Sermon Illustrations

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

CHILDREN GO TO CHURCH?

Shall I Make My Children Go To Church?

“Yes,” is the answer with no further discussion about the matter. Are you startled? Why? How do you answer
Junior when he comes to breakfast on Monday morning and announces to you that he isn’t going to school anymore? You know! Junior goes! How do you answer him when he comes in very besmudged and says, ‘I'm not going to take a bath.” Junior bathes, doesn’t he? Why all this timidity, then, in the realm of his spiritual guidance and growth? Are you going to wait and let him decide what church he will go to when he is old enough? Quit kidding! You didn’t wait until he was old enough to decide whether or not he wishes to remain dirty or be clean. Do you wait until he is old enough to decide if he wants to take medicine when he is sick? What will you say when Junior announces he does not like to go to church? That’s easy to answer. Just be consistent. Tell him, “Junior, in our family we all go to church, and that includes you!” Your firmness and example will furnish a bridge over which youthful rebellion travels into rich and satisfying experiences in personal religious living.

— J. Edgar Hoover