'From the time my first child was very small, I knew I was in
trouble. The running joke at our house between
Rachel and me was that we didn’t have one strong-willed child, everyone was
strong-willed … even the dog! When one
of the children was a preschooler, we were at my parent’s home in Austin, Texas. Rachel was
correcting the little angel after she had disobeyed … that child (who will
remain nameless to protect her dignity) kept her head down and kept shoveling
in the cereal. Grandma intervened and
said, “Honey, your mommy is talking to you …?”
To which our little cherub responded without looking up, “I hear-ed her,
Grammy” … and, it was ON!
Before any of us have children, we assume we will never
repeat the mistakes our parents made or other's mistakes we have witnessed. In our mind’s eye, all of children will turn
out like the little girl on this video:
The reality, however, is that parenting is a challenging and
full time activity that is not for the faint of heart or those who are not willing
to be stretched and challenged to grow personally. As far as parenting, Rachel
and I are still in the midst of it and not in a place to tell anyone what works
and what does not. However, between
Biblical truth and practical observation of others who have raised their
children, I offer a few suggestions as a follow-up to last Sunday’s
sermon:
- YOU
CANNOT GIVE AWAY WHAT YOU DO NOT POSSESS – in other words, you must have a
growing walk with Jesus yourself if you want your children to love and
live like Jesus. What are you waiting
for? Make a commitment to daily
time with the Lord and attend some of the classes offered at CBC to help you grow
in your relationship with God.
- ONE
SIZE PARENTING DOES NOT FIT ALL KIDS – Every child is a unique mixture of
personality, talents, experiences and environment. Parenting every child the same way is a
mistake and those who advocate this approach twist and misinterpret scripture
to get it to fit their model.
Living for the Lord yourself, being consistent in your approach to
discipline, training your children to understand the “why’s,” … these are
all important but often require varying approaches based upon the child or
the phase of life they are in at the time.
- ALL
THE TIME – take advantage of every experience, television show,
walk in the park ... every interaction with your children to affirm specific truths about God and
godly living. I remember hitting a
parked car in the parking lot at a Home Depot one time and explaining to my 6
year old son why it was important to accept responsibility rather than
just drive off … not my best day but still a teachable opportunity.
- SET
APART SPECIFIC TIME FOR DISCIPLESHIP – early in our family life, I was
very discouraged each time I tried to get 2-3 preschoolers to be quiet and
still long enough for me to say anything meaningful … so I gave up, then I
re-tried again later, gave up, re-tried, gave up, re-tried .... Maybe you can relate? Hang in there, don’t give up – no matter
how old your kids are. Make a time
that works best for everyone. There
are some great resources for you to use.
Right now, I am working through a devotional guide written by Josh
McDowell for families. Each morning while the kids eat their breakfast,
I read the devotional to them, field a couple of questions then we
pray. All total, 6-7 minutes a day
but it has opened the door to some terrific conversations.
- TAKE
ADVANTAGE OF CHURCH DISCIPLESHIP OPPORTUNITIES - AWANA, Connection Groups, Youth
Ministry … these are all tools for you to use as a parent. Take full advantage of them and love and
pray for our folks who volunteer to lead these ministries – they are your
allies!
Your church staff supports all our parents and the many approaches to parenting and educating their children to include home school, private school and public school. We are for you succeeding in your God-given responsibilities as parents. Go gettum!
Blessings,
Pastor Paul
Posted on Sunday, April 27, 2008
by Paul White
filed under