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“Teaching Kids to Trust the Lord” Dr. Allen Holmes Welcome This morning we are going to finish up our series on parenting and if you remember from last week we said the goal of parenting is to teach our children to trust the Lord. Remember, Proverbs 3:5-‐6 says, “Trust the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and he will make your paths straight.” If we teach our children to trust the Lord He will direct their path. So how do we do that? That is what we are going to talk about this morning. Illustration: Last week my family and I were at Disney and one of the rides my kids loved that we rode over and over was Splash Mountain, which is a log flume with a 50-‐foot drop at the end. Well, I was not sure if my 4 year old would like it but I wanted her to try so I just acted like it was no big deal and we got on. Well on the ride there are three or four times drops and as we approached them she would say, “Ok Daddy, squeeze me real tight like a bear hug.” As long as I had a tight grip on her she was ok and we rode the ride over and over again. She loved the trill, the adventure, and the uncertainty of the ride because her dad, who she still thinks is Superman, had a strong grip on her. That is what life is supposed to be like for all of us. That is what we want for our kids. We want our kids to love the trill, the adventure, the uncertainty of life because they know God has a strong grip on them. We want them to trust the Lord. So how do we do that? 1. We must earn their trust. Explain: If my kids do not trust me they will have a very difficult time learning to trust God. Jesus said to Phillip in John 14:9, “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father.” Paul said 2 Corinthians 5:20, “I am an ambassador for Christ.” In other words, ‘I am his representative’. We want to represent the Father in our relationship to our kids. a. Keep your word. Always do what you say you are going to do. Matthew 4:4 Illustrate: 10$ burrito Apply: But dad you said…I better make sure I have a very good reason any time I do not do what I said I was going to do because I am eroding trust. If I want them to trust God’s word I need to make it easy to trust my word. b. Don’t be a hypocrite. Hypocrisy is not the failure to be perfect. We are not perfect. Hypocrisy is pretending to be perfect when your kids know better. I need to make sure I model for them what I am trying to teach them. c.
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Titus 2:7-‐8, “7In everything set them an example by doing what is good. In your teaching show integrity, seriousness 8 and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned, so that those who oppose you may be ashamed because they have nothing bad to say about us. -‐ Respect: How do I speak to Tina, my neighbors, a waitress, people in traffic, my family -‐ Forgiveness: Do I acknowledge my mistakes and ask my kids to forgive me? -‐ Anger: When I am angry do I get violent or out of control. -‐ Serve: Do my kids see sitting around the house while my wife works -‐ Words: Do my kids hear me using my words to encourage, praise, instruct in a life giving way? Apply: When I make mistakes I need to be quick to seek their forgiveness. Offer your kids unconditional love. I love you just like you are. I love what is unique about you. My love is not based on your performance. Offer your kids grace. I need to understand my kids are kids and kids do dumb stuff and it is going to take years and years of teaching and modeling to form their character. Just think how long it has taken for God to teach you to trust Him. I am still learning. Play with your kids, have more fun. The one thing most families need to do more of is have fun. Play in the yard, get in the pool, go on walks, eat ice cream, play games. Find ways to have more fun. It is difficult for kids to believe you have their best intentions in mind when you never laugh with them. Protect your kids. There are times when I need to defend my kids. Illustrate: Girls softball coach-‐ He was being very disrespectful to those girls. One of the dads needs to talk to that coach and protect those girls. Talk to your kids. We have to work at maintaining open lines of communication with our kids. Illustrate: Luke-‐ will you be proud of me if I am not good at baseball Statistics: One out of 8 kids talk to mom and one out of 20 to dad about their faith. Apply: Right now, my kids are 9 and 10 and I am learning that when we disagree I need to respect them and listen more. I need to give them opportunity to express their thoughts and carefully consider what they are saying. If I don’t soon they will stop talking to me. 2. We must teach them the Bible. Hebrews 11:6, Romans 10:17 Explain: They must know God’s story. They must know that you value the Bible and read it often. a. First thing I do when I get up is a read my One Year Bible. Then when I put the kids in bed I can share something from that days reading. Make sure you are reading the Bible each day. b. One night a week read a Bible story. Which one? Just one you liked that week and talk about it. c. Bring your Bible to church. Let’s make this our culture. We bring our Bibles, we take notes, and our kids see that. For the next seven weeks I will be preaching through the book of Philippians on joy. Let’s read a chapter from Philippians each night for 7 weeks. It will take 10 minutes. d. I pay my kids to read the Bible. One dollar a day to read the One Year Bible. e. Use the tools we give your kids each week. f. Talk about movies in light of the Bible. Avengers g. When teaching your children principles, use the Bible. • Matthew 7:15 • James 1:19 • Ephesians 4:26, 29 • 1 John 4:7-‐8 • Ephesians 6:1-‐2 3. We must teach them to pray. Explain: Luke 11:1, “One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray.” a. At Meals and bedtime. When they are sick and afraid b. Get a family prayer journal-‐ write down prayer request, date, and answer date. Illustrate: Johnny c. Tell them the big things you are praying for. d. Revelation 12:11-‐ blood of the lamb and the word of their testimony. 4. Help them to write their story. Explain: Deuteronomy 6:20-‐23 20 In the future, when your son asks you, “What is the meaning of the stipulations, decrees and laws the LORD our God has commanded you?” 21 tell him: “We were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt, but the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand.22 Before our eyes the LORD sent signs and wonders—great and terrible—on Egypt and Pharaoh and his whole household. 23 But he brought us out from there to bring us in and give us the land he promised on oath to our ancestors.” ***You must go first. You must write your own story. a. Journal 5. We must teach them to love the church. Explain: Hebrews 10:24-‐25, 24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching. When our kids love the church then we all get to work together to reinforce these values. At Daystar we are being very intentional to create a place where your kids love going to church and where they are learning to trust the Lord and that is the goal of parenting. This is a lot. If you go first you can do it; if you do not go first it is impossible. Invite the Holy Spirit to empower you and you can teach your children to live in the power of the Holy Spirit.