6 Easy Family Devotions to Teach Kids Healthy Independence
Check out these six Bible-based family devotions for parents to teach kids healthy independence.
Early in life, children are wholly dependent, relying on their parents for almost everything. A parent’s job is to help kids become self-reliant and eventually become independent as they grow. But with independence comes increased responsibility. You can teach your kids to continue relying on God—even when they’re independent from you.
The Stages of Independence
Consider the stages of independence a child grows through:
Toddlers
A child’s desire for independence begins at 12 months, not 12 years. Your toddler’s “me do it!” autonomy may complicate daily routines, but continue to offer encouragement, supervised guidance, and assurance of your love as your child learns to do things on his or her own.
Preschoolers
As children ages 3 to 5 become more independent, they can also be less cooperative. They take increasing pride in making decisions. But they also find comfort in predictability. Help your kids by maintaining routines while letting them make some simple choices on their own.
Elementary Kids
From ages 6 to 9, kids enjoy making more decisions. They also begin to learn that decisions have consequences. Encourage confident decision-making in your kids by asking open-ended questions, seeking their opinions, and trusting them with increasingly complex tasks.
Preteens
By age 10, most kids start taking ownership of their beliefs and values by analyzing and challenging what they hear. As they do, encourage them to talk with God about those things, too.
How Grown-Ups Can Foster Healthy Independence
While meeting kids’ growing need for independence, grown-ups engage in quite a balancing act. Extremes of offering either too few or too many freedoms can backfire—for kids and for entire families.
When grown-ups try to control children’s behavior (through bribes, for example), they promote dependence rather than independence. And when grown-ups avoid discipline because they don’t want to stifle a child’s independent nature, disrespect for authority often results.
As you seek a healthy middle ground, consider each child’s age and personality. Try some of these activities to emphasize the importance of being faithful and free.
Family Devotion 1: Growing in Grace
You’ll need:
Lead the Devotion
If your family uses growth charts or marks heights on a doorframe, gather around the growth chart(s). Then read aloud Luke 2:52.
Say: Just like how you are growing, Jesus grew when he was a kid, too.
Ask:
- What are some different ways you grow? (We grow physically. We can grow in our knowledge. We grow older.)
- How does growing help us become more independent? (When we’re big, we can physically do more things on our own. We we get older, we can do special things like drive or go to a friends house overnight.)
Say: Growing closer to Jesus is the best way that we can grow.
Ask:
- Does growing to closer to Jesus make you more independent from him or dependent on him? Why?
Family Devotion 2: How Do You Use It?
You’ll need:
- Bible
- tool or kitchen gadget
Lead the Devotion
Set out a tool or kitchen gadget, and have family members act out ways it could be used. Ask:
- What might happen if this [name of tool/gadget] were used in a way it wasn’t designed to be used?
Read aloud Galatians 5:13.
Ask:
- What do you think it would look like to use freedom to “satisfy your sinful nature”?
- What are different ways we can use our freedom to serve others?
Say: God designed us to love and serve one another. Even as we gain freedom and independence, let’s try to live in a way that would make God smile.
Family Devotion 3: Set Free
You’ll need:
- Bible
- ball of yarn or string
Lead the Devotion
Stand in a circle. Hold up a ball of yarn or string, and say it represents a chain. As you pass the yarn around the circle, have each person safely wrap it around one body part. When you’re thoroughly entangled, read aloud Romans 6:20-23.
Ask:
- What does it feel like to be tangled in sin?
- What are some examples of ways people might be trapped by sin in their lives?
Say: Jesus sets us free from sin. We can receive that freedom Jesus by asking him to live in our hearts and be our friend. When Jesus sets us free from sin, it kind of looks like this:
Untangle from the yarn or string to show how Jesus sets us free from sin.
Family Devotion 4: Follow the Leader
You’ll need:
- Bible
- coins (including quarters, nickels, dimes, and pennies)
- bag
Lead the Devotion
Place several coins in a bag, and have each person take one out without looking. Give the following instructions based on coin type:
- Those with a quarter do 10 jumping jacks.
- Those with a dime hop around.
- Those with a nickel to shout, “Nickel, nickel, buy me a pickle.”
- Those with a penny shake someone else’s hand.
Ask:
- How did you feel obeying those silly instructions?
- Tell about a time you had to obey instructions that you didn’t want to obey.
- Why do you think it’s important to obey instructions—even the ones you don’t like?
Read aloud Hebrews 13:17.
Ask:
- Why does God want us to obey people in authority?
- Does that change when we’re grown up? Why or why not?
Family Devotion 5: Squirt Gun Volley
You’ll need:
- Bible
- balloon
- string
- tall pole
- water sprayers/squirt guns
Lead the Devotion
On a hot day, tie a balloon to a pole and play tetherball, using water sprayers to move the balloon rather than your hands.
Ask:
- Why is the tether (the pole and string) important to this game?
- What are some ways the balloon is free in this game?
- What are some ways the balloon isn’t free in this game?
Read aloud Psalm 16:7-8.
Ask:
- How do God’s instructions keep us tethered in life?
Family Devotion 6: Live Out Your Liberty
You’ll need:
- Bible
- symbol of freedom
- paper
- craft materials including markers and stickers
Lead the Devotion
Show children a symbol of freedom relevant to your culture, such as a bird in flight or a broken chain.
Read aloud Leviticus 25:10.
Say: God told the Israelites to set aside a time to celebrate freedom.
Ask:
- Why do you think God told the Israelites to celebrate freedom?
- Do you think it’s still important for us to celebrate freedom now? Why or why not?
Read aloud Luke 4:14-19, and ask:
- How can we help others know about the freedom Jesus gives?
After kids have had time to discuss, use the craft materials to create greetings cards with pictures on them that symbolize freedom. Give them to people as a reminder of their freedom in Jesus.
Looking for more ideas for families? Check out these articles! And for even more ideas and daily posts of inspiration, follow us on Facebook!
