Date
4-2019
Department
Rawlings School of Divinity
Degree
Doctor of Ministry (DMin)
Chair
Dan Burrell
Keywords
Discipleship, Children, Youth, Family
Disciplines
Christianity | Religion
Recommended Citation
Hazel, Angela, "Discipling Children and Youth: Helping the Church Enable Parents to Lead" (2019). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects. 2049.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/2049
Abstract
Parental apathy in the discipleship of children has become a worrisome issue in the Protestant churches of the United States. Where once the home was the foundation of Bible learning and character building, now parents have placed the responsibility of spiritual formation of children squarely on the shoulders of the church. The church, however, is ill-equipped to fully disciple a child or youth during this transformational time in their lives. This study sought to examine the issues that lead to parental withdrawal from discipleship training of their offspring and develop a method for the church to equip and enable parents to take the lead. The research consists of survey responses from one-hundred parents, grandparents, and guardians from various economic, regional, denominational and racial demographics. The result of this study will help churches develop practical methods to help parents rebuild their confidence in leading their children.
