Faith Pathway

Family is important to God! It is within the family context that each child can be discipled first and foremost. We recognise that God has given parents the privilege of nurturing faith in the next generation.

This resource is for you, as a parent, to be encouraged and equipped to disciple your young ones. Our hope is that this supports you to help guide your child toward becoming a follower of Jesus.

Ps. Andy Kirk - Faith Pathway

DEDICATION

0-1 Years

This is the year we would encourage you to have your newborn child dedicated to Jesus by one of our Pastors in an ICC service and to continue to uphold to the Lord through prayer.

The Commitment of The Parent

Proverbs 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.

It is important to understand that a baby dedication is not your decision for your child to follow Jesus. By dedicating your child, you are making a commitment to model, teach and fortify the Christian faith in your home.

BLESSING

1-2 Years

"Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from him."

Psalm 127:3

We believe that children are a gift from God, and we want them to know that. Not only are they a blessing, but they are also set up to receive blessings throughout their lives. Through these formative years, it is essential to impart how God sees them and wants to bless them. God sees your child as valuable, and so do you.

The Commitment of The Parent

Over the course of this year, the commitment of the parent is to intentionally build a habit into the home of speaking blessing over your child. Everyone needs to experience unconditional love and acceptance from their parents.

There are so many opportunities to share a blessing with your child These opportunities can be spontaneous and random, or they can be formal and scheduled.

FAMILY TIME

2-3 Years

As your child grows, it is so valuable for them to see the Family Unit so they can start to sense a support network. two years old is a great time for them to establish fun family times in your schedule to encourage communication, laughter, and faith in the home.

The Commitment of The Parent

Your child is more likely to embrace your beliefs and values if they enjoy time with you. That's why fun family times provide a great opportunity for effective faith formation.

Some Ideas For Your Family Time:

Family Scripture: Make up a fun way to memorize together
Movie Night.
Cook a meal together
Play games together
Have regular days out

BIBLE STORIES

3-4 Years

This year is a great place to start developing a habit for your child to read the bible. The recommended resources will not only set e foundation for them to understand the bible, but it will also help them to love reading the bible.

Reading the bible isn't a chore, it's a joy! This means as a parent, you will want to make sure that developing this habit is as natural as possible so choose the best time for you.

The Commitment of The Parent

Your commitment this year is to help your child to love reading the bible!

Some Ideas

Read Before Bed - This is a great time to include a bible story in the nighttime reading.

Act Out The Story - To help your Child remember the bible story, incorporate some acting out.

Let Your Child Read to You - using some great picture books or bible apps your child can retell the story by 'reading' it back to you.

GOD IS

4-5 Years

Choosing one of the catechisms from recommended resources and implementing will help build your Child's faith in God. Across this stage of their development, the repetition will help and allow great questions to be asked and for you to explore together.

The Commitment of The Parent

Reading the Catechism in recommended resources to your child will help build their faith in God, Across this stage of their development you can commit to going through this and being there to answer any questions they may have, and even more, working them out together.

WHAT IS THE CATECHISM?
The Catechism is a way to systematically teach children biblical truths of Christian doctrine.

PRAYER

5-6 Years

One of the greatest things you can do is help your child develop a relationship with God through prayer. Prayer is how we communicate with God. This year is about nurturing your child's faith by praying together as a family but also taking time to discuss and teach them about this topic.

The Commitment of The Parent

Over the course of this year, the parent is to model prayer and encourage it as much as possible. Having a small whiteboard, or somewhere visible to write out some key things the family is praying for, helps as a daily reminder.

Establishing some routines - Making prayer central to your family will help make it a normal part of your child's life.

Consider incorporating the following into your family routine:

Meal Time - Briefly give thanks before you eat.

Bed Time - When the first child goes to bed, take time as a family to stop and pray at the end of the day.
Drive Time - As you are driving in the car to school, encourage your child to pray for the day ahead and for those they meet.

the bible

6-7 Years

This step is all about helping your child have a deeper understanding of the Bible, and how it relates to them personally! One of the greatest joys and responsibilities you have as a parent is to teach your child to love God's Word to build a solid foundation based upon truth.

