Pastor Stefan shares Part 2 on Parenting God's way. Stefan is a great Bible teacher and is highly respected for his ‘How to’ messages that have helped many step into a life of ‘faith and victory.’
Our current focus is on "God in the Family", or "God-Empowered Families".
The basic building block of any society or nation is the family unit
If the family unit is strong then the nation will be strong
If the family unit is broken down, the nation will be broken down also
The seeds of family breakdown are many times sown in people's lives during their childhood, through:
Proverbs 22:6 (NKJV) Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.
Ephesians 6:4 (NCV) Fathers, do not make your children angry, but raise them with the training and teaching of the Lord.
The goal of our parenting efforts is to raise up godly children who will become godly adults
We make the Word of God the basis of our parenting philosophy, and teach our children God's Word
Child-centred parenting is a worldly parenting philosophy and will produce self-centred children
Our most basic task as Christian parents is to:
Gary and Anne Mary Ezzo have written an excellent book entitled "Parenting from the Tree of Life", in which they teach & encourage a positive and life-giving parenting style.
Genesis 2:8–9 (NIV) Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. 9 The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground— trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
God made and placed 3 main categories of trees in the Garden of Eden:
God gave Adam & Eve permission to partake of all the fruit trees, including the tree of life (vs. 16-17), but at the same time He forbade them to partake of the tree of the knowledge of good & evil.
The tree of the knowledge of good and evil represents:
Sooner rather than later, as parents, we should place the "tree of the knowledge of good & evil" in the child's life (rules, boundaries & NO).
Whilst obvious, dangerous and harmful temptation should be removed from children to keep them safe & keep them from getting into trouble, it is very healthy to establish rules, boundaries and the meaning of NO early in their childhood.
For example:
If, and when children disobey & partake of the "forbidden tree", there have to be consequences!
Proverbs 13:24 (NKJV) He who spares his rod hates his son, but he who loves him disciplines him promptly .
Proverbs 20:30 (GNB)Sometimes it takes a painful experience to make us change our ways.
Proverbs 22:15 (NKJV)Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; the rod of correction will drive it far from him.
Proverbs 23:13–14 (NLT) Don't fail to discipline your children. The rod of punishment won't kill them. 14 Physical discipline may well save them from death.
Proverbs 29:17 (NLT) Discipline your children, and they will give you peace of mind and will make your heart glad.
(Excellent Book: Dare to Discipline by Dr. James Dobson).
Of course, we not only teach our children against certain types of behaviour (attitudes & actions) but we also teach them for certain behaviour (actions & attitudes).
We teach our children:
Compliance is "external" - obedience is "internal".
Proverbs 20:30 (LB)Punishment that hurts chases evil from the heart.
Correcting your child's behaviour has the goal of removing foolishness and/or evil from the heart, while at the same time imparting wisdom into their life.
(both real & virtual [TV, screens etc.)
Be consistent - Inconsistency confuses the child.