Article Display
Email  |  My Account  |  Donate
Our children are going to face temptations, tests and trials. That's just part of life. As parents, we want to help them and the best way to do that is by getting the Word deep in their heart.

The Bible doesn't say they will be immune from such experiences and the same goes for us. It does say, however, that they can go through the water and it won't overtake them, and through the fire and they won't be burned. (Isa. 43:2)

They can come out the otherside and be overcomers.

They will be faced with certain situations that try to lead them off in some other direction, away from God. But with God's Word hidden in their heart, He can begin dealing with them about it. When they feel a nudge from Him, His Spirit will be speaking to their heart. But at the same time, the devil will be tempting them through their thoughts or their flesh. (Every day our children are faced with decisions to do good or bad.)

Each time your child needs to make a decision, there is a three-member board meeting going on inside them.

Spirit, Soul, Body
To understand  the make-up of every human being, picture a target drawn on a piece of paper with three circles, one inside the other. Each circle represents a portion of man's nature: spirit, soul and body. You've got the spirit (the bull's eye), the soul (mind, will and emotions) and the flesh (physical body).

In every situation a child's spirit will be saying yes to God, while his flesh is saying no to Him. Every time — without exception.

The devil tempts them by having somebody or something trying to entince them and lead them away to do wrong.

Their flesh will respond by saying, "Go ahead and do it," But their spirit will be saying, "No way! I'm not doing that!" In every situation like this, there will be a tie vote and that's when the soul will have to break the tie by choosing sides.

What The Word SAYS:
1 Thess. 5:23 refers to our beings as "spirit, soul and body":
Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. (NKJV)
I want to give you three scriptures for the words, spirit, soul and body.

Spirit
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. (2 Cor. 5:17-NKJV)
When we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we are born again- taken from the kingdom of darkness and placed into the kingdom of God. Our human spirit becomes a new creature in Christ.

Soul
And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
(Rom. 12:2 NKJV)
Body
 ...even we ourselces groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body.
(Rom. 8:32 NKJV)
Our Soul Casts The Deciding Vote
Now the part of our person that will influence what goes on with every situation we face is not our spirit or our flesh, but our soul.

The degree to which our children have the Word of God in them is the degree to which they will make wise decisions in their lives when needed.

If  they don't know the Word of God, they will be incapable of making wise decisions and their flesh will win out every time.

That's why the Bible says:
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly...
(Col. 3:16 NKJV)
The Spirit of God will bring to our remembrance the Word to help us, but we have to get that Word in us first.

How do we get the words Jesus spoke into our child's heart?

As Isaiah 28:10 says, it will be ...precept upon precept; line upon line...here a little, and there a little. It's giving our child one bite at a time, with lots of repetition.

It happens in those teachable moments on the drive to school or while making dinner. It happens every day a little at a time. There won't ever be a perfect time where you will have all your children around you with nothing to do and everyone in a good mood, so don't wait until everything is perfect.

I used to have my kids in the car on our long drive to school and we'd have half working on homework and the other half waking up — but we'd get out the Bible and just cover the Proverbs chapter for the day. We'd pass around the Bible until everyone had read a section and we'd talk about it. Now, I can tell you right now, we probably never had all six kids invested all at once.

Between some eating breakfast in the car and some finishing homework, it may not have seemed like it made a difference right then, but just realize you're sowing the seed of the Word in them and it WILL produce fruit.

Teachable moments can even come when you as a parent have messed up or your out getting groceries or someone cuts you off in traffic — they are everywhere and it's amazing what your children will remember.

In Deut. 6:6,7 God said:
"And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and you shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.
(Deut. 6:6,7 NKJV)
This means we are to be teaching our children the truths of God's Word when we wake up in the morning, when you walk thoughout the day, when we sit down and when we lie down.

We are to be a constant reminder to them of God's ways and purposes in this life.

No Perfect People
The best thing you'll ever do for your children is lead them to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ and introduce them to their Heavenly Father.

By hearing the stories of the Bible, they will see people that even though people messed up, they got back up and had victory. For your children to know who they are in Christ and what God's promises are to them is the most valuable thing you can give them.

You don't have to be a perfect parent- there are no perfect people. But when we ask for wisdom and commit our works to God, (Prov. 16:3) He can work with that. You do the natural and God will do the supernatural.

Remember, it's never too late and even if you're children are grown and out of the house — God has a divine plan for your family — a plan to give you a hope and a future!

Copyright © Joe McGee Ministries
All rights reserved.

Author Biography

Joe McGee
Web site: Joe McGee Ministries
 
Joe McGee, author, national conference speaker, father, and former school administrator, is the founder and director of Joe McGee Ministries, Inc. and Faith For Families Ministries.
Read more...

About Us

The online ministry of cfaith has been helping people discover faith, friends and freedom in the Word since 2000. Cfaith provides a unique and comprehensive collection of faith-building resources for the worldwide faith community.

At cfaith, you can strengthen your faith and deepen your understanding of the Word of God by digging into the vast collection of teaching articles, streaming audio and video messages, and daily devotionals. No other website offers such a unique and extensive collection of spiritual-growth resources aimed at helping you grow in your knowledge of the Word.

Read More...

 

 

Support Us

Why support cfaith?


(All contributions are 100% tax deductible)


SUPPORT CFAITH WITH ONE CLICK!

For every Internet search you make using
goodsearch, cfaith will receive one penny!

GS Logo 250x38

Contact Us

Business Hours:


Monday—Friday: 9 a.m.—5 p.m. CST
Saturday & Sunday: Closed

Phone:

(763) 488-7800 or (800) 748-8107

Mailing Address: 

CFAITH.com
9201 75th Avenue North
Brooklyn Park, MN 55428

 

Login Form

Please ignore the “Secret Key” field; it is not needed to log in to cfaith.

Login Change Article

Spring360x442
You need to enable user registration from User Manager/Options in the backend of Joomla before this module will activate.