My parents allowed me to make my own choices about religion, and I wish they hadn't. For sixteen years, I was left without church, and I really wanted to go, even as a child. I wanted someone to say, "Here is what I believe. We're going to live this way and I hope when you're an adult, you'll think it's a good way to live and choose it for yourself." Interestingly, even though I didn't follow the religions of either parent--neither was active in his or her own church--I chose one that reflected their values. But I would still rather have grown up in a church, one I shared with my parents, even if I changed it later. I look at the little children I teach at church and see how secure they are because they have a stable set of values in their home. I think it builds unity in a family to have everyone sharing a faith.
One way I think parents can share their faith is to simply live it. I think children learn the power of faith by watching their parents in action. When the family is afraid, and the child sees her parents immediately kneel to pray for courage, and then show peace when they finish, the child learns more than he ever will from a sermon.
