Biblical Parenting-Updated

Parenting
We need to look at what the Bible says about parenting:
Parents must teach God’s truth (Dt. 4:9; 32:46).
Parents must lovingly discipline children because they are immature and need guidance (Prov. 22:15; 29:15).
Parents should not exasperate their children (Eph. 6:4).
Parents’ wise decisions bring blessing to their children (Dt. 30:19-20).
Parents who are godly teach their children to obey (Eph. 6:1; 1 Tim. 3:4).
Parents who faithfully train their children can be confident that their efforts are not in vain (Prov. 22:6).
JDB, Our Daily Bread, Sept.-Nov. 1997, page for October 12

Parents Neglect Biblical Principles

Of All Born-Again Parents…33% Practice Biblical Principles in Parenting.
The majority of Christian Parents surveyed in a recent Barna Research Group project say that church and the Bible do not influence how they parent their children.
Only 33 percent of born-again parents surveyed said their church or faith has been a dominant influence in the way they parent, and only half of born-again parents mentioned anything related to faith (including the Bible, church or religion) as a significant influence on how they raise their children.
The main influences listed by parents included: their own upbringing (45 percent); friends, relatives and spouses (35 percent); and books, magazines and articles on parenting (34 percent). Nearly 63 percent said they expect the church to take a more active role in assisting parents, and 80 percent said the church should do more to help people be better parents.
“Family ministry will be one of the hot issues facing the church over the next few years,” said George Barna, president of Barna Research Group. “The challenge facing churches is to know what types of support parents and family members need to become productive Christians and citizens and to provide that support in useful ways.”
“Ministry Matters’” from Ministry Today, April, 1998, p. 13.

I read from Spurgeon earlier this morning and his devotion got me thinking about Christian Parenting. What an awesome task it is to raise our children according to God's Word. Now, I am not pretending to be the best parent in the world. I could do alot of things better when it comes to this wonderful task of raising children. There are certainly some days I could make much better decisions concerning parenting. I have to repent often because I know my kids have NOT seen Jesus in me and I have failed in modeling to live His Word to them. I am reminded again and again how Pastors and Christians alike are to try and excel in this area. Praise God for His forgiveness when I fall short in this area. I sure needed these words from the prince of preachers and I am sure that there is someone else in cyberspace today who does as well.

"Bring him unto me."Mark 9:19

Despairingly the poor disappointed father turned away from the disciples to their Master. His son was in the worst possible condition, and all means had failed, but the miserable child was soon delivered from the evil one when the parent in faith obeyed the Lord Jesus' word, "Bring him unto me." Children are a precious gift from God, but much anxiety comes with them. They may be a great joy or a great bitterness to their parents; they may be filled with the Spirit of God, or possessed with the spirit of evil. In all cases, the Word of God gives us one receipt for the curing of all their ills, "Bring him unto me." O for more agonizing prayer on their behalf while they are yet babes! Sin is there, let our prayers begin to attack it. Our cries for our offspring should precede those cries which betoken their actual advent into a world of sin. In the days of their youth we shall see sad tokens of that dumb and deaf spirit which will neither pray aright, nor hear the voice of God in the soul, but Jesus still commands, "Bring them unto me." When they are grown up they may wallow in sin and foam with enmity against God; then when our hearts are breaking we should remember the great Physician's words, "Bring them unto me." Never must we cease to pray until they cease to breathe. No case is hopeless while Jesus lives.
The Lord sometimes suffers His people to be driven into a corner that they may experimentally know how necessary He is to them. Ungodly children, when they show us our own powerlessness against the depravity of their hearts, drive us to flee to the strong for strength, and this is a great blessing to us. Whatever our morning's need may be, let it like a strong current bear us to the ocean of divine love. Jesus can soon remove our sorrow, He delights to comfort us. Let us hasten to Him while He waits to meet us.