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“Mama! Why is there red letters in my Bible”?

When our oldest son had recently been given his own Bible, that is one of the first questions he asked me.

It really was a joy for me to tell him that those are the words that Jesus said Himself to His followers (and to us too).

As I have been thinking about this lately, I have been putting together some of those verses and thought it would be a great guide for parents to teach them to our kids.

Here are a few:

“Love your enemies and pray for them”

“You cannot serve both God and money”

“..Do not worry”

“In everything, do to other what you would have them do to you”

“Anyone who hears these words of Mine and puts them into practice is wise”

“Do not be afraid”

“Come to Me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest”

“What good is it if a man gains the whole world but loses his soul”?

I strongly believe that good character trumps all else.

What are your kids learning from you? Do they hear you tell ‘little white lies’. Do they witness you pretending you are not home when you don’t wish to speak to someone? Do they hear you always yearning for more stuff, more money, more vacations, more time for self etc.?

We need to be teaching them what a person of good character looks like. Guiding them so that they learn that honesty, compassion, caring for others, forgiving, being trustworthy, generous and faith-filled should be top priority in their lives.

Keep reading the ‘Red Letter Edition’ of the Bible.

It will change you as you begin to put it into practice and become a great teaching tool in the development of children with Godly characters.

Love,

Karen

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As a mom of two young boys I constantly think about what things they are being exposed to, what things I should shelter them from, and what I have no control over.  The media all around from billboards to TV commercials to magazine covers right next to the M&M’s at the grocery store all expose my boys to more than I would like, but I can’ t change that.  That is the world we live in.  I don’t have to invite it into my home, but I can’t lock my children up either.

As a former teacher I get asked the question quite often as to whether or not I am going to home-school my children.  While like many others I am not completely satisfied with the education system, my answer is always, “NO, I just want to be mom.”  I will be greatly involved as a parent at the school, but I want my children to be exposed to others and learn to navigate through this life for themselves.

Since the birth of our first son, my husband and I have talked often about what we will allow our babies to be exposed to.  Our goal as parents is raise godly children who are able to discern right from wrong, and be productive members of society, positively affecting those around them.  I think the main conclusion we have come up with over and over is to seek God for wisdom in what we allow them to see and listen to, and talk to them about everything.

 I have to admit from time to time I want to completely shelter my boys and move to a remote island, but I know the day will come when they will have to leave the nest.  When that day does come I want them to be prepared to face all the things of this world.  I want them to know how to navigate through this life using Christ as their guide.  I believe the only way I can do that is to allow them to see this world for what it is.

I am not saying that I will let my two year to listen to Little Wayne and watch Nightmare on Elm Street so that he will understand that is part of the world.  I will  have to discern for my children what is age appropriate media for them to take in, but I probably won’t shuffle them out of the room during too many “adult conversations.” 

I have been extremely fortunate.  While I am far from a perfect person, I have dodged many of the lessons others have to learn from themselves.  I don’t drink, didn’t have sex before I married, stayed out of trouble in high school, have never tried a cigarette nor any type of drug.  I credit this to my parents.

Growing up my parents never made me leave the room when there was an “adult conversation.”  I heard the details of my uncle’s drug problem which he still battles today.  I remember being four years old and playing on the front porch while my mom was inside my uncle’s house convincing him to throw his drugs down the toilet.  When we were on our way home she and I discussed why we were there and what had taken place.

At 5 when I heard the women of my family discussing their periods I was totally confused because I didn’t understand what they were talking about.  I only knew a period to be something that goes at the end of a sentence.  The next day when I asked my mom what they were talking she explained it to me truthfully.  At five years old we had our birds and the bees talk and I remember it like it was yesterday.  Not many people can say that.

I have always appreciated that my parents told me the truth.  They never made me leave the room when they were having a conversation with other adults.  I got to see and hear the ugly details and they privately discussed the events with me as well.  I think me being able to see from an early age the hurts that adults I knew and loved were going through made me want to avoid those same struggles as I grew up.  I knew these adults to be good people who faced struggles, as I still had the innocence of a child, and I wanted to do what I could to choose a different path for my life.

My parents also discussed the media that I was exposed to growing up.  We discussed the movies I watched, the magazine covers I saw, and the music I listened to.  In one sense I was sheltered from much media as they taught me the value of not filling your head with junk, but the unavoidable things they discussed with me.  As I matured they allowed me to make decisions for myself about what I allowed in and I often went back to them to discuss how I made the right or wrong decision.

This is what I want with my children.  While they are young I will have to ask God for wisdom to discern what to expose them to, but I will always tell them the truth.  I will always be open about how choices effect people and do my best to teach them how to make the right choice for themselves.

What conversations are you having with your children?  Do you have adult conversations with them?  Do you answer their questions?  How can you begin to talk to them more than you already are?  An most importantly are you asking God for wisdom?

Sarah Brown

www.flipflopparenting.com

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When you fly you listen to the flight attendants go over the safety procedures.  Without fail when it comes to the part where they discuss what to do if the oxygen masks come down, they tell us to put on our own mask first before trying to help any others.  As a mom this can sometimes seem kind of backwards because we naturally want to take care of our children first.  But the truth is we can’t help them if we don’t take care of ourselves first.

