By: Colette Aikema

Being a young mom of little ones comes with all kinds of interesting conversations. From Bizarro, Superman’s enemy, to Dumbo and Jiminy Cricket, our home is abuzz with topics of all kinds and not to mention questions - endless, fascinating questions. Our children have discovered the existence of their spiritual world. They have always been very aware of the imaginary world, I have never met more creative and imaginative children in my life! They’re usually off in a world of their own. 

But as they grow up that imaginary world has begun to clash with another reality: their hearts. Sometimes it happens when their ideas in a game conflict or when someone lashes out at a sibling who wrecks an intricate setup. It can also happen when they relish violent games a little too much for comfort. Sometimes that imaginary world, as they grow up, teaches them that they can find themselves in the middle of a battle that, to date, they did not know existed. King Solomon gives this a different name, calling it the ‘folly...bound up in the heart of a child’ (Prov. 22:15).

It can be a very difficult thing for a mother to witness, that slow descent into reality from childhood fantasy. But as we talk about it, God starts to teach lessons of redemptive grace. I had no idea how to follow His command to ‘teach [His ways] to your children’ (Deut. 6:7a), but I forgot the second half of His call in this verse: ‘..you shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.’ It encourages and convicts me that conversations have been God’s priority all along. As we all know, children choose everyday moments such as these to give us the opportunity to experience God together, whether by surprising us with a question or challenging us to a power struggle. Yet it is those times that God can use to remind us of the importance of living in a supernatural awareness, choosing to live in God’s Story of Reality.  How often do we not take for granted how amazing forgiveness really is? Or forget who the frightening character of Satan is, for example? 

Teaching my children about who Satan is has done two surprising and amazing things in my life:

1. I rediscover Jesus all over again, sometimes more than once a day

2. I am surrounded by opportunities to share the Gospel

From day one of our parenting journey, my husband and I have been committed to following a policy we made about how we would handle difficult questions from our kids. We are always prayerfully honest, age-appropriate, and conversational, which differs for every child. When our children ask me questions about death, bullying, war, and that vicious prince of demons:

For still our ancient foe doth seek to work us woe

His craft and pow’r are great, and, armed with cruel hate

On earth is not his equal (Martin Luther, 1529)

We have told our children honestly who Satan is and what he is capable of. Ergo their great need for Jesus!

Now, they hate Satan and are scared of his hate for God. They also understand that Satan hates them, as well. Yet sometimes they cannot stop talking about him. There’s a fascination with that Enemy that they can feel, viscerally, as young as they are. They don't like that train of thought, but it is reality. They have discovered their broken hearts, broken by sin. Not just their own sin, but also the sin of others that finds its way into our life. God has made it my job, as a mother, to pour love into that heart and show our children that their God fills the cracks of those hearts with Love.

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It is conversations like that, about basic truths and the beginnings of the story, that reignite my faith and drive my conversations about the same. Simultaneously my children remind me that their youthful zest, though exhausting at times, is something to foster. Our Lord Jesus tells us this, and therefore meant it: ‘Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it’ (Mark 10:15). Teaching my children has given me incredible insights into where my heart struggles with the Gospel and where our entire culture is so thirsty for the Gospel. It is that desire to share this life-giving water with the world around us that fuels my interactions with everyone else around me as well, especially non-believers. 

It started when I began to read my children’s books as though they were written for me at that exact, right time. Stories like Humpty Dumpty that felt horribly close to home due to past trauma, or stories such as Little House in the Big Woods that warmed my soul and made it ooze with love for God. 

Parents, can I encourage us in this? Can we mothers begin to read our children’s books as though they were written directly for our souls? Our minds race and our hearts pound with all the knowledge the world around us would have us know: all the methods, the plans, the formulas, the books, the products...yet how often do we trust God to still us in the moment, to ease our hearts and speak truth into our hearts? God does do that, every day. He is teaching you the basics of His Gospel with your kids. Can you imagine how our hearts and minds could soar if we lived in His Word in our mothering moments?

But God did not stop there. He surprised me by showing me that sharing the Good News is not as complicated and terrifying as I believed. It was, in fact, as simple as the morals of the books that fill our kids’ shelves! God has given us an excellent conversation starter that we can use at anytime with anyone we come into contact with. 

Whether it’s the woman at the grocery store who comments on my children, or the employee at the furniture store, or the brooding teenager wandering around a playground - God has made us for times as these! We need only ask Him to remind us how to talk about Him, and summon the courage to open our mouths. He opens doors in our lives every day, and with His help we must enter through. We can remember and learn that He is in charge of every conversation, every encounter, and He is there with us. He is busy doing things we know nothing about (Exodus 9:14-16, Isaiah 10: 5-19,Hebrews 13:12). Will we lean into that knowledge and embrace it for the incredible comfort it brings? May it then recharge us to go out and do it again and again!

To give you an example of how this might play out, consider this scenario:

Store Clerk: Hi! How are you? Wow, three kids, you certainly have your hands full! Eager for a break, I bet.

Me: Yes, I am always eager for a break. Raising children is exhausting work! How did you survive it, if you have children?

Clerk: Oh I don’t know...family helped me and the church helped some.

Me: I’m glad you had help when you needed it. But what I want more than a break is a face to face conversation with God about how to raise them. Wouldn’t that be amazing?

Clerk: *stunned silence* or

‘God ruined my life.’ or

‘I guess so...I hadn’t really thought about it.’ or

‘There is no God, honey.’

Now you have entered a spiritual conversation and with a few well-directed questions God will allow you to share the Gospel. We can remind ourselves and those around us that ‘Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.”’ (Matthew 19:14 ESV). We are all children of that kingdom, called to invite everyone in.

Faith Beyond Belief can help you practice those conversations and expand your knowledge about the topics you need the most. Attend our donor-supported Worldview Course webinar, browse our products, buy a membership to the Identity Project, or book one of us speakers for your small group. Let us know how we can help you become equipped to be effective ambassadors for Christ in everyday conversations!

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