There’s No Wrong Way to Disciple
Years ago, I stumbled across a line from FlyLady, the cleaning coach, that’s stuck with me ever since:
“Mopping can only be done wrong; if you don’t do it.”
Isn’t that freeing? You can hold the mop funny, you can miss a few spots, you can quit halfway and come back later—but as long as you’re moving the mop across the floor, something good is happening.
I think about that line a lot when it comes to discipling little ones.
Because when your child is a baby or a toddler, discipleship can feel almost silly at times. You’re talking about God’s love to what feels like a little blob who can’t even form sentences back to you yet. You’re singing songs in the car seat, whispering prayers at diaper changes, pointing at animals and colors saying, “God made that!”
And sometimes you wonder—does any of this even matter?
But here’s the truth: the only wrong way to disciple is to not disciple at all.
Even before our kids can talk, they’re absorbing more than we think. I learned that years ago with my little sister. She’s sixteen years younger than me, and I remember when she first started speaking real words—it hit me that she had already understood far more than we realized. We could have been sowing truth long before she could verbalize it.
Now, with my boys, I see it firsthand. At bedtime, when Finn gets nervous about me leaving the room, I remind him, “You’re never alone. God is always with you.” On his first day of preschool, we gave him a little cross necklace, not just as a keepsake, but as a reminder of that same truth: even when Mom and Dad aren’t with you, God is.
And then there was the pumpkin gospel. I explained how the light of Jesus shines brightest in the darkness. Later, I overheard Finn making “dark spaces” in his play area just so he could test it out—his way of re-enacting that truth. He was catching more than I imagined.
Every diaper change, every mealtime blessing, every car ride song, every whispered prayer at bedtime—it all adds up. The pattern of your voice, the rhythm of your faith, the truth of God’s Word spoken over them becomes the backdrop of their little lives.
It doesn’t have to be perfect. It doesn’t have to be polished. It doesn’t have to look like anyone else’s version of discipleship. The only wrong way to disciple is not to.
So mama, talk about Jesus in the ordinary. Sing a silly song, whisper a verse, point out God’s creation, pray a one-line prayer. It matters more than you know. Just start.
And if you’d like some help getting started, I created Monthly Menus—a year of ready-to-go discipleship rhythms for babies and toddlers (ages 0–3). It’s full of songs, stories, activities, and prayers to make gospel-centered conversations feel natural in everyday life.
Because there’s no wrong way to mop. And there’s no wrong way to start discipleship.
The only wrong way is to not do it at all.
