Shocked, the father asked "Where in the world did you learn that?"
"From bart simpson," came the reply.
More people know who Bart Simpson is than know who their own congressman is. The simpsons portrayal of family life is not exactly the Huxtables or Ozzie and Harriet Nelson but they seem to portray life in a satirical way that makes people laugh at their own foibles.
From time to time the simpsons deal with spiritual themes. But mostly, Homer, Marge, Lisa, Bart and Maggie say and do things that other people only think.
They are but one model that kids watch, laugh at and sadly, learn from. Sadly, there are much worse examples. I won't even start talking about Beavis and his friend Butthead.
The truth is, children are immersed in a vat of values that bombard them from every side. Music, movies, radio, television, peer pressure.
It is little wonder that many children might really feel the way the little boy felt when he prayed.
"Lord, why should we thank you?"
But are television characters really supposed to be our children's teachers? They are not and yet the fact that they are, is an indication that parents have not done a good job instilling the Christian faith story and its values into their children's lives.
And we dare not simply lay blame on parents. In baptism, the community of faith pledges support, nurture and help in training and raising children in the faith.
Back in the good old days - my college years - there was a very popular group named Crosby Stills Nash and Young. Getting their launch from the Woodstock Festival, they recorded a song in 1971 entitled teach your children well.
Even though friends, the media, the culture and so much else will have an impact on the life of a child,
The things that will be permanently etched in their lives will be the values and dreams of their parents.
What are the dreams your known by. What are the dreams that your child will pick to emulate and follow.
Hopefully, at the top of the list would be the response of faith and discipleship; of hearing and receiving the call of God through Jesus Christ and then living life wholly committed to him.
This year, our congregation has designated ACTS 2:39 as its year verse and has adopted as a them or slogan; 'the year of the child.'
1. Gods calling grace is not exclusive to adult believers
Do you know where that person is now as a young adult? Its not in church.
Isn't it interesting that Jesus taught that the kingdom of heaven was for little children and that adults should be more like them in faith, we have told children that they cannot be a part until they become more like adults.
The sad truth is that there are millions of children growing up in our country today that will not have had any church experience at all. Somewhere along the line the church has lost its passion for reaching youth and reproducing the faith in their lives.
The Presbyterian Church is gradually growing older and grayer and is rapidly losing membership. One person observed that at its current rate of decline, the PC(USA) will die in the year 2050 when its last member either transfers out or dies.
Why? Because we have not taken seriously the message of peter at pentecost. The promise is to you and to your children and to all who are far off.
Our challenge and our commitment this year is to live out the reality of that promise that children are heirs of this promise.
Living out this commitment that we make this year and that we have often made at baptisms, means that we may have noisier services, less seating, different music and worship styles than what we are used to, more of our budget spent on ministry to children and youth.
But if we are serious we will be willing to make those small sacrifices.
A couple who were both busy executives in large corporations had promised to take their children to the circus one day. But at lunch an urgent phone call came and there was a crisis at work. The children braced themselves for the news that the circus would have to be postponed. Instead of disappointment, they were shocked to hear the father say, no I wont be in to handle this today. It will have to wait. The employee questioned as to why and said, "The circus keeps coming back you know," to which the father replied, "That is correct, but childhood doesn't."
Brothers and Sisters, we need to remind ourselves that childhood doesn't come back for anyone. We have one chance to live out the promises and commitments to raise our children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord and we had better make it count.
The church and the promises of God are not just for us. They are for our children and our children's children and for generations to come. We dare not be responsible for failing to leave that legacy to them.
In a day when there was no printing, no mass media, no information superhighway, the only means of preserving the traditions and truths of Gods salvation was by one generation teaching it to the next.
Today, even though we have so many other means available to us, I still believe that the most effective and critical way that children learn the faith is through direct encounter in the lives of their parents and elders.
And so moses says, "Don't ever let an opportunity pass. Teach these things when you are sitting, standing, walking, lying down or getting up." In other words, never let a teachable moment pass by.
Rather than letting them simply become lecture topics for a sunday school classroom, let them become living truths that you have experience and are willing to pass on to them.
They are to be upon our hearts. They are to be like constant reminders tied on our clothes and taped to our foreheads. They are to be some evident that our children and youth cannot escape seeing and being curious about them.
The best classroom for a child is not the sunday school classroom but in your backyard raking leave or out in the woods hiking or on a bicycle or at the circus or in your car or at the soccer game. Because it is in those places the truth of the bible is going to prove itself in your life.
The old adage is true: truth is better caught than taught. Get involved with your kids so that can happen, if your kids are grown, get involved with other kids so they can learn these things.
If the church is to preserve itself, it must be reproducing faith in the lives of young people. The truth is that it is not just a responsibility it is a pleasure and joy.
If we are to guarantee that the last member doesn't transfer out or die in the year 2050, then it must be our commitment to take this responsibility seriously.