In an age where children are growing up with electronics glued to their fingers, understanding how to raise Godly kids is crucial. As a parent you are breaking the mold of the generations that came before you, and fighting the spiritual war being waged on social media.
Charisma magazine sat down with Stephen and Jenny Weaver to talk about tips they share with their Core group on raising Christian children in the 21st century. Jenny says, “it’s amazing, it’s challenging. It’s a day by day, ‘Lord help us!'”
The world will disciple your child if you don’t. The culture will instill a false identity within your child if you don’t. As a follower and disciple of Jesus it’s important to raise your child in the ways of God.
Proverbs 22:6 says, “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.”
Talking about her own child, Jenny says, “We are parenting her here, and the world and society is also trying to parent our child. We have had to come in and set guidelines, regulations and protective measures around her to steward the prophetic and who she is. Forget ministry, just who she is as a person.”
A few tips Stephen and Jenny have that you can implement immediately:
- Speak into your child, tell them all the ways they are making you and God proud.
- Be careful of what you declare over them. The Weaver’s stopped telling their daughter she wasn’t listening and instead affirmed her when she was listening and saw much better results in the long-term.
- Understand that each child is going to need an individual case plan.
- Know what they are spending their time doing. Monitor any social media platforms and texts they are sending.
“Some children are very mature in the things of God. If you’re dealing with a child that is struggling to know their identity, they are struggling with self-esteem issues, social media is probably not the best thing for them,” Jenny says.
The key is to disciple your child before they jump on social media and are swayed by influencers online. Keep an open line of communication so they know your door is always open no matter the issue they are facing. In your conversations tell them why you are involved and let them ask you questions.
“You just begin to explain it and say we love you so much, we are protecting you. If we let you do this, it would actually show a lack of love for you as a person. They may not understand it in the moment but it’s a seed that’s been planted and you will see the harvest as they get older,” Jenny says
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Shelby Bowen is an assistant editor for Charisma Media.
