The pain of prodigal sons or daughters is often felt the most keenly by parents who fully invested themselves in intentional parenting. We have spoken with many heartbroken parents who are confused and even a little disappointed in God. “We did everything we were taught to do. We were always in church; if the doors were open, our family was there. Family worship was a daily priority. We sacrificed to provide a Christian education. Our son won prizes for Scripture memorization. He never gave us any trouble. He even went on mission trips with young people from church. But in college everything changed. He never did get connected to a good church. He started hanging out with young people who […]
Notes From Tedd Tripp
9 posts
The incarnation is a good model for interaction with your children. God could have remained off in heaven. He could have spoken through cloud and thunder like He did in Exodus 19. But what does God do in the incarnation? He comes to dwell with us. He takes on human flesh like your flesh. He takes on a fully human psychology like yours. He accepts the limitations of being a man on earth; he can only be in one place at a time. He experiences all the things we experience. He is tired and hungry at Jacob’s well in John 4. He weeps at Lazarus’ tomb. Hebrews 2 says he suffered when he was tempted. Jesus can look at the […]
A note from Tedd Tripp Every Christian parent is on the lookout for good ways to teach their children the basic elements of the Christian faith. Why Christmas? and the companion book Why Easter? are illustrated books to aid parents in giving children insight into these profound events. Barbara Reaoch, International Director of Children’s Programs for Bible Study Fellowship, brings a lifetime of teaching experience to these devotional volumes. They are designed for daily reading times in the twenty-eight days leading up to Easter or Christmas. The devotional for each day inclues a Bible passage, a Listen section that gives some devotional concepts, a Truth that highlights an important idea from the passage, a Discuss time that prompts thinking with […]
The title of this post doesn’t make sense. Fools, by definition, are not wise. This is the fourth of Tedd Tripp’s concerns for parents today. The first three concerns were these: grasping the importance of formative instruction, establishing a biblical view of authority and maintaining biblical communication. The fourth concern is developing the ability to contrast the supposed wisdom of fools with the wisdom of God. The book of Proverbs is the perfect place to see this contrast vividly laid out.
In the last post we began to examine Tedd Tripp’s third concern for parents today – communication. Tedd raised two principles that must govern communication in the home. The first is the advantage of using quiet words in instruction. The next principle is the advantage of using few words in communication. Many words are not a sign of wise speech. Proverbs 10:19 teaches that when words are many sin is not absent. In the interview, Tedd also referenced Ecclesiastes 6:11 which says: The more the words, the less the meaning, and how does that profit anyone? What a clarifying concept! The piling on of words does not profit anyone. Like loud language, verbose communication may indicate a lack of clarity […]
In my recent radio interview with Tedd Tripp I asked Tedd to give four truths that he believes are important for families in today’s world. The first two truths were 1) understanding the importance of formative instruction and 2) establishing a biblical view of authority. Next we will consider Tedd’s third point: communication. Communicating biblically is crucial if parental authority is to be effective in achieving God’s objectives. It is one thing to establish that authority is needed. It is another to communicate that authority in a loving and engaging way. The parent who says in an angry voice, “You must obey me. God says so!” is not communicating in a helpful way. The Scriptures teach that pleasant words promote […]
We are returning to a series that we began several weeks ago. The series is based upon on a radio interview I did with Tedd Tripp earlier this year. I asked Tedd to list four important truths that he believes parents should weave into their parenting, based upon his interaction and experience in teaching families all over the world. Tedd listed these four themes: Understanding the importance of formative instruction Establishing a biblical view of authority Maintaining biblical communication Contrasting the wisdom of a fool with the wisdom of God We covered formative Instruction in the initial post and now we turn to Tedd’s next vital truth – a biblical view of authority. Authority is something that our post-modern culture […]
Today at 1 p.m. Eastern I have the privilege of interviewing Tedd Tripp on the Calling for Truth radio program. I will be sitting in as guest host for Dr. Paul Dean. Tedd will be giving his insight about problems that families are facing today and what are the biblical responses to those problems. This is a wonderful opportunity to gain fresh perspectives from one of the world’s most trusted authorities on biblical child training. The program is on WLFJ AM 660 in Greenville, SC. You can listen live on the internet here. The program will be available at the Calling for Truth website later on this evening. The web address is www.callingfortruth.org. Just click on the audio button.
Frequently parents ask me why “Shepherding a Child’s Heart” remains so popular 14 years after it was first published. I can suggest a few answers. “Shepherding a Child’s Heart” provides parents with biblical advice. I believe the Bible is a true, timeless and trustworthy revelation of God that is never upstaged by more modern ideas. I have drawn my understanding of human needs and potential from the Bible. I have accepted the Bible’s prescriptions for the human malady as accurate and true. “Shepherding a Child’s Heart” is a paradigm shift for most parents because it focuses on parental nurture (shepherding) rather than constraining and controlling external behavior. It recognizes that children, like adults, make choices that are driven by their […]