Book Club Thursday | Making Children Mind Without Losing Yours

We are reading through Making Children Mind Without Losing Yours by Dr. Kevin Leman.  All direct quotes are in bold type.


Today we are looking at the last part of chapter 5 Danger- Super Parentat Work! | The Ultimate Goal of Reality Discipline.  I really enjoyed this last part of the chapter because it really hit home for me as something I saw exhibited in the life of my own parents, especially my mother, and something that I hope Addie has been able to see in our lives.

The most important questions parents ask me at seminars I conduct in the United States and Canada are, "How do I help my child develop spiritually?  How do I enhance my child's relationship with God?"

One of the best ways to show (not just tell) your children you are truly dependant on God is through prayer.

Recently I applied for a different healthcare plan for Addie and soon to be Ian.  I began praying that we would be accepted by this coverage for her and knew I would not find out for four to six weeks.  Two weeks after applying, I received a letter in the mail stating that we had been accepted and our monthly premium was 4 times less than what we were paying under our other haelth insurance plan (and all healthcare, vision, and dental care would be 100% covered).  As soon as I read the letter, I started saying, "Thank you, Lord! Thank you, Lord!"  Addie, who was right next to me, asked, "What happened Mommy?"  I told her that God had answered Mommy's prayer and had helped Mommy and Daddy to take even better care of her.  Addie started jumping up and down and shouting, "Thank you, God! Thank you, God!"

There have been times when we have had to run errands during the day, and my clothes are on the line.  As we approach our home, we can see dark clouds looming.  She and I have started praying together that God would hold the rain back until we got the clothes down off the line.  What a faith builder for her when she sees God answer a simple request like that. 

During the week when she was attending VBS at my aunt's church, we had some terrible thunderstorms and downpours.  One happened as we were driving to the church.  I was terrified about driving since I could not see very far out the window.  Addie and I began praying together that Jesus would hold back the rain a bit until we could get to the church.  Within a few minutes, the rain had let up and we were able to safely make it to the church.  Addie went home and told Brian how Jesus had answered her.

Addie has accompanied me on our walks around the house as I have prayed for things in very specific ways. 

It is so important that Addie sees that God is very real to Brian and me.  We can talk about God to our children.  We can take them to church and have them involved in every program available to us, but if they never see Jesus as being present in our everyday lives, they will never take him seriously, or learn how to develop a real relationship with Him.  When our children see that Jesus is real to us, they will learn how to have a real relationship with Him as well.  And isn't that what every parent wants?

Make prayer a priority in your home in addition to going to church and Sunday School. Take time to have devotions around the dinnner table.  Take every opportunity to have the courage to share your innermost thoughts and feelingsabout your heavenly father.  Your children will learn to do the same.

I love the phrase "in addition to" that Dr. Leman uses.  Taking our children to church and Sunday school cannot be where our spiritual responsibility to our children ends.  It must begin at home, be nutured  by the parents, and the church is only to be seen as a supplement to what we do at home.  Our children must see that God is not compartmentalized in our lives and that His time slots are not Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings.    They need to see that we have a relationship with him not only on Sundays, but also on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.  They need to see that our Bibles are opened throughout the week, not just on Sundays.  They need to hear us pray real prayers about our circumstances, struggles, trials, and praises, not just the fancy prayers that we pray on Sundays or when we have church friends over. 

If we want to nuture a spiritual relationship in our children with the Lord, that relationship must be nurtured in our own lives first. 

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For the next two weeks, we are going to take a short break from our Thursday Book Club book as I will be doing two book reviews.  One review will contain a giveaway of the book being reviewed.  I look forward to sharing these finds with you.