PARENTING AND DISCIPLESHIP

As I have said many times, parenting is hard. It is not something that most (or maybe any) of us are just naturally good at doing, and there are so many voices in our culture today that it is hard to distinguish what are the best approaches to parenting. I read a lot of articles and several books on the subject, and have found that some are really great, and some are really not. There are even many resources that I would say to steer clear of (that are written by Christians).

Pastor Mike has been preaching on discipling others - especially our kids, grandkids, and others God has brought into our lives. If you have been listening to his sermons, I am sure you are working on accomplishing this great task. However, I think most of us are probably asking the question "How do we go about discipling our kids?". I want to offer you a few practical tips that Rebekah and I have come across in discipling our children (most of which are not original to us). And I want to highlight a few resources that have been helpful to me in both discipleship and parenting.

PRACTICAL TIPS:

1. Start now! Too many times we feel unqualified to teach on spiritual things, but I have found that most people never feel qualified no matter how many books they read, conferences they attend, or sermons they hear on this subject. Start by teaching what you know and find some helpful resources like the ones below to guide you on this journey.
   
   
2. Use everyday moments to teach your kids. Pastor Mike already talked about this in his sermon, but I couldn’t leave it out. These are probably the things your kids remember most about your parenting and are the most powerful. When you make a mistake, own up to it and let your kids see you apologize. Use current events or movies you're watching to illustrate principles to your kids. Almost anything can become an opportunity to instill your values and wisdom on your kids.
   
   
3. Talk to others about your struggles and your failures. Both in discipleship, as well as parenting, we tend to try to do it all alone. That is not the picture that we see of the church in the Bible. We are to help one another and carry one another’s burdens, right? Well, that means there has to be someone who shares that they need help. I find talking with others about my struggles in these areas both helps me to grow and be encouraged, and helps the people helping me too. I would personally love to talk with any of you who feel like you could use a little help or encouragement.
   
   
4. Find some resources that you like and can help guide you. I used to think I had to plan out a devotional for my family every day or week. That is a daunting task - or at least it was to me (especially when you are just starting out doing these things). What I found was that when I had resources that I could just read, or later some “discussion starter” resources, it was much better, easier, and lightened my load.
   
   
5. Prayer! I can’t underscore this enough. Talking to our heavenly Father about discipleship and parenting (or really anything else) will help us to be more confident and (get this!) He will actually help us! He will give us guidance, wisdom and the Holy Spirit will lead us as we accomplish this great task of discipleship.

RESOURCES

1. RightNow Media- I have created a PARENTING channel in our Trinity Custom Library with some good recommendations to help prepare you to disciple your kids and one resource that you can watch with your kids as a part of discipling them. I will let you look at most of these for yourself but I want to say a few words about a few of them.
   
   Talking with Your Kids about Jesus and Parenting: 14 Gospel Principles that can Really Change Your Family are series that are based on books by the same name. These series are best if you read the book as you watch these series. I have personally been changed by the Parenting: 14 Gospel Principles study and read the book.  
   
   Worship in the Word Shane & Shane is a video series to watch with your kids. I think they currently have four series (of about 10 sessions each) on RightNow Media. These are designed as family devotions that can lead to very good discussions with your elementary age kids. It includes a devotion and a song.  If you did this once a week with your family it would almost get you through the entire year.
   
   If you don’t already have a RightNow Media account, you can sign up to create your free account at this link: https://app.rightnowmedia.org/en/user/TBCWI.  And feel free to contact me or the office if you have any issues creating an account.
   
   
2. Another book recommendation is: "Leading Your Child to Jesus: How Parents Can Talk with Their Kids about Faith". This will be a great resource for you if you struggle to talk to your kids about spiritual things. It’s also short!
   
   I have ordered 5 copies of this book to give out. The first 5 people to email me at cphillips@todayschurch.com and commit to reading it within the next month will receive a FREE copy.
   
   
3. Foundations is a series of devotionals. They have options for kids, teens and adults that all work through the Bible together. My kids have enjoyed them and they teach all of us how to read the Bible and get the most out of reading it. It also has daily activities for kids that will make them want to do them. These are the same ones we used last year for our incentives program, but they make several different reading plans (whole Bible, Old Testament, and New Testament).

““Listen, Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart. Repeat them to your children. Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them be a symbol on your forehead. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your city gates.” (Deuteronomy 6:4–9, CSB)

Blessings,
Pastor Chris