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Teaching children to pray is a vital part of introducing them to Jesus and reinforcing their relationship with God.

Our Lord gave us prayer so we could communicate with him directly, and getting children comfortable with prayer helps them to understand that God is always close and accessible.

Children can start learning to pray even before they can speak in coherent sentences simply by watching you pray (more about this later) and by inviting them to pray with you as best they can. As with any good habit, you'll want to reinforce prayer as a regular part of life as early as possible. Once a child can communicate verbally, they can learn to pray on their own, either out loud or silently. But, if your Christian walk began after you started raising a family, it's never too late for kids to learn about the importance of prayer.

Be sure your children understand that prayer is simply a conversation with God, one that shows respect for his unending love and power, but that is spoken in our own words. Matthew 6:7 says, "When you pray, don't babble on and on as people of other religions do.

They think their prayers are answered merely by repeating their words again and again." (NLT) In other words, we don't need formulas.

We can and should speak to God in our own words. Some religions teach specific prayers, such as The Lord's Prayer, which was given to us by Jesus.

Children can start practicing and learning these at an appropriate age. The concepts behind these prayers can be taught so that kids aren't simply reciting words without meaning.

If you teach these prayers, it should be in addition to, and not instead of, showing them how to talk to God naturally.