to our spouse, see how we handle conflict, and notice how we react when someone cuts us off in traffic. They watch us at the ball field and around the dinner table. If we tell them to love people, our actions need to help them understand what that means. Our everyday responses give us opportunities to practice what we believe and, when we fall short, to model humility and ask for forgiveness.

We also want to share what God has done in our own lives. Bible stories are essential, and our personal testimonies give children another way to see faith lived out. We can tell them how Jesus has changed us, where we’ve struggled, and how we’re still learning to follow Him. Those conversations don’t have to be formal. They can happen in the car, over a meal, or when a child asks a question we weren’t expecting.

If you’re unsure how to start, begin with something small. Pray before dinner. Read a short Bible story at bedtime. Watch a Bible story together and ask your child what they noticed. You don’t have to know every answer. We’re still learning, too. When a passage is confusing, ask your pastor, use a study Bible, or find a resource that helps you understand it. In the episode, we talked about how BibleProject’s videos can help us see the bigger picture of a book before we read it. Learning for ourselves helps us have better conversations with the children we love.

Our hope is that our parenting regrets encourage another family to take that first step. Whether you’re a parent, grandparent, aunt, or uncle, you have opportunities to help a child know Jesus. Start where you are, with what you understand, and keep showing up. A prayer, a story, or a conversation may feel small today, but it can become part of a foundation that grows with them. That’s what we’re seeing in our grandchildren, and it’s why we want to keep making room for Jesus in everyday life.

Listen to: Building a Foundation: Why Early Faith and Kids’ Church Matters