We've been asked the age old question more times than I can count.
What are ya goin' for, a baseball team? I used to just smile & nod.
Now, I smile and say, "No baseball team. An army. We are training our kids to be warriors for Christ. They are needed."
I say that, but what does that mean.
We are totally dedicated to the task. We live the life we want to see them emulate. We can't be lukewarm and cowardly and expect them to be on fire and courageous. It's not going to happen.
We recognize that they are in training.
In a real boot camp, the cadets are being trained for battle, being trained to fight and to defend.
Our job, then, as parents is to relentlessly train our "cadets" for battle. To fight for the truth. To defend the truth.
They must know the Truth, study the Truth and believe the Truth. In today's world, they must believe that there is an absolute truth, not a truth for me and a truth for you. We can't all be right!
John 14:6 Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father, except through me."
We guard our "base" with extra diligence, making sure that there aren't any "enemies" in our midst, undermining our authority & training. Anything or anyone, (even grandparents) who even insinuate that our children should not obey their parents is against God, 5th commandment.
We are training them to recognize the enemy. This is very frustrating these days because Satan is a slick one and his tactics are oh so subtle. He dresses himself in nice Christian clothes, speaks fluent "Christianese", he's in most Christian book stores... Like I said, he's a slick one.
1 Peter 5:8 Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
This is a war! Their life is at stake!
We are training them to "test" what they are being told. It doesn't matter who says it.
Acts 17:11
Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.
Does it match up with Scripture? If it's against the Bible, it's a lie. Even if it sounds good. Even if it feels good. Even if it makes sense. If it's against the Bible, it's a lie.
Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge Him and He shall direct your paths.
I would not send them out to battle without me until they were fully trained. That's the tough one. Can you imagine if our troops were sent to battle with 3 days training? What would happen? They would get slaughtered! So, we don't send our kids into enemy territory a.k.a socialistic educational facilities. Their goal is to teach them what to think, not how to think. And their perspective is NOT God's therefore I must not give them any influence in my "cadets" lives. They will go out into the world, to seek and save the lost, to mentor their peers once they are trained. Not before.
Deuteronomy 6:4-7
Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and thou risest up.
The most important thing that we do, is pray over and for our children continually, not with fear and doubt but with faith and confidence that His Word is true, it will not return back to us void, that He is taking our heart felt effort and molding our children's hearts to be more like His. I beg for His wisdom and strength to not give up, to not give in, to keep up the good fight and finish this race well.
Now, I know, that some may say this is a little over the top, a little obsessive, I mean, they're just kids. Let them go here, do this, be free. Well, to that, I say we have fun, but we aren't a "kid centered family". We're a family, a team, we live life together. Whatever we do, for the most part, it is together. And we enjoy it. I don't want to share my time with them. It's just too short!
Still think we're obsessive...
A little statistic for you to ponder... 70 - 85 % of kids that grow up in Christian homes leave the faith after their freshman year in college!!! Were they ever faithful? Were they trained to fight the good fight in "real" life, not just on their video game?
I'll say it again.
Now, I smile and say, "No baseball team. An army. We are training our kids to be warriors for Christ. They are needed."
I say that, but what does that mean.
We are totally dedicated to the task. We live the life we want to see them emulate. We can't be lukewarm and cowardly and expect them to be on fire and courageous. It's not going to happen.
We recognize that they are in training.
In a real boot camp, the cadets are being trained for battle, being trained to fight and to defend.
Our job, then, as parents is to relentlessly train our "cadets" for battle. To fight for the truth. To defend the truth.
They must know the Truth, study the Truth and believe the Truth. In today's world, they must believe that there is an absolute truth, not a truth for me and a truth for you. We can't all be right!
John 14:6 Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father, except through me."
We guard our "base" with extra diligence, making sure that there aren't any "enemies" in our midst, undermining our authority & training. Anything or anyone, (even grandparents) who even insinuate that our children should not obey their parents is against God, 5th commandment.
We are training them to recognize the enemy. This is very frustrating these days because Satan is a slick one and his tactics are oh so subtle. He dresses himself in nice Christian clothes, speaks fluent "Christianese", he's in most Christian book stores... Like I said, he's a slick one.
1 Peter 5:8 Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
This is a war! Their life is at stake!
We are training them to "test" what they are being told. It doesn't matter who says it.
Acts 17:11
Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.
Does it match up with Scripture? If it's against the Bible, it's a lie. Even if it sounds good. Even if it feels good. Even if it makes sense. If it's against the Bible, it's a lie.
Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge Him and He shall direct your paths.
I would not send them out to battle without me until they were fully trained. That's the tough one. Can you imagine if our troops were sent to battle with 3 days training? What would happen? They would get slaughtered! So, we don't send our kids into enemy territory a.k.a socialistic educational facilities. Their goal is to teach them what to think, not how to think. And their perspective is NOT God's therefore I must not give them any influence in my "cadets" lives. They will go out into the world, to seek and save the lost, to mentor their peers once they are trained. Not before.
Deuteronomy 6:4-7
Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and thou risest up.
The most important thing that we do, is pray over and for our children continually, not with fear and doubt but with faith and confidence that His Word is true, it will not return back to us void, that He is taking our heart felt effort and molding our children's hearts to be more like His. I beg for His wisdom and strength to not give up, to not give in, to keep up the good fight and finish this race well.
Now, I know, that some may say this is a little over the top, a little obsessive, I mean, they're just kids. Let them go here, do this, be free. Well, to that, I say we have fun, but we aren't a "kid centered family". We're a family, a team, we live life together. Whatever we do, for the most part, it is together. And we enjoy it. I don't want to share my time with them. It's just too short!
Still think we're obsessive...
A little statistic for you to ponder... 70 - 85 % of kids that grow up in Christian homes leave the faith after their freshman year in college!!! Were they ever faithful? Were they trained to fight the good fight in "real" life, not just on their video game?
I'll say it again.
We are in a war! The enemy is real! He is after our children!
