Author: Thereasa Winnett

Thereasa Winnett is the founder of Teach One Reach One and blogger at Parenting Like Hannah. She holds a BA in education from the College of William and Mary. She has served in all areas of ministry to children and teens for more than thirty years and regularly leads workshops for ministries and churches. She has conducted numerous workshops, including sessions at Points of Light’s National Conference on Volunteering and Service, the National Urban Ministry Conference, Pepperdine Bible Lectures, and Lipscomb’s Summer Celebration. Thereasa lives in Atlanta, GA with her husband Greg, where she enjoys reading, knitting, traveling and cooking.

Discipline That Connects With Your Child’s Heart

Discipline That Connects With Your Child's Heart - Parenting Like Hannah As a Christian parenting blogger, I am offered quite a few parenting books to review. It’s important to me to make sure you are using books to guide you that will actually help your parenting and not make a muddled disaster out of your best intentions.

Which is why I am really torn about the new book, Discipline That Connects With Your Child’s Heart by Jim and Lynne Jackson. The authors are obviously trying to counter what they see as parents who never really listen to their kids and correct in anger and for childish mistakes, not just rebellion. They also introduce godly principles and commands into the parenting mix. Obviously, I am a huge fan of all of those principles.

The problem I have with the book is really two-fold. First, the overall tone of the book is a bit touchy-feely for my tastes. I prefer a more straight-forward style. There is nothing wrong with writing or preferring a less direct style. Unfortunately though, that style always makes me want to immediately reject things that are shared – even when I am a strong proponent of those very things – because of the way they are written. It just feels a little too etherial. If you enjoy that style, you will appreciate this book, because it is a rather unique way to write a parenting book.

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Worshipping With Your Children In Service

Worshipping With Your Kids In Service- Parenting Like Hannah In Kids and Worship, I shared with you the important reasons I prefer children to worship with their families and not in a separate children’s worship service. Often this service is little more than entertainment- with children learning they should always have fun during worship and that worship is about how they feel, not about worshipping God. Your children are missing so many things vital for their spiritual growth and health when they are separated from you – even for just part of the service.

You may have experienced a few frazzled worship services with your children and decided it is best for everyone if they are removed from the auditorium as quickly as possible. With a few tips in your pocket and a couple of extra loving Christian hands, your family can reap the benefits of family worship with very little pain and suffering!

These are some of the things that made having our daughter in worship not only possible, but something we all valued – even those sitting near us! Every child is different, but some combination of these tips should work with almost any child.

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Kids and Worship

Worshipping With Kids - Parenting Like Hannah If your congregation is like most churches, they offer some sort of children’s worship. It can last the entire duration of the worship service or happen just during the sermon. Some congregations only have children’s worship for preschool children, while others offer it through late elementary or even the teen years.

I have long been an advocate of children remaining in the worship service. There are tons of benefits from our children remaining in the adult worship. In my opinion, those benefits are far more important than the distractions children may cause if allowed to stay.

You may be thinking you won’t “get anything out of worship” if your kids are sitting with you. Yet ultimately, worship is not really about us. Having your kids with you in worship may be challenging at first. If you stick with it though, your kids may just get the following benefits:

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Kids, Possibilities and God

Kids, Possibilities and God - Parenting Like Hannah Everywhere you turn, it seems our world is filled with victims. Some indeed have had horrible, unspeakable things happen in their lives. Others have been convinced claiming to be a victim relieves them of responsibility for anything that does or does not happen in their lives.

Sadly, the victimization society is convincing our young people they are saddled with is preventing them from reaching their godly potential. It is keeping them from living the full, meaningful life God planned for them. It is allowing them to sit and watch as life and the adventures God had planned for them pass them by.

Enter Jen Bricker. Her new book, Everything Is Possible should be a must read for any young person who considers themselves a victim. If anyone could claim that status, it is Bricker. Born without legs, her father wouldn’t even let her mother see her as he quickly handed her over for adoption. She spent the first months of her life in foster care, before being adopted. Many people would have accepted the label of victim and gone on to live a very small, protected life.

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Kids, Anxiety and God

Kids, Anxiety and God - Parenting Like Hannah

Growing up can make even the most resilient child anxious. Whether it’s the proverbial monster under the bed or a college mid-term, your kids may find themselves feeling quite anxious from time to time.

If it’s constant and severe, you need to talk with your pediatrician to find the underlying causes. For most kids though, teaching them a few godly coping strategies will help them tame those knots in their stomachs.

There are a lot of things you can do to help your kids handle anxiety. What works well for one child may not work as well for another one. In general though, these tips will keep your children focused on God while also providing some peace in the current “storm” they are experiencing.

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