By Kayla DeKraker
New research from Barna, in partnership with Awana, reveals a striking disconnect between parents and church leaders when it comes to discipling children.
While 95% of children’s ministry leaders believe that discipleship begins at home, parents are much more divided, Barna found. Fifty-one percent of parents feel the church should take the lead, whereas 49% see it as their own responsibility.
One of the most revealing findings is that many parents feel under-qualified to lead their kids spiritually. In fact, 86% of parents said their children learn spiritual lessons at church that they themselves don’t feel capable of teaching.
“This tug-of-war reveals a deeper challenge: if children’s ministry is going to be healthy, pastors must help both parents and their ministry leaders find common ground,” Barna said. “Child discipleship cannot be outsourced entirely to one or the other. Both need clarity about their roles — and a shared vision for partnership.”
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Christianity Today noted that when churches help parents deepen their faith, they will feel better equipped to disciple their children.
“Pastors and other church leaders should also attend carefully to parents’ spiritual formation,” the outlet said. “By caring for parents’ faith, the church cares for the whole family. The ‘mouth speaks what the heart is full of,’ as Jesus taught us (Luke 6:45), and parents whose faith is growing in depth and maturity won’t need busywork and programming to disciple their children.”
Barna also noted the importance of fostering “intergenerational connections.” This means that we should invite children “to serve alongside adults, pair them with mentors in small groups or ministry teams, and create regular opportunities for meaningful conversations across generations.”
Another topic observed is the importance of mentorship in church. Having the “presence of other caring adults at church” in kids’ lives greatly benefitted their faith. The majority of these children integrate biblical principles into their lives, study the Bible on their own, understand biblical principles and are more likely to memorize Bible verses.
Thankfully, this mentorship is paying off. In a post to Instagram, Barna celebrated that “Millennials and Gen Z are driving a Bible reading comeback.”
The group explained, “Weekly bible reading among U.S. adults has climbed up to 42 percent” and around half of Gen Z and Millennials read the Bible weekly.
Proverbs 22:6 says, “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.”
It is vital that both church leaders and parents work together to make this happen. But at the end of the day, parents are responsible to oversee the spiritual development of their children.
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