I was recently listening to a sermon from the Loveland Christian Church about Proverbs 22:6,
Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.
Now one section of this sermon really hit me. It was about what role the church plays in training a child and Brian Richard, senior minister, shared his story about how his church trained him as a child.
He gave 3 things a church can do.
1. Give Opportunity. He talks about how his church allowed him to preach at 16!, teach children classes, teach VBS, serve communion, collect offering, and lead worship.
2. Speak into their potential. THIS ONE hit the hardest for me. Don't just think that a child is a natural leader... TELL THEM how you see their leadership playing out as they get older. As adults we know how life skills play out later in life. So if you see this persons compassion leading them to a counseling ministry, speak that into them.
3. Live out the life style in front of them. Well duh :-).
This good part starts with about 8 minutes left in the sermon.