Let Them Come
“We aren’t required to lift our hands. It isn’t mandated that we assume a certain posture. But how beautiful to surrender in worship to the Lord and for our children to physically see it, both while we sing and while we live our lives.”
“Then little children were brought to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray, but the disciples rebuked them. Jesus said, ‘Leave the little children alone, and don’t try to keep them from coming to me, because the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.’” (Matthew 19:13-14 CSB)
This week my husband and our son went off to Centrikid while I stayed home with our daughter who isn’t quite old enough to go yet. Camp is magical. It’s full of games and sweat and swimming. It’s full of dancing and ice cream and friends. But it’s mostly full to the brim with God’s Word and with worship. I was so excited to hear from my husband each day about what they did and what our son was learning. I got a lot of the normal responses—you know, how stinky the boys’ cabin was; how many snacks they were consuming; how Parker was cruising around in a canoe with friends looking for snakes and whatever else they could find. It made me giddy that he was experiencing all of this.
But then I received a video of Parker during worship. As the band sang “Gratitude,” Parker’s little hand was lifted in the air in worship to the Savior. His fingers were slightly bent with a little bit of shyness or maybe a little bit of insecurity. And my heart almost leaped out of my chest with overwhelming gratitude of my own.
You see, our kids are watching who and what we worship. They’re watching us either worship Christ or the world. They’re watching us either worship popularity or Jesus. They’re making note of whether we bow down to sports or the Lord. They see if we worship ourselves rather than God. They see what matters to us, and they follow our lead.
They’re watching how we worship too. Do they see us express authenticity and freedom in our worship? We aren’t required to lift our hands. It isn’t mandated that we assume a certain posture. But how beautiful to surrender in worship to the Lord and for our children to physically see it, both while we sing and while we live our lives.
This reminded me of how much rides on my own genuine worship of Jesus. My children are watching. And I pray my worship is heartfelt and genuine so that it spills over onto them. I pray it makes them ask, “who is this King my Mama bows to?” And I pray I never forget what a privilege it is to serve the Lord while my children watch. My own worship won’t ensure theirs, and if I’m honest, that’s scary to me. But I can do my best to show them why Jesus is worthy of it.
Here is what we can do:
1. Let it be genuine.
Our children can spot a fake. They really can. Be honest- it’s why so many of us have been turned off from religion. We watched others fake it for far too long. How do we get to a place of genuine worship? Get to know Jesus through His Word. Dig in there. Be consistent there. And it’ll be undeniable of how much He deserves your authentic worship and your life. You’ll overflow with gratitude when you realize the lengths God went to in order to redeem you.
2. Let them see.
Don’t hide your gratitude. Let it spill over. If you’re led, lift your hands. Bow your own knees. And allow your kids to see that people’s opinions don’t matter.
3. Let them hear.
Worship with them in the car. Pray with them throughout the day. Our kids aren’t impressed by big words or showy expression. Pray simply with them. Be honest before God in front of them. Present your own requests to Him.
I fail often. I sink into worshiping my own idea of God rather than God Himself more often than I like. But everyday is an opportunity to recenter ourselves and to cast all of our affection upon Jesus. Just let it overflow from a genuine love of Jesus. Let them see it. Let them hear it.
Here’s to many years of camp with my children and to a lifetime of learning to worship the Lord in a way which brings Him all the honor.