{"id":5366,"date":"2017-12-01T17:44:51","date_gmt":"2017-12-01T23:44:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tampaseo.expert\/focus\/?p=5366"},"modified":"2017-12-01T17:44:51","modified_gmt":"2017-12-01T23:44:51","slug":"teaching-my-children-to-make-good-decisions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tampaseo.expert\/focus\/2017\/12\/01\/teaching-my-children-to-make-good-decisions\/","title":{"rendered":"Teaching my Children to Make Good Decisions"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Chris Donovant<\/strong>
\nSeveral years ago, my wife and I decided that we were going to begin adding children to our family. When that momentous day came (and the day I\u2019m referring to\u00a0the day\u00a0she conceived), we became parents for the first time. Talk about a dose of reality! You can feel the weight on your shoulders. We knew from then to eternity that we were going to be parents. Until that point, we had only been on the other side of the coin, from the outside looking in. We didn\u2019t know what to expect even though there are many books written by very prolific writers on this very subject, and a great amount of wisdom amassed. We knew our lives were about to change.\u00a0<\/span>
\nThe one thing that is certain about parenthood is that it\u2019s a life-changing experience. This isn\u2019t something that we should take lightly. For those of us who have conscripted ourselves into the Lord\u2019s\u00a0army and are the salt of the earth, we should be provoking the next generation to love and good works, and to preserve, just as salt does. We\u2019ve only been given these little lives for a short while; we\u2019ve got to make our time with them count. It is plain to see that it is a Biblical command for parents to teach their children constantly. Just look at the amount of time that was specified in Deuteronomy 6\u2026all the time<\/b>! Now comes the time where the rubber meets the road. What do we teach them? Well, the Bible of course! But how do we teach them? This is truly an age-old question.\u00a0<\/span>
\nWhen our parents conceived us, do you think that they could foresee the problems that we would be facing today? Maybe some of the problems, yes, but by and large the specific problems prevalent today such as homosexuality, the attack on the home and family, or the rise of political correctness (where we can\u2019t offend any, but every angle of attack on Christianity is acceptable)\u00a0were not considered. For this reason\u00a0it is important for us to teach and,\u00a0dare I say, indoctrinate (1 Timothy\u00a04:6) our children with the very fundamentals the Creator of this universe has given us. None of us would send our children out into the snow without being dressed properly (warm coat, mittens, and boots). Likewise, we would not send our children out into the summer heat dressed in the same attire. We must equip our children with the correct tools to face each battle. Early in our marriage, my wife and I found\u00a0ourselves\u00a0in a squabble of sorts, probably\u00a0over some menial task like taking out the trash. I called my mother, thinking I would find some support on my position from her, but instead I got this gem of wisdom. She said,\u00a0\u201cI don\u2019t want to hear something that will sway my thoughts and opinions of your wife in a negative way. You know what the Bible says regarding husbands and wives and solving problems. Now go and make the right decision.\u201d\u00a0<\/span>
\nBecause we do not know what problems will arise in 15, 20, or 30 years from now and what they will bring to our children, we must instill in them now the value in making wise decisions. In our home, we make it a practice to never tell our children they are bad, rather that they have made a bad decision. We tell them that life is about making decisions, that there is always a right and wrong decision to be made. We make it plain to them the correct way and let them know that there\u00a0are\u00a0consequences, good or bad, based on the decision they have made. We teach them that when they make a decision, whether good or bad, they must live with the consequences. We instill in our children basic Christian principles such as faithfulness, obedience, truthfulness, leadership, and diligence. I think it is important to point out here for those of you who may think,\u00a0\u201cWell, he\u2019s not teaching his children about baptism or the one church,\u201d we can\u2019t teach basic fundamental principles without teaching these things. For example, let\u2019s say our characteristic for the month (and we change these monthly) is obedience. They will learn the whole month that we (\u201cobey all the way\u201d) always obey God. How can you teach obedience without teaching \u201cwhat must I do to be saved?\u201d (Acts 16:30) It all goes hand in hand.\u00a0<\/span>
\nWhen we make blanket statements like \u201cChristians shouldn\u2019t dance\u201d or \u201cChristians shouldn\u2019t go to the beach,\u201d we know that isn\u2019t always the case. I am not talking about situational ethics here. I am simply saying that when we hear our children tell a lie, we correct them because we know lying is always wrong, but when they are \u201cdancing\u201d in a silly way around the living room, we don\u2019t stop them because we know they aren\u2019t committing an act of the flesh (Galatians\u00a05:19). It is when we teach them the \u201cthings such like\u201d noted in Galatians\u00a05:21 that the decision making process is introduced. There is no real freedom of choice because there is always a right and a wrong.\u00a0There is no such thing as a half-truth,\u00a0only whole lies. Why do you think Paul said we are either slaves to sin or righteousness (Romans\u00a06:15-17)? From this, we can see the importance of our decision-making process and dealing with the consequences of our actions.\u00a0<\/span>
