The Power of Parents

The Power of Parents

Everybody knows how to raise children, except the people who have them. P.J. O'Rourke

The Responsibility of Parenting Your children are the greatest gift God will give to you, and their souls are the heaviest responsibility He will place in your hands. Take time with them, teach them to have faith in God. Be a person in whom they can have faith. When you are old, nothing else you've done will have mattered. No one is quite ready, everyone is caught off guard, you wake and you think: oh my gosh I am juggling all these balls and this one I cannot drop, that is not an option. I came into parenting the way that most people do knowing nothing and trying to learn everything.

Ephesians 6:1-4 Children, obey your parents because you belong to the Lord, for this is the right thing to do. Honor your father and mother. This is the first commandment with a promise: If you honor your father and mother, things will go well for you, and you will have a long life on the earth. Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger by the way you treat them. Rather, bring them up with the discipline and instruction that comes from the Lord. Proverbs 22:6 Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it. Deuteronomy 11:18-22 So commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these words of mine. Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders. Teach them to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, so that as long as the sky remains above the earth, you and your children may flourish in the land the Lord swore to give your ancestors. Be careful to obey all these commands I am giving you. Show love to the Lord your God by walking in his ways and holding and tightly to him.

Four Things to Remember

Purpose Understand your purpose Teach them what is true and how they live out their life on earth Physically, Mentally, Emotionally, Spiritually

Purpose Understand your purpose Teach them what is true and how they live out their life on earth Spiritually, Physically, Mentally, Emotionally

Power Understand your power and use it well You have 17 years that they are under your authority Modeling, Teaching and Discipline Proverbs 22:6 Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it Ephesians 6:1-4 Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger by the way you treat them. Rather, bring them up with the discipline and instruction that comes from the Lord. Colossians 3:20-21 Fathers, do not aggravate your children, or they will become discouraged.

Plan Have a plan and work the plan Be intentional and relational Be a life long learner Deuteronomy 11:18-22 So commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these words of mine. Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders. Teach them to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, so that as long as the sky remains above the earth, you and your children may flourish in the land the Lord swore to give your ancestors. Be careful to obey all these commands I am giving you. Show love to the Lord your God by walking in his ways and holding tightly to him. Psalm 78:4 We will not hide these truths from our children; we will tell the next generation about the glorious deeds of the Lord, about his power and his mighty wonders.

Pray & Partner Do not attempt this alone God knows & loves your children more than you Matthew 19:13-15 One day some parents brought their children to Jesus so he could lay his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples scolded the parents for bothering him. But Jesus said, Let the children come to me. Don t stop them! For the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to those who are like these children. And he placed his hands on their heads and blessed them before he left.

Pray & Partner Do not attempt this alone God knows & loves your children more than you John the Baptist Parenting I must decrease and Jesus must increase Earthen Vessel Parenting I am very human and God is in me Love Covers a Multitude of Sins Parenting Loving God and your children is the most powerful thing you can do

Purpose Power Plan Pray and Partner

Challenge Review your present plan, or start making a plan, on how to lead your child onto the right path spiritually physically, mentally, and emotionally Continue or begin investing in resources that will help you parent better.