As we try to raise respectful, successful children who devote their lives to Christ we must remember to put on our own mask first.  This means taking care of our health, devoting time to ourselves, maintaining an atmosphere of romance in our marriages, and most importantly spending time with God.

Today so many moms get it backwards.  We easily slip into devoting our lives to our children, taking them to playgroups, then music class, later to sports practice and the list goes on and on.  In the hustle and bustle of life it is hard to find time for ourselves. 

 As a stay-at-home-mom with a 2 year old and an 8 month old at home I have recently found myself devoting all of my time and attention to their needs forgetting about my own.  In the process I found myself more irritable, worn out, and just lacking true passion for anything.  My wonderful husband quickly brought it to my attention in a loving manner and gave me some time to devote to myself.  I quickly got my passion back for even the littlest things in life and I have made a plan for allowing me more time for myself.  My energy and love for my children has grown as well.

This weekend is Mother’s Day so I challenge you to take some time for yourself and think about how you are taking care of YOU.  Are you wearing your oxygen mask before you attempt to put your children’s on?  Are you taking care of your health, keeping romance alive, and spending time with God?  Start with God and allow Him to give you creativity for the rest.

Sarah Brown

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When our children were small, at every birthday party there was an expectation that as each visitor left the party they would receive a ‘loot bag’. Typically that was a bag full of candy and dollar store items that sometimes added up to the same cost as the gift the child brought to the party for the birthday child!!

One day I received a rather frantic phone call from my neighbor who had just moved to Ontario from Alberta. Apparently, where she came from that

tradition did not take place and she had a couple of little departing (spoiled and rather outspoken) partiers that were not happy with her because she did not have any loot bags to give them.

Children need to be taught that any gift given to them is just that…a gift.

It never should be expected or whined and fussed about if not given. In a culture where ‘stuff’ is glorified and almost worshipped, it is our job as parents to frequently remind our children that “PEOPLE are more important that things”, and live in such a way ourselves that teaches them we really believe this.

This also applies as they grow up when it comes to teaching them about sex. They need to know that sex is something that is a gift given from one person to another-God’s plan being within marriage-not an expectation or something that ever should be demanded of your spouse or by pressuring another to ‘give me some’. If a young person is taught early to respect the sexual act and when it is talked about in the home it is with proper words and dignity attached to it, this will affect their attitude towards not only the act of sex but to the opposite sex as well!

Love,

Karen

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The Bible tells us that Parents are not to provoke (exasperate, frustrate) their children. I understand completely. When teasing or provoking used to go too far with me, as a child, I would become so angry and frustrated because I felt helpless and completely out of control.

The Word of God goes even further when it also says “Things that cause people to sin are bound to come, but sorrow awaits that person through whom they come” Luke 17:1

Parents, are you that person who could possibly be one of the ‘sources’ of the sin that is happening in your children’s lives? Are you unrealistic in your expectations, ignoring, mocking, being sarcastic, putting down or not loving them so much so that they are acting out in anger, frustration and discouragement? Do they not want to serve the God you serve because of your relationship with them?

Please, please make the conscious choice to not be the one who negatively affects your kids. You might unknowingly push them into sin and as a result bring “sorrow’ to your own life as well.

Love,

Karen

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I suddenly became very aware what a teachable moment meant.  I was going to have to talk openly about God’s plan for sexual relationships with my 10 and 15 years old kids AT THE DINNER TABLE.  Not individually in their bedrooms like we had over the last few years at planned intervals….but right then and there.   As I prayed quickly for guidance, we started to talk about how special our bodies  were to God and that he had plans for each of us.  From that day, our discussions at the table changed.
Yes, we still chatted about the new  movie a friend recommended, and the dumb thing the boy said in Chemistry class.  But we also started to talk about how they shouldn’t let anyone touch them in a sexual way….just like we did in kindergarten.  Only this time we were talking about a boy or a girl their age.

I often wonder how many of us have missed “teachable moments”?  Those times when we suck air and our pulses start to race and in our heads we’re yelling….”NO, this is too soon….I didn’t plan for them to be exposed to this yet!!”  It is perfectly normal to want our children’s innocence to last as long as possible.  However, we can’t shelter them forever, and God does expect us to teach them His values when the opportunity presents itself.  Read Deuteronomy 11 18 and 19 to fortify your resolve to take advantage of your “table talk”.

What did you and your kids talk about last night??

Hugs!
Nancy

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Have you ever fasted for any length of time? Fasting is a pretty interesting discipline that can be such a great learning tool if you let it. One thing that can be learned is that when the fast is over anything feels like a feast compared to the fast.

An observation that I have made, sadly, over the last few years is that parents seem to either ‘feast’ or ‘fast’ when it comes to being emotionally supportive to their kids.

In some families it appears that there is an abundance of time given in order to listen, support and love children deeply and then there are other families where this is missing altogether or rarely seen at all.

I researched some definitions of emotional neglect and this is what I found:

Emotional neglect can be defined as a parent or parents putting their own wishes, goals, needs, and wants above their child’s; marked inattention to the child’s need for affection; any behavior that interferes with a child’s mental health or social development; name-calling, making negative comments or ignoring the emotional needs of a child.

As I write this, I am praying that as parents you will make it your goal to ask God to help you do whatever it takes to become those parents who choose to be the ‘feasting’ family when it comes to being emotionally supportive of your children.

Love,

Karen

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