At the risk of trying to sound “too spiritual” I think there is another factor. It’s more than living a moral life before them - some lost parents do a pretty good job of that. And it’s more than preaching the Gospel TO them. It’s living the Gospel before them. Do they see us laying down our lives for Christ in the day to day of life. Do they see us struggling to be Christ like - and when we blow it do we seek their forgiveness if we’ve wronged them? Kids need to see that the standard (Christ) is being “applied” to our life as well - even when it’s painful, embarrassing, or humiliating. Are we honest enough with them to let them “see” that in our lives. What’s fair for the goose is fair for the gander. It just seems to be a fact of life that when others share their struggles and failures we feel closer to them because we see them as vulnerable - just like we are. To be fair, also, young married couples, who are believers, with small children are still growing in their their faith - and that is the formative years of their children. Who doesn’t make mistakes? Still, each of my three had their own crisis of faith but came out on the right side. We are all living in Sodom today and evil seems lots stronger than when I was growing up.
Excellent and convicting comments. Thank you.