We are celebrating our daughter and son-in-law completing their Master’s degrees in our house. What are you celebrating? Whether it’s big or small, celebrating accomplishments and showing gratitude to God for His part make your family stronger. Here are this week’s social media challenges for other family strengthening ideas.
Monday: Did you know the sounds and spray from a fountain have a calming, soothing effect on people? Teaching your kids to pray, read Psalms, exercise, breathe deeply, listen to soothing music and sounds, do something creative and other ways to regulate their emotions in safe, godly ways will make it less likely they will want to turn to drugs, alcohol and other more dangerous ways. Safe regulating behaviors need to be actively taught and your kids reminded to use them until they become natural.
Tuesday: I read my favorite quote of the week the other day. “Emotions say hurry, while wisdom says wait.” Teaching your kids to take a few deep breaths to pray and think before doing or saying anything when feeling any strong emotions can keep them from making unnecessary mistakes or sinning. And that saying is a good one to quote to them over and over until it becomes a tape in their heads they hear when feeling emotional.
Wednesday: When I bought this plant, it was just tiny shoots. I had to have faith it would really grow and produce this flower. I also had to work hard – making the soil just right for this type of plant, planting it, watering it when it didn’t rain, protecting it from hazards. God created this plant and sent rain a few times to help, but I had to put in some effort if I wanted peonies in my yard. It took hard work and a lot of patience. Your kids are the same. They won’t somehow magically grow up to be the Christians God wants them to be. He will help you. The church will try to help you. Ultimately, though, you are going to have to spend a lot of time and effort on your kids for them to have strong spiritual foundations and reach their godly potential.
Thursday: As life returns to normal, don’t let it. That’s right. Keep those positive changes your family made – spending more time engaged with each other and God. Don’t let the business of every day life rob you of what your kids need most – meaningful time with you and meaningful time with God every day. Be careful about what you add to your schedule. Don’t overload the calendar. Say “No thanks!” to things that don’t add real value.
Friday: Marriage for your kids may be years away. The time to start talking about dating and marriage is when they are too young to date. Teaching them how to find godly people, how to avoid sinning while dating and how to avoid dating just to date (which can be problematic in many ways) can save them a lot of pain and negative consequences when they are finally old enough.