Parenting From The Source

Respect for authority is becoming an old-fashioned behavior. I recently overheard a boy about five years old say to his mother, “If you don’t let me have that, I’ll slap your face.” Working in the school system, I watched societal changes evidenced in the way young people speak to their parents and people in authority. [...]

Biblical stewardship is something we want our children to learn. (For more on teaching stewardship, see Allowance and Stewardship.) Perhaps more than any other area, children watch their parents closely to see how they handle money. We Must Be Living Examples To teach Biblical stewardship, we must follow these principles in our own lives. Our [...]

Jesus said, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” Matthew 28:19-20. Christ’s final words are our marching orders, our commission from our King. Teach the Great Commission [...]

When we let the culture raise our children, the result is casual sex, substance abuse, eating disorders, truancy, failing grades, and lack of respect for authority. Since the problem grows each year, what will the next generation of teens face? Because it is so enticing and easy to set aside Biblical truths to answer the [...]

An important communication skill is the ability to pace the conversation so that it doesn’t become heated. An Example from the Bible There’s a story in the Gospel of John about the scribes and Pharisees trying to catch Jesus saying something they considered wrong. They brought an adulteress before him and said that the Law [...]

“Be still and know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10 “Busy, and How Are You?” Does it bother you that the universal answer to “How are you?” is “Busy”? What if we answered with a description of our feelings? “Joyful, how about you?” or “Excited, our vacation begins tomorrow.” “Kinda sad, a friend just found [...]

Encouraging one another was important in the first century just as it is today. Barnabas was one of the early church followers of Christ. When we read his story in Scripture, it’s easy to see why he was called “Son of Encouragement,” Additionally, Paul often told the early Christians to encourage one another (I Thessalonians [...]

I wrote about good reasons to empower kids. See Empower Kids – 6 Reasons It’s a Good Idea. What about the Biblical foundation? Does the Bible say we should empower our children and teens? Empower Is Not a Biblical Word I can’t find the word “empower” in my Bible’s concordance or in my standby reference, Zondervan [...]

What do you think is the most important thing parents must do for their children? I believe our greatest calling is to build a Christian foundation for them. We have eighteen short years to put that foundation in place before they venture into the world on their own. When they do go, will their foundation [...]

Johnny Cash sang “A Boy Named Sue,” a ballad about a man who grew up tough because he was teased for having a girl’s name. Ima Hogg and Redd Rose surely suffered their share of teasing about their names. What were their parents thinking? Choosing a name for your baby is important. Consider the following [...]