Praying with Teens

When it comes to teens, the same person may appear at your devotional time each day—but not the same personality! Use the following ideas to help make your devotional time more of a blessing than a battleground.


Engage everyone. Invite each person to read a portion of Scripture aloud. (Accept the fact that your teen may intentionally read in monotone.) Or have one person read the narration of a Scripture story while others read the words of the characters in that story. You can also take turns reading a psalm one line at a time so that it sounds like it’s being read by one voice.

Ask open-ended questions that require more than one-word answers. Some examples: What do you wonder about this story? Which person in the story can you relate to the most and why? Where did you see God in that story? Listen to teens’ perspective and let them know you appreciate their insights.

Get creative. Find unique ways to spend time with God. Consider creation and what God is doing in culture as you view and discuss a talk from www.Ted.com together. Watch and listen to a praise song on YouTube; better yet, ask your teen to find one that the family can watch! Pray out loud with your teen before he or she starts a new job and when handing over the keys to the car.

Be open to discussion. Christian parents want their kids to have a deep faith, one that moves beyond black-and-white answers, one that they can hold on to when life gets tough. In order to do that kids need to make the faith you’ve been passing on their own. Don’t panic when they have questions or express doubts. Resist the temptation to lecture your teens or tell them what to believe. Be honest about your own questions—and your faith that God knows the answers.