Teach kids that God sees their struggles and has answers

Matt’s face was wet with tears, crying in the park, a new low. His younger sister was playing with new friends she’d made, sliding, running, laughing. He was alone. New house, new church, no school place available yet for him - all these things made finding friends difficult. Weeks passed, no change. Matt felt alone with a heart-breaking struggle.

Matt had help.

He talked to his parents, they listened, cried with him, held him, prayed with him, reminded him how loved he was by them and God.

Matt had help.

Matt’s tears join a growing salty sea wept by our children and young people

His church family listened, they stepped closer, adults making a bee line to chat with him after church, kids leaders repeating the truth his parents were telling him at home, a hand on the shoulder, prayers prayed with him and for him, heartache shared.

Matt had help from a heavenly Father who adored him and surrounded him with a family who loved him, wrapped up in a church family who were determined to care for them. This is God’s good design for the heartaches of childhood, a child in a family, surrounded by a church family so he can feel God’s love and care in tangible ways.

Matt has a saviour who understands him. Jesus knows the heartache of being alone, friends gone and a face wet with tears, he knows how to help.

Matt has God’s Spirit with him helping him to go again; God’s presence with him, never leaving, always loving, giving strength to keep on trusting.

God’s anxiety on this issue however is not on the increase

Matt is the son of a friend of mine. He now sees that in the tears, the loneliness and the desperation his faith came to life. He understands that the truths he had heard in Sunday School, the faith his parents lived out, made the miraculous journey from his head to his heart. Matt was now able to look to God, feel loved, pray and wait.

Matt’s precious tears were captured and counted by his heavenly Father.

Psalm 58:8 tells us, “You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book.” (NLT)

Matt’s tears join a growing salty sea wept by our children and young people. The most recent NHS England report says that 1 in 5 children aged 8 to 16 are estimated to have a ‘probable mental disorder’. In younger children (ages 5 to 7), the prevalence sits at around 1 in 10. The causes are complex but the data is clear that across many measures we are seeing a marked decline in the mental wellbeing of the next generation.

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God’s anxiety on this issue however is not on the increase, The stats do not surprise him, though they certainly sadden him. He made us, knows us inside out and his love and grace will continue to be sufficient for us. His word offers us timeless truth and honest realism. The Bible is filled with stories of struggling families, heartache, tears, emotions, desperation, joy.

Our health service, schools and communities are aware of the problem, and increasing awareness is leading to increasing conversations and solutions. Our children are being given good advice about how to look after their wellbeing and taught strategies to regulate their bodies and improve their mood.

Our churches want support in this area. Faith in Kids’ own small survey of over 170 church leaders showed that Mental Wellbeing is the number one topic for which parents come seeking support.

As Christians we can offer our children, young people and families something better than self-reliance

Looking to God, mental well being in the Psalms is our response. It is a wide-ranging set of resources for churches and families to use to build confidence that there is a better story we can share with our children in their struggles.

Psalm 121 tells us of a moment just like Matt’s – standing alone, looking around and seeing no-one, no cavalry seeming to appear, the road ahead looking daunting and the heart sinking as the question rise,

“I lift my eyes to the mountains - where does my help come from?’ Psalm 121:1 NIV

The weary traveller with tear-stained cheeks lifted his eyes, away from himself, his ability to cope, his own resources. He lifted his eyes above the stretching path to see the solid mountains that pointed upwards to vast, star-spangled heavens that sang together of their awesome, mightier creator.

“My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth.” Psalm 121:2 NIV

Here is an inexhaustible supply of help available eternally, no waiting list, no limited resources, no office hours

As Christians we can offer our children, young people and families something better than self-reliance. Our help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth. The powerful God who is big enough to handle whatever we could throw at him and personal enough to count every tear we shed. The one who promises to be right by our side, to never leave and to hold us in his hands until the day he welcomes us home and wipes away every tear.

“The Lord will watch over your coming and going, both now and for evermore.” Psalm 121:8 NIV

Here is an inexhaustible supply of help available eternally, no waiting list, no limited resources, no office hours.

We can bring our tears and questions to God. We can talk together. We can support each other. Our churches can be places where families share struggles and point one another to God. We can be ready to understand more, to hear the best of the practical well-being strategies our kids are being given and offer the missing connection that eases the burden. We never have to cope alone!

Matt’s incredible true story is one of looking to the Lord, being loved, helped and held and finding that his Heavenly Father had him

Tearful Matt in a park could have been given lots of helpful advice, “Be friendly, introduce yourself, join more clubs, arrange more play dates, distract yourself with a hobby.” His parents could have swung into action in a million different ways. His church could have nagged some younger / older kids to fix the problem. Matt’s incredible true story is one of looking to the Lord, being loved, helped and held and finding that his Heavenly Father had him.

Matt’s miracle is a reminder that perhaps the growing struggles represented by the scary stats provide an increasing opportunity to offer and find the help that has been there all along.

“Where does my help come from… my help comes from the Lord.”

Matt goes to a church where the Bible is taught to him in a way that is not just filling his head with information about God, but is connecting his life and his feelings to his faith. The truths he is being taught are making a difference to the tears in the park. That is our vision for these resources: to help churches and families enable children to discover the difference that depending on God’s love and help makes in their everyday life.

For more on this topic head to “Looking to God – Mental wellbeing in the Psalms” from Faith in Kids