How to Help Your Child Grow in Wisdom

One of my favorite songs, taught to me by my paternal grandfather, is the hymn “O God Our Help in Ages Past,” a song based on the Psalm of Moses. The twelfth verse says, “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom” (Psalm 90:12, NIV). According to this Scripture, to live well is to live wisely, and if there is one thing we need to help our children grow in, it is to live wisely.

Wisdom is the ability to know God as He is the source of all wisdom and the willingness to do His will. To be wise, then, is to grasp and comprehend God’s will and His ways as revealed by His Word. But how do we help our children grow in wisdom?

Fostering Growth

We want our children to grow up in the wisdom, stature and understanding of God and His ways, just as Jesus did (Luke 2:52). Our task is to train them to be skilled in God’s counsel, so they make right decisions and live wisely. Their minds need to be renewed and rooted in the principles of Christ, weaned away from the patterns of this world since, by nature, we are tuned to this world.

Teach Them to Think and Seek

Young people reach out for answers and guidance to the internet, friends, peers, and other sources. Our greatest work is to teach and train them to think biblically. We can encourage them to seek answers and guidance from God’s Word first.

The news media, social media, and otherworldly sources are constantly exerting influence. We can help them develop sound judgment based on the philosophy of Christ (Col. 2:6-8). Our home influence should also combat and nullify these outside impacts. We need to arm our children with enough astuteness and insight from the Word so they can withstand all types of outside pressures.

Give Them a Modus Operandi

The wisdom literature (Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon) of the Bible is a valuable resource. It provides us with a blueprint for daily life and acts as a divine guide to skillful living. Sharing it with our children will help them acquire hearts of wisdom.

In addition to sharing God’s Word, we need to show our children how to apply Scripture in daily life by making it relevant to them. We can do that through practical modeling of the truth in our own lives. Whenever I need something, I first pray and ask God to provide. I would then share my prayer notebook with my children and show them the answers that were recorded by date. This motivated them to do the same.

Embrace Community

Being part of and interacting with the community of faith will also help your children grow in wisdom.

The Bible speaks often of the wisdom of elders. Consider connecting your children with older folks in the family and church. I taught my kids to respect grandparents, honor elders, and listen to seniors. This created and cultivated in them an excellent attitude and fine character.

As a family, we developed and maintained good relationships with other wise and godly people. This helped my children find mentors and strong community support readily and easily available to them.

During their teen years, children generally don’t listen to their parents but will look up to someone a few years older than them.

Their mentors added value and perspective, blessed them with wise counsel and upheld them in prayer. You’ll also want to ensure that you and your spouse are a team walking in unity. Be careful not to polarize one another, take sides or be divided.

The Power of Prayer

Above all, constantly pray for your children to have an open heart and mind to God’s precepts. Pray that they will seek to please Him and follow Him all the days of their life.

Watch over them, being sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s nudging to root out traits that do not honor God or please Him. You might have to battle and break down strongholds and bondages that have passed down from generations past.

Draw strength from God so that you’re ever ready to lift your children when they go through battles in life.

A mother’s prayer is powerful, effective, and directional, so let your prayers focus on petitioning Him to help your children acquire true wisdom and grit to follow Him.

Don’t waste time praying only for the mundane things of life since He knows what we need.

Focus Their Attention

Focus and center your child’s attention, from infancy, on the Triune God and His plans and purposes for them, for the church, for the world and for all eternity.

Train them to exercise their God-given blessing of free will, not in rebellion or antagonism against God, but in humble submission to His authority.

Be wise yourself in laying good foundations and principles of the Word in them. As you mold and educate them, you will impact them for Him.

Above all, train them to think biblically, rooting them in God’s wisdom, for it is permanent, long-lasting and profitable beyond the grave into eternity.

Let’s co-partner with the Spirit of God so that our children develop a heart of wisdom!