Ten Ways to Improve Your Children's Future

1. Pray with them daily. The emphasis is on with. Let them know you pray. Let them see you leading them in prayer. Let them know you pray for them. Let them know that
praying allows them to share their concerns with God and that He leads and guides us.

2. Prioritize spiritual growth and development. Commit by intentional choice to the discipline of weekly bible study and worship. Children need parental leadership and yes, sometimes a no-excuses-will-do insistence upon what will be first…honoring God with our worship above lesser things. Parents who adopt a verbal commitment to God and follow it with an applied abandonment of faithfulness offer poor examples. Children will follow what YOU DO over what you say.

3. Value your children over the athletics they play. Sports are fun. In most cases, sports are healthy. Up until they become an overwhelming influence that compromises family relationships, family worship, family economics, and family being a family. Every healthy family appreciates the opportunity of encouraging one another to excel and to be a part of community. Sharing in teamwork and learning to work with others are important lessons. Likewise children need other adults that they respect to be guides, mentors, and teachers as well. At the same time…only rarely can one have as great an influence as a parent. You are the most influential help or hindrance to your children’s development and learning. What happens at your family table is far more important than what can ever be done in a classroom or on a field of play. Don’t let sports become the poor substitute for engaged and purposeful parenting.

4. Don’t miss the huge benefit of the church in your children’s lives. Children who grow up in church with regular engagement in church activities have a huge social and educational advantage over children who do not. For example: Children in church choirs learn to read music as early as preschool and elementary ages. Children in regular worship using hymnals learn to follow words and hear them sung, helping them to identify words early and to remember them through learned songs. Children who attend church regularly often participate in activities that give them opportunity to develop in their ability to share with others, learn about people and cultures in far away places, and to interact in ways that allow them to recognize their personal influence upon others for good. Learning from the scriptures offers children, not only the ability to learn about the gospel of Jesus, but to learn about the law, wisdom, geography, and human relationships.
Children who are actively engaged in the life of the church weekly often excel in many other avenues of life as well.

5. Tell the truth. Children are often left uninformed about many “adult” matters. Certainly there are appropriate ways to address children in helping them to understand the world and the circumstances around them. At the same time, it is tragic that many children become debilitated adults simply because they were constantly shielded or “left in the dark” about the circumstances of life in general that are a part of life. Children need to understand the facts of what they are facing. They need to comprehend their ability to deal with the world in which they live in a healthy way. They also need a spiritual foundation to support them in the most challenging of times. Talking and sharing and showing children that God helps us is important in the context of daily living. Helping children to understand the reality of death when a loved one dies is important for them to come to terms with. Helping children to respond in appropriate ways to challenges and difficulties is a necessity. Frank and honest and informative discussions about many subjects are needful and necessary in good parenting. The community of faith and the expertise that many can share in a church community are important resources to enable such discussions and valuable conversations.

6. Let your love for your children be evidenced by your testimony of love for God.
When children understand that you have a source of strength that you depend upon beyond yourself, they will understand that they have a source of help not only in you, but also beyond you. That truth will sustain them when you are present and when you are not. That loving gift of faithful witness is the greatest gift a Christian parent can provide.

7. Expect more of your children than they know to expect from themselves. God treats us the same way. To do so sets the bar high. It challenges us to do our best. It reminds us that there is always a goal before us worthy of our greatest and best effort. Couple that challenging expectation with heartfelt love all along the way. God will bless it.

8. Set aside time to listen to your children. Listen to them read. Listen to them share a bible verse. Listen to them pray. Listen to them sing. Listen to them talking about things important in their world. Listen to them without cutting them off to do 100 other less important things. You will long remember when you listened and what you learned and they will too.

9. Teach your children to respect those who are different from them. We live in a vastly diverse world. Making enemies out of everyone who is different from “us” only creates
an impoverished attitude and perspective upon life. God calls us to share his Gospel with all the nations. Every man, woman, and child is someone for whom Christ died. Teach
by example your willingness to be kind and engaged and influential in building bridges to others, instead of walls. Your children will follow your lead.

10. Whatever you do, in word or deed, do it for the glory of God. That measure of commitment will enable your best, will enrich your life many fold, and will enable you and your children to discover great hope and joy in the gifts of G

Home Changers

One of the effective mission ministries of recent years has been World Changers, where college and high school youth join in doing practical ministry in mission settings, often related to home rehabilitation in impoverished communities. Whether the work involved painting, roofing, or porch repairs, many youth have been a part of learning to use their abilities and energy to help others in Jesus’ name.

Such a practical application of Christian ministry endeavor would also find a good place in the midst of most households. World Changers share a vision for reaching the world with the good news of Jesus, but we must also recognize the important foundation for changing the world is also to relate the instruction of Jesus to our homes and families and immediate surroundings.

Caring for one another within the home is an essential. Sharing responsibilities and the work of maintaining the health and well-being of all the members of a family is important. Too often we see persons sacrificing the health of the whole family for the sake of meeting aims that have little to do with positive outcomes for all involved. Living each day with a focus upon Christ in the home is the beginning of “changing the world.” Children who share a sense of security in the light of their parent’s love and commitments to each other receive a precious gift each day. Homes where honest and open sharing about the challenges the family is facing brings positive opportunities for good outcomes by the contribution of each family member to the health of the whole.

World changing is a wonderful aim, but think about what would happen if all the families on your block held to following Christ as Lord each day. How might it change the family dynamics as well as the relationships of the community in which you live?
Where do we start? Right where we are. Each and every day is a chance to change our world as we share the love of Christ, the forgiveness of Christ, the teachings of Christ, and the calling of Christ to all.