Will Farley (2009) ministered in the church for years. In all that time, he saw no meaningful correlation between school environment and the likelihood that a child would follow Jesus into adulthood.
Home school, public school, private school… these environments did not seem to predict the spiritual trajectory of a child. Faith could grow or diminish in any environment.
However, Farley, at least in his own experience, did see one common denominator worth noting between a child’s environment and their spiritual growth.
He writes:
“The common denominator between success and failure seems to be the spiritual depth and sincerity of the parents, especially the spiritual depth and sincerity of the father. There seems to be a strong correlation between the faith, commitment, and sincerity of the family’s head and the spiritual vitality of his adult children.” (p. 15)
This, to me, is a compelling observation worth mulling and taking to heart.
Farley, W. P. (2009). Gospel-Powered Parenting: How the Gospel Shapes and Transforms Parenting. P & R Publishing.
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