Thursday, November 5, 2009
Families Raising Christian Kids
Raising children to be faithful Christians is the parents' sole responsibility. The church is an instrument used to help you accomplish this very important task.
Ephesians 6:1-3 says, "Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right." "Honor your father and mother"—which is the first commandment with a promise— "that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth." Wow! Does that speak volumes to you? It should. Paul is telling us that if children obey their parents, God will be pleased with them and they will enjoy a long life on earth. Of course, a child will not know this is a promise for them in the Bible, if no one ever tells them where to find it. The verses go on to say in Ephesians 6:4, "Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord." This is telling earthly fathers not to irritate their children, not to cause them to become bitter and angry. But, instead they should train and instruct their children using the Bible as their manual. God has clearly given parents the responsibility to raise their children as faithful Christians.
What is happening in our society today that causes parents to lay the responsibility of teaching their children about Christ on the church they attend? Of course, the biggest issue is time constraints. Busy work schedules, homework, extracurricular activities, and social events are soaking up all of our time, leaving very little time to teach our kids about Christian values. Another issue is fear. Many parents long to be the ones teaching their children about Christian values, but they feel inadequate to do this. They feel like they do not know enough about the Bible to take on this responsibility. And, a third issue is just plain lack of responsibility. Parents may feel that as long as their children are going to Bible/Sunday School, they are doing their role in teaching their children Christian Values. This is a sad situation for the parent and child relationship.
Time Constraints. This situation is easy enough to resolve. If being your child's teacher about Christian values is a priority to you, here are some tips that may make it easier for you and your family to spend some quality Bible time together:
* Make reading and discussing the Bible a nighttime routine. Instead of reading storybooks at night, read the Bible for 15 minutes and discuss what you've read for 5 minutes.
* Have everyone in your household eat dinner together. A sit-down meal is a great place to do a Bible devotion and have a family discussion. The dinners do not have to be fancy, everyone just needs to be there together!
* Listen to Christian radio stations in the car. Use the lyrics of the songs to prompt discussion and what the words mean. Most Christian lyrics are heartfelt and have a real meaning to them.
Fear. In all honesty, not very many people know the Bible cover-to-cover and what God says for every situation. That is why the Bible is our blueprint or manual. It is meant to be with us always. We refer to it as needed for all of our needs. Tell your children that when they have a question to ask about anything, whether pertaining to Christianity or social situations, to let you know, and you will help them find out what God has to say about it in the Bible. Most Bibles have concordances that will let you know where you can find exact verses for many different situations. You can use the Internet, as well. Bible Gateway is an awesome resource for looking up the Bible online. Remember that God is with you and you are who He commands to teach your children. Your church will jump at the chance to aid you with resources, whereby you can handle the task of teaching your children and gain some wisdom yourself.
Lack of Responsibility. This can be a discomforting issue to bring up, but the truth be told, it is a serious misconception or miscommunication that the church is responsible for raising your children with Christian Values. This issue has different facets, the first being the belief that if you go to church every Sunday, you will get to heaven. The only way to heaven is through Jesus. Jesus himself says in John 14:6, "Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." You, nor your children, will see the Kingdom of Heaven without having acknowledged Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior. Just showing up to church every Sunday with your children is not completing the task at hand. Reading the Bible daily and having engaging discussions will show your children that Jesus is important to you, and, thus, should be important to them.
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Another reason parents lay the task of teaching their children Christian values is that teaching themselves is not a priority in their life, and just assume that someone else do it for them. The church is an instrument used to prepare us to tell others about Christianity. It equips us with the tools we need to carry out the Great Commission (Matthew 28:16-20). It is a wonderful thing when a church provides a Children's Ministry to teach kids about the Great Commission and the values that they should possess to be faithful Christians. Children may not know they are being groomed to spread the Good News otherwise. But, no where in the Bible does it say that the church is necessarily responsible for this teaching. On the other hand, it does clearly state that parents are responsible, as stated above (Ephesians 6:1-4).
Sending kids off to school everyday and having teachers in school may lull some parents in the comfort that they do not need to teach their kids about Christian values because they have "teachers" in Bible/Sunday School, as well. Kudos to Bible/Sunday School teachers, who are more than likely volunteers who have a serious commitment to telling children about how Jesus wants them to live. Just remember that nothing can replace the joy a child feels when their parents take time to tell them something as important as being a Christian. It brings families closer and warms God's heart to see this. Some churches do not have children programs or perhaps families only attend a mass or service and do not attend Bible/Sunday School. Who is responsible for teaching children at this point? Think on that. Will it be you?
Just for clarification reasons, the church is an important part of your child's and your Christian walk. Gathering with other Christians provides strength, wisdom, and teachings that we need in order to live a Christian life every day. It is just as important that you, as parents, are teaching your children about a Christian life every day, too.
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