In his New York Times bestseller Quiet Strength, Tony Dungy writes about growing up in a Christian home and knowing he was going to heaven. However, he had never “fully engaged God” and let Him direct his life until after college. As children’s pastors, we’re laying a foundation of Biblical truth and setting kids up for a life-long journey of following God. Yet, a time will come in a kid’s life when they have to ‘own’ their faith for themselves. During this time they must move past what they’ve been taught and through trials and testing embrace what they know.
This is a natural maturation of our faith. For some it happens early in life. For others, like Dungy, it may come later. What we do know is that God’s promise is true: ”Train a child in the way he should go, when he is old he will not turn from it.” – Proverbs 22:6
