One Sunday morning, five-year-old Jimmy decided to surprise his dad by fixing him a cup of coffee.

He’d seen his dad do it a hundred times, so how hard could it be?

He filled the coffee filter full of coffee grinds, poured water in the coffee machine and turned it on.

The smell of coffee filled the kitchen as Jimmy watched the dark liquid fill the pot. Finally, it was done.

Jimmy filled his dad’s cup and set it on the table.

Dad was surprised alright!

He tried to smile as he drank the stout coffee while Jimmy watched excitedly.

Then he saw something in the bottom of the cup. It was two green army men!

“Jimmy, what did you put in my cup?”

Jimmy replied, “The TV said the best part of waking up is soldiers in your cup!”

Child-ren can say the funniest things, can’t they?

I love kids. God has blessed my wife and I with two of our own: Lauren and Corey.

They have both grown up, moved out and have lives of their own.

In fact, we have one grandson now, Xander. (And you can bet Mimi and Poppy are spoiling him rotten!)

As I watch him grow, God is using him to teach me just how precious life really is.

For example, when I look at a patch of dandelions, I see a bunch of weeds that are going to take over my yard, but Xander sees flowers for Mom and blowing white fluff you can wish on.

When I feel the wind on my face, I turn away from it as I feel it messing up my hair and pulling me back when I walk; but

Xander closes his eyes, spreads out his arms and flies with it until he falls to the ground laughing.
Kids teach us how to slow down and enjoy life.

At the same time, the Bible teaches us in Proverbs 22:6, “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”

A recent nationwide survey provides some statistical support for that notion, showing that adults who regularly attended church as children are much more likely than their unchurched peers to be involved in church-based and personal spiritual activities.

The study, conducted by the Barna Research Group of Ventura, California also discovered that adults who attended church as a child are twice as likely to read the Bible during a typical week; twice as likely to attend a church worship service in a typical week; and nearly 50 percent more likely to pray to God than were their unchurched-as-children adult counterparts.

Christian psychologist Dr. James Dobson recently said, “When it comes to teaching children: values are caught, not taught.”

Over the past year, the COVID-19 pandemic closed churches around the world. Which forced many families and individuals to quarantine at home. That’s why we shouldn’t rely solely on church services to teach children about God.

While it is important for parents to take their kids to church, it’s more important for them to model biblical values in front of them at home.

God has a great plan and purpose for your life.

Don’t ever underestimate what God can do in your child’s life… and in yours!

Rev. Doug Johnson is the senior pastor at Raven Assembly of God.
in Raven, Virginia