Christian Parenting Challenges #11

I don’t know about the weather in your area, but here Spring is full of rapid weather changes. Your kids are changing rapidly, too. You will need to adjust some of your parenting as they change. Here are some challenges from social media to start your reflection process.

Monday: This tree is beautiful, but its blooms stink – even from a distance. Your kids need to understand how God views beauty. While they may be beautiful on the outside, if they are “ugly” on the inside, God won’t be happy. On the other hand, even if the world does not consider their outward appearance to be beautiful, if they are kind, loving, wise, godly…..that inner beauty will also make them look more beautiful outwardly. They need to focus on being the person who God created them to be…inwardly beautiful.

Tuesday: What are your kids reading and watching? Studies show it influences their thinking more than parents would like to believe. A quick glance at some of the content Netflix creates for teens normalizes all sorts of unhealthy, ungodly choices and frankly rather unrealistic jumps from teens making great choices to immediately making questionable and dangerous ones. Don’t assume the normalization of these behaviors doesn’t impact your kids, because over time they can come to believe those things are not only normal, but laudable. It can create a rift they place between themselves and God which some will never want to repair.

Wednesday: Your kids may think you are a couple of hundred years behind the times culturally. You don’t have to participate in or even appreciate what your kids like. You do need to know enough about it though to understand any impact it might have on their attitudes, beliefs, behaviors or health. Who knows? Some of it may actually be great and you can enjoy it together from time to time.

Thursday: This is the Titanic Museum. In the end it’s a story about a company whose pride got in the way of taking safety precautions. Christians always need to take safety precautions against Satan, but your kids need to be taught godly ways to protect themselves from giving in to temptation. They also need to realize that no matter how confident they may be in their faith, Satan can still tempt them…at times using the over confidence that often accompanies pride.

Friday: The last year has been particularly hard on some kids and teens. How do yours feel about everything that has happened? Do they blame God? Have they been resilient, leaning on God to help them through the tough times? Knowing their thoughts can help you know what they need from you to help them process everything. Teaching them to be resilient by leaning on God can help them in the future, too. They need you to teach and show them how to do it though.

Published by

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.

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