“Where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.” Matthew 18:20
God designed us to have a relationship with Him and social science research illustrates the benefits that come from spending time with Him.
• Fathers who attend church are more likely to affectionate with their children.
• Fathers who attend church are more likely to spend more time with their children.
• Adults who have spiritual conversations with one another are more likely to resolve family conflict with collaboration.
• Mothers with committed religious beliefs are more responsive to their children.
• Mothers who engage in private prayer tend to be more responsive and involved with their children.
• Men who frequently go to church are less likely to be violent and angry with their spouses.
Having a relationship with God is part of His design. What steps can you take to strengthen your relationship with Him? How much time will you give Him?
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The accompanying graph illustrates the significant benefit of religious worship and family intactness on the quality of parent-child relationships. When we examine the picture as a whole, we see that worship improves parent involvement in a child’s life, visible at the national level in this graph.
For links to the research behind these statements, please visit www.marri.us/one-pagers/
*It bears emphasizing that these patterns hold for the groups involved, not for all the individuals who make up each group. There is naturally a wide variation among individuals.
http://marri.us/wp-content/uploads/Family-Benefits-of-Church-Attendance.pdf