Kids Encountering the Holy Spirit

A few months ago, I preached for a kids event that our church put on. The theme was “Submerged,” and I shared about being filled with the Holy Spirit from Mark 1:8: “I indeed baptized you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” Not only should we be indwelt with the Holy Spirit, but we should be submerged in Him!

After teaching and doing some object lessons, we flowed into a ministry time. I led the children in a prayer to be filled with the Holy Spirit and invited Him to come upon them. God began to move upon the kids and several of them had significant encounters with the Lord. My own eight-year-old son was weeping on his knees under the presence of God. Others shared with me or their parents how God had touched them, revealed salvation and forgiveness to them, or otherwise moved in their hearts.

Children Can be Filled with the Spirit

We must not limit what God wants to do in our children. We must remove the blinders that keep us from seeing our kids correctly and the unbelief that restricts what the Lord wants to do in them and through them. God has specifically promised to pour out His Spirit upon children:

“And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God,
That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh;
Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy.”
(Acts 2:17)

“For I will pour water on him who is thirsty,
And floods on the dry ground;
I will pour My Spirit on your descendants,
And My blessing on your offspring.”
(Isaiah 44:3)

We should expect that our children will not only be saved, but filled with the Holy Spirit. They don’t need to wait until they are adults to have encounters with the Lord. The enemy is not waiting for our kids to grow up until he goes after them; how much more should we expect God to want to pour out His blessing upon them!

Kids can be filled the Holy Spirit, pray in tongues, move in the supernatural gifts of the Spirit, and minister to others. If John the Baptist could be filled with the Spirit in the womb (see Luke 1:15), then surely we can have faith for the Holy Spirit to move in our children.

Kids are hungry for the real thing. We should engage them at their level, but we should not patronize them or minimize our expectations of how God will work in them.

Let’s believe God to touch our kids in real ways and lead them in a real relationship with Him. Let’s raise our expectations of how God wants to move in our kids. Let’s welcome the Holy Spirit in our families and children’s ministries, to move as He pleases. Let’s pray for a great outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon our children!