The Commitment of The Parent (Part 1)

This year help your child discover the importance of God's Word using these suggestions.

Choose a Bible - Find a translation that is easy for your child to read and understand
We recommend the New International Reader's Version (NIRV). We recommend Kids Quest Bible and Adventure Bible
Model It - Children learn from observation and experience. Try to schedule a regular time when you child observes you reading the Bible.
Use a Guide - Show your child how you can use your bible as an everyday guide for life by showing them how to search for scripture.
Keep it Simple - Take time to stick to one common theme and focus on that.
Use a study plan or reading schedule -The Kids Bible App has some great ideas for reading plans that will be a great resource for you.

worship

7-8 Years

Worship incorporates singing, but it's also a lot more than that It's our response to the greatness of God and a way to express our love to him. This can be expressed through how we relate to people, our commitment to the Church reading the Bible, and putting God first in our lives. Worship is both an action and an attitude Scripture says that worship begins in. the heart (John 4:23).

Worship involves taking the focus off ourselves and directing our attention toward God, who He is, and what He has done.

It's at this age we can start to teach your child the importance of putting their trust in God through worshipping him in all that they do.

The Commitment of The Parent (Part 1)

This year, we set out to help your child understand worship. Children don't need to be taught how to worship but whom to worship.

Most children, at this age, start to admire sports stars, TV personalities, and superheroes. In other words, they worship someone or something. Our commitment as parents is to help your child see the wonder of God and how awesome He is. The best way of teaching your child how to express worship is by doing this yourself.

jesus

8-9 Years

At this age, your child will be reaching a stage whereby they start making decisions for themselves. Therefore, this year the sole focus is all about Jesus. This is your opportunity as a parent to teach your child about Who Jesus is, how He lived, and who He is to us.

The Commitment of The Parent

This year the commitment from the parent is to have a deeper look at who Jesus is. Reading the recommended resources with your child will develop a deeper understanding and generate good discussion.

Another way is to focus on reading the Gospels and asking questions like

Why do you think Jesus did that?
How would that person have felt when they encountered Jesus?
How can we show the same character as Jesus did?

giving & serving

9-10 Years

God blesses and entrusts each person with gifts, talents and resources. This stage of your child's life is the perfect time to start to teach them how to practically outwork their faith by discovering what gifts or talents God has given them.

The Commitment of The Parent

GIVING:
Teaching your child, the value of giving and generosity at an early age will set them up for prosperity throughout the rest of their lives.

Bringing the tithe and giving offerings are key biblical principles that we teach in our church. We believe everything belongs to God and he gives us resources to steward it for His Kingdom purposes. It also gives us the opportunity to participate in something bigger than ourselves.

This step is about teaching your child to be a good steward of what God has given them, As a parent, here are two ways you can commit to this:

1. Model It - Start by putting into practice the values and disciplines you want your children to learn. Let your child see that you give. In 2 Corinthians 9:7, it says, "So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver."

2. Teach It - If your child receives money from an allowance, chores, or as a gift, take time to teach them how to divide money wisely. A great place to start is to set aside the tithe as discussed previously.

preparing for adolescence

10-11 Years

As your child approaches a major transition stage of their lives, teaching them good faith principles and their purpose in God will continue to establish a strong foundation of Christian principles.

The Commitment of The Parent (Part 1)

For many the transition from childhood to adolescence can seem turbulent and chaotic, Adolescence is a time of change for both the parent and the child, as well as a time when the ways in which you relate with one another shift. Preparing your child for change can be instrumental in how your child faces these years.

Remember, this is a season of changes your child has never encountered before

During this process, your child is in critical need of guidance, encouragement and stability. As their parent, you can lead your child into greater understanding of their identity in Christ. Your investment here will be seen in who your child grows up to be during adolescence.

Here are some ideas for you to impart this value into your child as they venture out of childhood:

Spend time with them one-on-one Read the Bible together.
Create space and openness for them to ask questions.
Keep lines of communication open by encouraging them in their wins
Impart wisdom from your own experiences.
Lay a moral foundation even before they, or you, are ready to discuss the mechanics of sexuality.
Don't forget to laugh.. awkwardness is the norm!