I’ve been a mother for a year now! It’s been stressful at times, but more often I find myself smiling and thinking about how much I enjoy my daughter’s existence. The way she giggles; her interest in technology; her desire to be constantly moving…I might be biased but I think she’s going to be pretty great.
Like most faith-based parents, I want to instill God, prayer, and the Bible into her life. This has been easy to do at bedtime – reading Bible stories and praying together before bed to begin the routine – but I haven’t figured out what most people in the faith try to instill the most: Going to church regularly.
For some, this may not have been an issue to begin with. The schedule of going to church every Sunday morning was already instilled in you and it wasn’t a problem to ease your child into that routine. I, on the other hand, have come across two issues: I’ve had a problem with church attendance since before my daughter was born, and my child always needs a nap when it’s time to go.
I’ve discussed my issue with Church attendance in a previous blog, which you can read here, but today I’d like to focus on the second issue. My child’s need to nap when it’s time to go to church, however, has brought about questions of how I should start those building blocks of helping her understand the importance of a faith community. These are the questions that I’ve been dealing with lately:
Do I take her anyway despite that she is clearly cranky and needs to nap?
Seriously, her crankiness sometimes feels like the earth is shaking from her rage. Typically, she won’t nap unless she’s in the car or at home. I think it’s a safety thing. I don’t know if trying to go to church during that time is worth probably going in and out of the sanctuary for an hour every Sunday is worth it. On the other hand, if I can consistently go, she may begin to feel safe enough to nap at church.
Do I keep her home, let her nap, and try to find a sermon to stream online during that time?
It would certainly be more convenient. It lets her sleep without potential trouble. However, the convenience is really more so for me, and the building blocks of community are lost for her.
How important are these building blocks now at her age?
I think most people would say that those building blocks are essential. And maybe to a certain degree, they are. I also am just not sure that she will begin to understand these fundamentals for another year or so. I’m not trying to make an excuse to not go to church; I just don’t know that I believe that her missing out on church now could make her a non-believer in the future.
Can I even begin these building blocks if I’m not consistent with them myself?
My personal answer? No. I think when it comes down to it, I just need to ease back into going consistently myself before these building blocks can even begin to be instilled in my child. And while her need to nap when church begins is inconvenient, I think her and I both are just going to have to suck it up and to try to get through it.
Have any of you had this dilemma or something similar? How did you handle it and what do you recommend?
Blunt Christian Talk 