\nJames said,\u00a0\u201cPure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this\u2026to keep oneself unspotted from the world\u201d (James\u00a01:27). Bear in mind that James was writing to the twelve tribes scattered abroad who were arguably the most well read and indoctrinated generation of Jews. He didn\u2019t say it with a list of specific mandates. He said to \u201ckeep oneself unspotted from the world.\u201d That can only come from making sound, wise, and scripturally correct decisions.\u00a0The importance of being able to weigh each decision one makes with a pure conscience can only be fueled by God\u2019s\u00a0Word\u00a0(Romans\u00a012:2, 2 Timothy\u00a03:16-17).\u00a0<\/span>
\nWhen we teach our children how to make good decisions, such as how to wisely choose a mate, we then eliminate things like homosexuality and casual sex by proxy. It has and always will be important to teach God\u2019s\u00a0Word wholly and without deduction, and as the times change our children will be faced with threats we haven\u2019t conceived. One of the most important and basic scriptural facts is teaching our children to make wise decisions. As the writer of Proverbs said, \u201cHappy is the man who finds wisdom, and the man that gets understanding\u201d (Proverbs 3:13).\u00a0<\/span>
\nIn order to preserve Christianity\u2019s light for generations to come, we can never neglect those principles that are pure and simple. For example, one day our family was at the church building, and my oldest son, 3, was playing in our supply room. While in the room, he found a toy hat, and left it lying in the middle of the floor, instead of returning it. One of the members who was in the room with him at the time asked him, \u201cAidan, did you leave that hat in the floor?\u201d At first, his answer was\u00a0 \u201cno,\u201d but when he was questioned again, \u201cAidan, are you telling a lie?\u201d he confessed and said,\u00a0\u201cYes, I am. Truth fears no questions.\u201d When our monthly characteristic was on honesty, we\u00a0had\u00a0taught him the importance of always being truthful, and that \u201cTruth fears no questions.\u201d From this, he could draw the conclusion that \u201cEven though initially I did wrong in leaving the hat in the floor, I still need to tell the truth.\u201d We are admonished from the inspired writers of the New Testament add to ourselves and to teach fundamental principles (Titus 2:1-10;\u00a02 Peter\u00a01: 5-11).\u00a0<\/span>
\nAllow me to share this example with you. An ordinary grinding wheel is usually comprised of silica and a bonding agent that holds it together while it spins at high\u00a0rpms. An invaluable lesson taught to me\u00a0years ago was\u00a0the importance of \u201cringing\u201d a grinding wheel. This means that before you turn the wheel on, you must tap it on the side to see what sound it will make. If it rings like a tuning fork, then it is in good condition. If it makes a hollow sound when struck, then the wheel likely has a crack or has been compromised in some fashion that may not be visible. If you were to turn on a grinding wheel that didn\u2019t \u201cring\u201d true, then you risk the wheel breaking and becoming seriously injured in the process. The same can be said for teaching our children the importance of making good decisions and weighing the cost of that decision. We can help them to \u201cring\u201d situations to see if they sound the way they should. Our children may not have a specific verse that points to a specific scenario, but they will be able to know whether or not it sounds pleasing to the Lord.\u00a0<\/span>
\nIf we truly want to bring our children up in the \u201ctraining and admonition of the Lord\u201d (Ephesians\u00a06:4), then we have to teach them the whole counsel of God. Let me leave with a verse well\u00a0known to us all: \u201cChoose for yourselves this day\u00a0whom\u00a0you will serve\u2026but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord\u201d (Joshua 24:15)
\n 
\nThis article first appeared in the September 2012 issue of \u201cThink\u201d magazine<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Chris Donovant Several years ago, my wife and I decided that we were going to begin adding children to our family. When that momentous day came (and the day I\u2019m referring to\u00a0the day\u00a0she conceived), we became parents for the first time. Talk about a dose of reality! You can feel the weight on your […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"give_campaign_id":0,"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[46,66],"tags":[1135,58,1196,753,666,1197,1176,253],"class_list":["post-5366","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-children","category-think-excerpts","tag-1135","tag-children","tag-chris-donovant","tag-decisions","tag-example","tag-parenthood","tag-september","tag-teaching","et-doesnt-have-format-content","et_post_format-et-post-format-standard"],"yoast_head":"\nTeaching my Children to Make Good Decisions - Focus Press<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/tampaseo.expert\/focus\/2017\/12\/01\/teaching-my-children-to-make-good-decisions\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Teaching my Children to Make Good Decisions - Focus Press\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Chris Donovant Several years ago, my wife and I decided that we were going to begin adding children to our family. 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