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A while back, a listener sent me an email asking a question that I think many moms quietly carry in their hearts:
“How do I teach my children to pray?”
Her children were still very young, and she shared that she didn’t feel like she was having much success. I wrote her a long email with some thoughts and encouragement, but afterward I kept thinking… I bet there are other moms wondering the same thing.
So today I want to share some of those thoughts with you too.
When my children were younger, I often wished I had an older woman I could ask questions. A mentor. Someone who had walked this road before me and could help me navigate all the little everyday moments of motherhood and discipleship.
I did have older women in my life. I had my mom, my mother-in-law, and women in my church. But none of them had homeschooled their children, and for me, homeschooling was never just about academics.
Yes, academics mattered. I wanted my boys to learn well and be prepared for life. But honestly, homeschooling was probably 80% discipleship and 20% academics for me.
I wanted to teach my children how to walk with God in everyday life.
And I longed for someone who could show me how to do that.
But I never really found one single mentor. Instead, God used books, blogs, podcasts, homeschool forums, and online communities to encourage me along the way. For a long time, books became my mentors.
And honestly, that’s one reason I do what I do now.
It’s why I write these blog posts and record the podcast. I want to encourage younger moms the way I once needed encouragement myself. I want to help another woman feel less alone in the work she’s doing inside her home.
I’m so thankful God gives us each other.
And even when you don’t have a perfect example in front of you, His grace is always enough.
If you long for someone to guide you and can’t seem to find that person, you can always look to Jesus.
Throughout Scripture, we get little glimpses into the relationship between Jesus and His disciples. We see how He walked with them, taught them, corrected them, encouraged them, and prepared them for the day when He would no longer physically be with them.
And one day, after hearing Jesus pray, the disciples asked Him:
“Lord, teach us to pray.”
I imagine hearing Jesus pray must have been powerful. And in response, He gave them the Lord’s Prayer — a beautiful example of how to pray.
That’s actually a wonderful place to begin with our own children.
Read the Lord’s Prayer together. Memorize it together. Talk about what it means.
But if you’re a mama with little children wondering where to begin, here’s the first thing I would say:
Start very small.
And keep it simple.
Years ago, shortly after I became a Christian, someone gave me a book called What Happens When Women Pray. It made a lasting impression on me, especially when it came to praying with others.
One thing the author talked about was how intimidating prayer can feel to someone who is new to praying out loud. Sometimes people hear long, eloquent prayers and think:
“I could never pray like that.”
And instead of drawing near to God, they become afraid to pray out loud at all.
I always remembered that with my children.
I didn’t want prayer to feel intimidating or formal or awkward in our home. I wanted it to feel natural. I wanted my boys to understand that prayer is simply talking to God.
He is already with us.
Why wouldn’t we include Him in our conversations?
So if something good happened, we thanked Him.
If something bad happened, we prayed.
If someone called needing prayer, we stopped and prayed together.
I tried to make prayer part of everyday life.
We prayed before meals.
We prayed during family devotions.
We prayed goodnight prayers.
If we passed an accident while driving down the road, I would say, “Let’s pray for the people involved.”
And after a while, the boys began noticing opportunities to pray on their own.
They would point out an ambulance and say, “Mama, let’s pray.”
They were learning that prayer wasn’t reserved for church or emergencies. It was part of everyday life with God.
One of the simplest things I did to help them start participating in prayer was what I called “one-word prayers.”
At dinner or during devotions I would say something like:
“God has been so good to us today. Let’s go around the circle and each say one thing we’re thankful for.”
I would begin first:
“Lord, thank You for taking care of us today. I’m thankful for…”
Then each child would say one thing.
That’s it.
Simple. Easy. No pressure.
Sometimes we would pray for people we loved.
Sometimes we would each name one thing we needed help with.
Sometimes we prayed for chickens.
And yes, I mean literal chickens.
When my boys were little, our chickens were basically family pets. One Sunday morning before church, we went outside and discovered that something had gotten into the chicken coop during the night.
One of the chickens had died.
Those little boys were heartbroken.
So before church, we had a chicken funeral.
And they conducted the chicken funeral. They thanked God for the time they had with that chicken and asked Him to protect the remaining chickens.
Looking back now, it makes me smile. But honestly, those little moments mattered. Prayer became connected to real life, real emotions, real heartbreak, and real gratitude.
That’s what you want.
You don’t want prayer to feel forced or performative.
You want your children to understand that they can talk to God about anything.
And if they don’t want to pray out loud?
Don’t force it.
No shame. No pressure. No correcting their words.
Just keep modeling prayer.
Keep inviting them in.
Over time, one-word prayers became one-sentence prayers.
I would ask one of the boys to pray over breakfast. Or close out our family devotions. Sometimes when one of them got hurt, we would gather around and pray together.
And sometimes — especially on hard days — I would ask them to pray for me.
Those are precious prayers, by the way.
As they got older, I also introduced prayer journals. Not all of my boys enjoyed that, but one of them especially connected with it. He still keeps a prayer journal today, writing down prayers, Scriptures, and things the Lord speaks to his heart.
Children are different. Some will love writing in a prayer journal. Some won’t.
That’s okay.
The goal isn’t perfection or that they pray a certain way.
The goal is simply creating an atmosphere where prayer is normal and welcome.
And little by little, they catch it.
They begin talking to God because talking to God is part of the life happening around them.
This Thursday night, my son Luke will stand up in front of his senior class, teachers, staff, and parents to pray the opening prayer at senior awards night.
And honestly?
I’m still a little amazed.
Because this is the same little boy who once refused to pray out loud.
The same little boy I wondered about during those exhausting motherhood days when I thought:
“Is any of this even getting through?”
But it was.
Even when I couldn’t see it.
Faith is like planting seeds.
You bury them underground, and for a long time it looks like absolutely nothing is happening. But underneath the surface, roots are growing.
And one day, seemingly all at once, you begin to see a harvest.
That’s where I find myself now.
And I want to encourage you, precious mama: don’t give up.
You are making an eternal difference in the lives of your children.
Even on the days when it feels repetitive. Even on the days when no one seems to be listening. Even on the days when you feel awkward, unqualified, or ineffective.
God is working.
And He is answering your prayers too.
Keep planting seeds.
Keep praying.
Keep inviting your children into the presence of God in simple everyday ways.
His grace really is enough for your home.
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