What is spirituality in various younger age groups?

Picture three young people gathered around the Bible — the Word of God — praying together, probably thanking Him for His presence and seeking His guidance. It's so important that as pastoral friends we encourage this kind of spiritual activity among younger people.

In this module we'll explore spirituality in younger people, as distinct from older people, starting with young children and working our way up to middle age. (Our age divisions will, of course, be arbitrary.)

What is spirituality, again? It's vital to remember that spirituality is something central in our life — something that "makes us tick," and, as the Apostle Paul said, our "inner being." This can be a combination of four elements: our connection with God, with other people, with creativity, and with ourself.

This understanding is critical in younger people. No one is born with an innate God-centred spirituality — so to help people towards peace of mind, we need to help develop this in children from a very young age. This means understanding what's central to them from birth, and working from there to lead them to a God-centred life.

How are children regarded by God and His Son? There are many examples of their high regard for children. Consider this central example involving Jesus:

He called a little child and had him stand among them. And he said: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me."

— Matthew 18:2–5 (NIV)

This is very explicit — a child was at the centre of Jesus' focus. If we become humble like a child, and welcome children, we welcome Jesus. It's fundamental to our life in Him. There are, of course, many other examples of God's regard for the importance of children, from both Old and New Testaments. It's always important to keep children, and their humility, at the centre of our life — whether we have our own children or not.

James Fowler. This scholar researched the way younger people's faith (spirituality) grows. Part of his work is cited below as a basic starting point for helping our friend lead children to the love of God. It's important to remember these stages aren't set in concrete — there's often overlap, and sometimes elements don't appear at all. (Fowler's work is variously cited as having six or seven stages; if seven, the first is regarded as a pre-development period.)

You'll notice there's no real attempt to indicate at what stage a belief and faith in God might develop — even in Fowler's further stages (Three to Seven), he doesn't address this.

What can we do? We can't simply accept Fowler's findings wholesale. We can use what we see as appropriate, and help younger children develop a simple understanding of God, so we can help them see Him, in His simplest terms, as important in all aspects of their life. We can do this through an appreciation of the elements of their life that naturally occur, per Fowler's ideas — for example, in Stage 1, the role of near family and friends is important. As a friend, we can work with family to reinforce reliance on and trust in God, praying and talking with them in simple terms about the way God works in our life — thanking Him for family, friends, pets, and their favourite toy. In this way, using the simple aspects of a child's life, we can help them understand the central nature of God in our lives.