Raising children is not easy. It is hard work. 24 hours a day work. We want the best for our kids. Parents want their children to be happy and to be involved in sports, theater, school bands, social clubs, debate teams, or whatever they set their mind to do. Parents are supporters of education and desire for their children to get good grades so a college or university will accept them. Parents attend ballgames, plays, musicals, marching band competitions, and academic awards night. Parents are proud of their children’s accomplishments and are the first to tell everyone about the outstanding son or daughter they have.
While excellence in sports, academics and the arts are
vitally important for our children, excelling in spiritual skills is vitally
important, too. Balancing secular with
the spiritual can be extremely challenging, but necessary. Our children need to know the basics of
living the Jesus life as much as they need to know how to be successful at
sports or the arts and how to be graceful winners and losers in life. The following are three keys principles to
raising a well-rounded child.
Character Building:
Abraham Lincoln said, “Reputation is the shadow.
Character is the tree.” As one of my Drill Sergeants once said while
allowing us an on-post pass for a few hours during basic training, “Right character is doing the right thing
when no one is watching.” Our
character defines us in every circumstance of life. Building godly character in the life of our
children will help them to always tell the truth, do the right thing with
others are not looking, and never compromise truth to be accepted by others.
Relationship Building:
I Peter 3:8 "You should be like one big happy family ...
loving on another with tender hearts..." An article entitled "Whatever Happened
to Commitment" says, "Commitment is at the foundation of all human
relationships. It's what human relationships are all about. We're made to live in relationship with
others. A person who withdraws all
commitment to others ceases to be human."
Jesus Building: Many preachers will put a guilt
trip on us and say that if you are not committed to attending all the
assemblies of the church, you are not committed. This is hogwash and is not biblical. While church gatherings aide in the Jesus
building and are important, they are nowhere near the totality of living the Jesus life. Jesus building is the acceptance of the
Lordship of Jesus that will enable our children to build a strong relationship
with him. Knowing Jesus is knowing how
to live, speak, love, or show kindness. The Message Bible says it best in
Romans 10:9-10, It’s
the word of faith that welcomes God to go to work and set things right for us.
This is the core of our preaching. Say the welcoming word to God—“Jesus is my
Master”—embracing, body and soul, God’s work of doing in us what he did in
raising Jesus from the dead. That’s it. You’re not “doing” anything; you’re
simply calling out to God, trusting him to do it for you. That’s salvation.
With your whole being you embrace God setting things right, and then you say
it, right out loud: “God has set everything right between him and me!”
Remember, Be God Controlled!
Brian
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