How to raise our children in uncertain times
We live in times of rapid change and great uncertainty. Economic crises, violence, migration, pandemics, conflicts in the news, technology advancing faster than we can understand it, artificial intelligence, social media shaping children’s minds. Many parents ask anxiously: how do I prepare my children for a world I don’t understand myself? How do I protect them without shutting them in? How do I give them security when I am afraid too? The Bible says nothing about smartphones or algorithms, but it does offer firm principles and examples of families who raised faithful children in very hard times. In this article we will see how to do so today.
Uncertainty is nothing new
Although our time has its own challenges, families in the Bible also raised children amid uncertainty. Jochebed, Moses’ mother, raised him while Pharaoh ordered the Hebrew boys killed. Daniel’s parents raised him in a Jerusalem threatened by Babylon, and the young man was carried into exile as a teenager. Mary and Joseph fled to Egypt with Jesus as refugees. What sustained those families was not stable circumstances, but a firm faith in God passed on at home. The promise still holds:
“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea.”
Psalm 46:1-2
Faith is passed on in daily life
The Bible’s central text on raising children is found in Deuteronomy. Moses spoke it to a people about to enter an unknown land full of uncertainty:
“And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.”
Deuteronomy 6:6-7
Faith is not passed on only on Sundays, but “when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.” At the table, in the car, before bed. Children learn more from what they see in their parents than from what they hear. A father who prays in hardship, who apologises when he is wrong and who trusts God in a crisis teaches more than a thousand sermons. Read Raising children.
Lois and Eunice: faith passed from generation to generation
Paul reminded his disciple Timothy of the source of his faith: “When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice; and I am persuaded that in thee also” (2 Timothy 1:5). And he added that Timothy had known the Holy Scriptures from childhood (2 Timothy 3:15). His father, according to Acts 16:1, was not a believer. Even so, a faithful grandmother and mother sowed a faith that made Timothy a leader in the Church. Never underestimate the power of a faith lived consistently at home, even when family circumstances are not ideal.
Daniel: raised to be faithful in a foreign world
Daniel and his friends were carried off to Babylon, an empire with another language, another culture and other gods. Their names were changed, and there was an attempt to change their identity. But Daniel “purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself” (Daniel 1:8). That firmness was not born in Babylon: it was formed in his home in Jerusalem. Our children too will grow up in a world with values very different from those of the Gospel. We cannot and should not isolate them completely, but we can give them deep roots, a clear identity in Christ and the conviction to say “no” when necessary, with respect and wisdom. Read the story of Daniel.
Giving security in the midst of fear
Children pick up on adults’ anxiety. In a crisis, what they need above all is a calm presence. Some keys: Listen to their fears without minimising or mocking them. Speak truthfully, adapting information to their age: there is no need to tell them every detail of the news, but neither should we lie to them. Limit their exposure to violent or alarming news. Keep routines: regular times for meals, study and sleep give a sense of stability. Pray with them about their worries and teach them to bring their fears to God. Jesus said: “Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself” (Matthew 6:34). Teach them to live one day at a time, trusting the Father.
“Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.”
Joshua 1:9
Raising children for digital life
One of the greatest sources of uncertainty for parents today is technology. Phones, social media, video games and artificial intelligence offer opportunities but also risks: addiction, comparison, cyberbullying, inappropriate content, contact with strangers and isolation. The Bible gives us a principle: “All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any” (1 Corinthians 6:12). Some practical ideas: delay access to a personal phone and social media as long as possible; use parental controls; keep devices out of bedrooms at night; set screen-free family times, such as meals; teach children to use technology critically, artificial intelligence included; and, above all, set an example: children imitate how their parents use their phones. Talking openly about the dangers, including pornography, protects more than silence. Read What the Bible says about pornography.
Building character and resilience
In an uncertain world, what our children need most is not a life without difficulties, but a character able to face them. Paul wrote that “tribulation worketh patience; And patience, experience; and experience, hope” (Romans 5:3-4). We can help them grow in resilience by letting them take on responsibilities appropriate to their age, letting them make mistakes and learn, teaching them to work, save, finish what they start and apologise. It is also important to teach them gratitude, because a grateful heart withstands anxiety better, and service, because helping others gives them purpose and takes them out of themselves.
Discipline with love
The Bible teaches that parents must correct their children, but with balance: “And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4). In stressful times it is easy to take frustration out on children. Christian correction must never be humiliating or violent; it must be firm, consistent and always accompanied by affection. Children need clear boundaries and, at the same time, to know they are loved unconditionally. Proverbs promises: “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6).
When to seek help
If you notice that your child is persistently sad, anxious or withdrawn, has marked changes in sleep or appetite, is struggling at school or talks about harming themselves, don’t ignore it or put it down only to “their age”. Talk with them, seek guidance from a doctor, psychologist or school counsellor, and in an emergency call 123 in Colombia or your country’s emergency number. Seeking help is an act of love. Read Fighting depression with the Bible.
Take care of yourself too
You cannot give what you do not have. An exhausted, anxious or lonely father or mother will find it harder to give security. Care for your relationship with God, your marriage if you are married, your rest and your friendships. Find a faith community with other families: raising children is not a task to do alone. And remember that your children are, above all, children of God: “Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord” (Psalm 127:3). He loves them more than you do and is still at work in their lives.
Ideas for a simple family faith
No complicated programme is needed. A few small practices, repeated faithfully, leave a lifelong mark: giving thanks before every meal; praying with children at bedtime and blessing them by name; reading a Bible story together each week, for example from our series From Creation to Jesus; memorising a verse as a family each month; taking part together in an act of service; and talking at the table about what each person experienced during the day, including where they saw God’s hand. These simple habits build an identity that no crisis can erase.
A prayer for our children
Lord, at night, when my children are asleep, I sometimes stand watching them and the world that awaits them frightens me. I do not know what it will be like, or whether I am preparing them well. I get so much wrong: I lose patience, I come home tired, I say things I regret. You love them more than I do; to that love I entrust them. Come, Holy Spirit, and put in their hearts what I cannot manage to put there: a taste for what is true, the courage to say no, the certainty of being loved. Be their refuge where I am not. And give me a faith that is more than words: let them see me pray, ask forgiveness, trust when things are short. Keep them from the evil that can be seen and from the evil that comes in through a screen. If one day they wander, go after them. Like Daniel, may they be yours in any Babylon. They are yours, Lord. Watch over them for me. Amen.