Mike Farris:
Noël, children are just naturally curious. They want to know why we do what we do. How have you used worship to develop a sense of identity for your children?

Noël Piper:
We have tried, when our children are as young as 2 or 3, to start having them with us in the worship service. Obviously, some Sundays we’re there longer than we are others, as we’re training. But because we feel like it’s an important thing for a child to see their parents worshipping, listening to God’s word, praying with his people, and having a sense, in hearing God’s word together, of being part of more than just the immediate family in our own household but part of the broader family of God, and receiving the strength and prayers from that broader family as well as within the smaller family group.

Mike:
How has that impacted your children’s lives as you’ve watched them over the years?

Noël:
It’s been a wonderful thing. When we come back from vacation, and as a pastor my husband would choose to visit another church if we still have another vacation Sunday, but our kids can’t wait to get back to our own church and be with the family that they know there, the teachers that they love, and to be back in their familiar place—it really feels like home, an extension of home.

Mike:
Noël, thank you so much for encouraging us to integrate our children into the broader family of God. I’m Mike Farris.