What most Christian parents miss

Many Christians parents miss teaching one of the most important skills of the Christian life.They read Bible stories to them, pray over them, and take them to church. They teach their sons and daughters how to fold their little hands in prayer, drop money in the offering plate, and quote memory verses. While these disciplines are important, many Christian parents miss teaching something vital--how to recognize the voice of the Holy Spirit.



Learning to recognize the voice of the Holy Spirit is vital to our children’s spiritual lives and can have far-reaching effects.

Here’s why.

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We make moral decisions for them as we teach them right and wrong.

“Share with your sister,” we tell them.

“Stealing is wrong.”

“Be kind to animals.”

Through instruction and example, we teach them what is acceptable behavior, how to know right from wrong, and how to treat others.

As children mature, they begin to make decisions based on what we’ve taught them. If they are believers, the Holy Spirit uses this training, along with scripture they’ve memorized and lessons they’ve learned, to guide them. He keeps them from sin and brings them to repentance.

It’s important that our children learn to recognize the Holy Spirit’s voice, because we won’t always be around to make moral decisions for them. The most important way to help them recognize the Holy Spirit’s voice is to teach them how the Holy Spirit speaks

The Holy Spirit speaks:

 • Through God’s Word. Whenever scripture or scriptural principles pop into our children’s minds, that’s the voice of the Holy Spirit at work. “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you”  (Psalm 119:11).

 • Through godly men and women. This includes pastors and teachers, spiritually-mature friends, counselors, and advisers. God will often use others to share his truth. “The way of a fool seems right to him, but a wise man listens to advice”  (Proverbs 12:15).

 • Through the “still small voice” within their spirits (1 Kings 19:12). To help them understand this, we can share stories of how we’ve been tempted to sin and the Holy Spirit has spoken to our hearts, reminding us to do what’s right. It’s especially important to teach them that God will never lead them contrary to the Word of God, which must always be their plumb line.

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As we model a life surrendered to God’s guidance, we have opportunities to share how the Holy Spirit speaks to us. Warning: This usually requires transparency. 

We might say, “I was tempted to be selfish and not give to the offering for the children’s home this morning, but then the Holy Spirit reminded me that we’re supposed to help support the widows and orphans, so I gave.” Or “I got so angry today that I wanted to yell at that rude cashier. Thankfully, my friend Sally reminded me how we’re supposed to ‘be angry and sin not,’ so I chose to speak kindly to her instead.”

Teaching them not only to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit, but to obey it quickly will enable them to make and follow through on right moral decisions.

How have you learned to recognize the voice of the Holy Spirit in your life, and how have you shared this understanding with your children? I'd love to hear your thoughts. Leave a comment below and share what God has taught you. 

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