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Phil scooped up his little daughter on his lap and asked, "Emily, who made you?"
Emily replied in her sweet, toddler singsong voice, "God."
"And where does God live?" queried Phil.
"Up in da sky!" replied Emily, lifting her pudgy hands over her head and wriggling her fingers.
Such was my first lesson more than 20 years ago on teaching a preschooler about God. Phil's questions didn't end there, of course, and with each question, Emily instantly and cheerfully responded with simplicity and truth. She had spent time with her daddy before, discussing where the trees, flowers, puppies and squirrels all came from. Emily knew from a very early age exactly who is the source of all life, including hers.
Step by step, the process of teaching a child about God unfolds, as the Bible teaches us to talk about God's ways "when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up" (Deuteronomy 6:7, New International Version). But what does that look like in the home of a preschooler? And more importantly, what is the parents' goal in teaching their child?
Start with love
Knowledge about God is necessary, but what does God really want from each of us? At its heart, our calling is about coming to know God, loving God and learning to obey and trust Him with our entire being. Deuteronomy 6:7 is immediately preceded by "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts" (Deuteronomy 6:5-6, NIV).
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