Does Teaching Children to Pray = Treating Them as Saved

Les, at Reformation Faith Today, has posted a quote from John Piper where he answers a question about whether or not children should be taught to pray. He answers that question in the affirmative…good. But, then he makes this statement:

I don’t know when a child is born again. I don’t assume that a child must become a blatant rebellious unbeliever before he is regenerated. He can start to believe at a young age. And because he can believe at a young age, and because I can’t tell precisely when his faith becomes his own and authentic, I don’t want to wait too long before I start treating him as a believer.

It is his last comment there that I think I have a problem with. Can you not teach a child to pray without treating them as if they were already a believer? I think you can. Here is what I posted over at Les’ site.

I think there is a huge difference in modeling prayer to a child and providing a good example to that child of what prayer is, verses treating that child as a believer.

You can teach a child to pray without treating them as if they were already saved. How do you treat them as a fellow brother or sister in Christ while at the same showing them their lost condition and desperate need to repent and believe for the first time? Are we not sending mixed signals by doing that?

My wife and I are modeling prayer to our children. They hear us pray every day. But they also hear us pray for their salvation as well (I often use a time of prayer [bedtime] with them to proclaim the gospel as I acknowledge back to God what He has done through Jesus Christ, and I express my hope that God would one day, in His perfect timing, save them).

You can’t pray that way in front of them if you already treat your child as if they were saved.

Any thoughts on this? Maybe I am way off base here. Maybe, in order to truly teach your children to pray, you must treat them as if they have already professed Christ and are exhibiting fruit in keeping with repentance.