How to Help Kids Make Friends at Church

“Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed.” Ecclesiastes 4:9 (NLT)

Friendships determine the quality and direction of our lives. Healthy friendships help us succeed in life. Toxic friendships will bring great heartache.

“He who walks with wise men will be wise, But the companion of fools will suffer harm.” Proverbs 13:20 (NASB)

The bottom line is this, I become like the people I hang with. This is why it is so critical that we teach our kids how to choose friends that will help them succeed in life.

Here are Five Friendship Principles you can teach your kids.
1. Friendship is a two-way street. Most young children are naturally selfish. They begin to develop social skills around two years of age by learning to share and wait their turn. If they are selfish, they will not have any friends. If they are too compliant, they will attract unhealthy friends who want to control them. We need to teach our kids that friendship is a win/win partnership. You give and you get in a healthy friendship.

2. Choose friends who are on the same road. If you want to play football, hang with other kids who want to play football.

3. Choose friends that are good at what you want to do. If you want to be good at math, hang with kids that are good at math. If you want to make movies, hang with some- one who is good with a camera.

4. Hang with friends who make you feel good about yourself. These are people that say kind words and do good things. This doesn’t mean you never have an argument, but you enjoy being around them.

5. Avoid friends who have destructive habits. If you choose to hang with kids who have destructive habits, such as rebellion, anger, lying, cursing or smoking, you will be- come like them. Do not spend a lot of time with kids who do these things.

The Bible says that we are to love everyone, but we don’t have time to be friends with everyone. Jesus was very selective about who his friends were. His bar for friendship was very high. We need to teach our kids to set the bar high for their friendships.

This is the Leader Guide from Lesson 2 of Road Trip.

Road Trip is a 5-week elementary series for children’s ministry (1st-6th grade). This series helps your children learn to how to enjoy the “Road Trip” of life we are on with God.

For just a couple more days, until May 13th, 2019 Road Trip is only $35, plus we will add a short film for each week for Free. This is a digital download, so you will also get instant access to the lessons. Just in time for summer!

To take advantage of this amazing sale CLICK HERE.