This might sound odd, coming from a minister.

Of course my kids are in church. They are all still very young, and we take them with us. I don’t know the future decisions each of my kids will make, or what that will look like. I pray that they will always place Christ first in their lives.

And right now, I am blessed to be able to attend church with my entire family, each week.

It’s an incredible feeling, standing next to my sons and listening to them sing each week. My two older daughters are usually sitting with friends their own ages, and that’s ok too. My oldest daughter is usually in the second row from the front, and I can see that she is listening to me preach.

I find great joy in the fact that my family attends church together. I am blessed by the fact that my kids are excited to learn from the Bible and grow in their relationships with Christ.

My kids don’t always behave the best while at church. And while I don’t want to sound like I’m making excuses for them, they are, after all, just kids. My five year old son doesn’t know that he shouldn’t run in the church lobby, dodging between people, until I teach him that behavior like that is unacceptable.

My daughter, who is three, doesn’t understand why she should be still and listen until I teach her how to be still and listen.

My kids don’t go to church because we have our act together and they are well behaved kids. My kids attend church with me so that they can learn more about who Christ is, so they can who they are in Christ, and so they can experience the grace and love of Christ in their own lives.

The relationships and friendships that we build, based on those foundations, with others in the church are the icing on the cake.

I know that my kids are growing from our church.

Recently, a lady in our church experienced a heart attack. This woman and her husband have adopted my kids as their own grandkids. All of my kids love these two like they are family. And when we heard the news, my kids immediately began to pray.

When I was a kid, my faith was based upon my parents’ faith for a very long time. I see my kids developing their own faith, and it’s growing strong.

I will never regret making church a priority for our family. Never.

I encourage you to make church the same in the life of your own family. If you have already done this, great! Keep growing deeper. If not, seek out a church family that you can become a part of. The sooner the better.

And, be deliberate, Dad!

How do your kids benefit from your own community of faith? You can leave your thoughts in the comments section below.