Relationship Status: Model Moms

They can live all of their lives without god, without the teachings of the scripture, and they can be successful in the eyes of the world without any of that. But all of our kids are gonna stand before god one day and give an account for their lives like all of us are gonna stand before god and give an account for ours. So because of judgment, we need to tell them the truth, but not just because of judgment, but because while they are here on this Earth before they face judgment, don't you want them to have the best life that god's designed for them to have? [01:04:35] (32 seconds)  #RaiseKidsForGod

They might say, well, it's too late for me. My kids are already grown up, and I didn't really do a good job of that while they were growing up, But you're still alive. There's still breath in you. You could still set that example now on how you've committed yourself to the lord and how you're honoring the lord in your life now and following the teachings of the lord now in a sincere way. That can have tremendous impact no matter what stage you're at in your life right now. And even if you don't have children of your own, think about that example in front of other children, other people's children where they could see that lived out even if it's not for your own children. [00:41:06] (32 seconds)  #ModelFaithNow

Studies show this thing called four generation faith when it comes to Christian faith. K? It starts this way. Parents don't make church a high priority for their kids. Then step two, those kids grow up and make it less of a priority for their kids. And step three, those kids grow up and make it no priority for their kids. And by the fourth step, those kids grow up with no concept of God or their need for God. Just four generations down, no connection to god at all because this generation, these steps back did not make it a priority for their lives, for their kids, for their family. [00:41:40] (42 seconds)  #ProtectGenerationalFaith

So how should we treat the church? How should we teach our kids about the church? To love it the way Jesus loves it. Jesus loved the church so much he was willing to give his life for the church. And yet all too often, children growing up in some homes, what they hear about the church is excuses for not being there or criticisms when they are there. When they leave church, they hear people tear down everything that was going on and criticize and sometimes even ridicule what was going on at the church. [00:43:52] (36 seconds)  #TeachKidsToLoveChurch

So no matter how gracious we are sometimes, children don't always receive it from a place of grace, do they? They just don't. That's just part of the the process of growing up and becoming adults themselves, wanting to make their own decisions, wanting to to be in charge of their own lives. They don't always receive those things graciously, but that should never change how we do it. We should still graciously season our conversations with the salt, with the truth, with the information they need to have that comes from god's word even when we know they're not gonna hear it well at the moment. [01:03:18] (38 seconds)  #SpeakTruthWithGrace

as flawed as we are, you can at least choose a church that teaches the bible. Right? You you can make that choice when you're looking and trying to get connected and involved in the church. Make sure you get your kids involved, your family involved in a church that actually teaches the Bible because that's where the strength of the church is. That's where the life of the church is. That's where they'll find their life in Christ is through god's word. So make sure you're bringing up in a church that that doesn't just entertain your kids but teaches them the Bible. [00:48:33] (28 seconds)  #ChooseBibleTeachingChurch

Now it doesn't mean the man shouldn't help out. If you have, you know, a home where the husband is there, the father is there, obviously, the more they can be involved and help with that, the better. But but let's honor what moms do. It's amazing what they're willing to do to sacrifice for their kids here. It says she opens her arms, in verse 20, to the poor and extends her hands to the needy. Wow. She's modeling what? Sacrifice and service in front of her kids. That other people matter, that they have value too no matter what their standing is in life. [00:53:26] (34 seconds)  #HonorMomsSacrifice

Is that window of opportunity to set that example and model it goes by really fast. Before you know it, you blink and you're past it. And all of us can look back and say, I wish I'd done this or that differently. All of us can have some of that, but the more you can limit that as much as possible, the better off it's gonna be for your kids and for you. And here's the other thing though. Remember God's grace was there even when we didn't get it all right. [00:55:40] (31 seconds)  #SeizeParentingMoments