Do People Come Back to Church?

By Billy Graham, Tribune Content Agency on Nov 28, 2016

Q: Like a lot of people their age, our daughter and her husband dropped out of church once they got out on their own. Do most people like this come back to church once they have families? We hope so. -- Mrs. T.H.

A: Unfortunately, many young people today do leave God out of their lives once they're out on their own. Some become openly rebellious -- but many simply become too busy or too preoccupied with life, and they don't feel any need for God or church.

As they grow older, however, many do come back -- often with a deep and sincere commitment to Christ. Over the years, for example, I've received many letters from new parents who wanted to give their children a moral and spiritual foundation in life, and were beginning to realize their own need for God. Parenting is a serious responsibility, and they realized they needed God's wisdom and guidance to do it well.

What can you do? First, pray for your daughter and her husband, that God will work in their hearts and lives to help them realize that they need Him. They need His wisdom, and they also need the hope and peace that can only come from Christ. In addition, ask God to help you know how you can encourage them to build their lives on Christ. If you failed to teach this to your daughter when she was young, be honest in confessing it to her.

As a footnote, I believe we need to do more today to bring our young people to Christ, and to strengthen their spiritual lives so they can resist the pressures they'll face later on. The Bible says, "Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it" (Proverbs 22:6).

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(Send your queries to "My Answer," c/o Billy Graham, Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, 1 Billy Graham Parkway, Charlotte, N.C., 28201; call 1-(877) 2-GRAHAM, or visit the Web site for the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association: www.billygraham.org.)