Shepherding a Child’s Heart stresses the importance of engaging children at various age levels. With young children you want to firmly establish the authority of God and his directives not to lie. This is the time to establish that lying is wrong because God says it is. Lying is not serving God, and life will not go well for the liar. This is not a time for extensive reasoning and deep introspection. God hates lying, and it must be rejected. Swift, direct and loving discipline is appropriate. Lying is not a stage that will be naturally left behind. If not biblically addressed, lying will become a way of life. See Proverbs 12:19 & 22. With children in the second age […]
Yearly Archives: 2017
175 posts
Children’s lies are a harsh reminder of the ugliness of sin. Your children come into this world as natural enemies of God. Telling the truth and avoiding deceit is not natural for them or you. Ephesians 2 teaches that we all seek first and foremost to gratify our own passions and desires, even if it means that others will be harmed. We are by nature children of wrath. The Psalmist agrees in Psalm 58:3: Even from birth the wicked go astray; from the womb they are wayward and speak lies. There is not much support from the world around you for the idea that children are objects of wrath. But that doesn’t change reality. Recognizing the true nature of a […]
Life is hard. Life brings pain. Moments of happiness and joy fade quickly when darkness comes. When life is hard God calls out to his people, his voice remains strong and sure. It is in this setting that David writes Psalm 27. David has known joy and victory. But he has also known the despair of failure and agony. Some of this has come from the betrayal and manipulation of those closest to him. Some has been self-inflicted. David hears the call to doubt God. He hears the taunts of his oppressors. He hears that he is mocked and his God is mocked. He is tempted to believe that God is unfair. There is a taunt — “God, are you […]
In our deepest sadness we are rescued by joy. Joy has to do with the reality of God. Joy transcends the moment and extends into eternity. Joy does not fade but endures. Joy alone makes sense of the pain of life. Joy is the certain knowledge that what is unseen is more vast than what is seen. Joy is the fuel of hope. Joy means your circumstances are opportunities to honor your God. Joy is the evidence that you are never truly lost. Joy means you are not limited by a sin-cursed world. Joy means that you can love when you are hurt. Joy means that you can live for God when death surrounds you. Joy is knowing that God […]
Parenting is exhausting. There are countless remedies offered from every corner to make parenting easier and less stressful. Despite all the advice and strategies, when the day is done, so are many parents . Parents are weary not only because of the trials of the day just finished, but also weary because tomorrow is just a few hours away. In this in-between time, the tiredness often reaches its peak. The free advice and stress-reducing plans offer little consolation. Even Bible verses may seem disconnected from the pressures of getting ready for tomorrow. Perhaps the most discouraging realization is knowing that in the morning you will wake up as weary as you are now. Isaiah 55:8 reminds us that God’s thoughts […]
The good: rules make life work. They tell us: how fast to drive, what time to put your children to bed, how many calories to eat, how much to pay in taxes, how to balance your budget, what is acceptable behavior at school, what time to arrive at work, how to participate in sporting events, what not to do at the swimming pool, and many useful more things too numerous to count. The bad: following rules won’t make you acceptable to God. There is a problem with rules. They lack the power to draw you and your children closer to Christ! If your parenting is primarily about keeping rules, you will actually drive your children from Christ and provoke them […]
Click on the link below for the interview! Whatever terms you use to describe relationships, one thing is sure: Dating is hard. Pastor and professor Dr. Ernie Baker gives us advice on what to look for in a potential spouse from his book Marry Wisely, Marry Well. Lisa also grills Dr. Baker on why he once drove 700 miles overnight (hint: a girl was involved), and what happened when his fiancee had another guy enthusiastically chasing her. Listen at www.boundless.org.
Why do your children fight? The short answer is, the same reason you do! They fight because they do not have what they want. As adults, we think we have moved beyond childish selfishness, so we have developed “mature” reasons for the arguments that we have. However, if you strip away the adult “sophistication” of our arguments, you will find that you are not much different from your children who squabble over a favorite toy. We believe the lie that if we are hurt a robust defense is justified. Getting into a fight seems like the right and necessary and “real” thing to do; we have to protect ourselves! We are like our children. The hard truth is that you […]
God is special simply and profoundly because he is God. He is unsearchable. He turns to no one for help or advice. He is in no one’s debt. No one calls him to account. All things are because he is. He died for the unworthy, the unlovable, the ungrateful. He became sin so that his people would live. He is three persons and one God. It is this special God who sent his Son to die for me because it pleased him to do so. He is my Shepherd. I have no needs. He is my savior, I have no words. Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his […]
One objective you have as a parent is to keep your children safe. But this objective is not an easy one. Planning ways to keep your children safe implies there are dangers in life. And even with the best planning, hard things still occur. There are enemies on every side, both spiritual and earthly. Living as children of light angers the forces of darkness. You and your children are part of a cosmic battle that has been raging since creation. A preoccupation with being safe may keep you from trusting God. No, I am not suggesting you should be irresponsible and ignore safety. But what I am saying is that it is God who ultimately keeps you and your children […]