My Kids
(Proverbs 27:19 GN) “A mirror reflects a man’s face but what he is really like is shown by the kind of friends he chooses.”
(Psalms 78:2-7 NLT) “I will teach you hidden lessons from our past— stories we have heard and known, stories our ancestors handed down to us. We will not hide these truths from our children; we will tell the next generation about the glorious deeds of the Lord , about his power and his mighty wonders. For he issued his laws to Jacob; he gave his instructions to Israel. He commanded our ancestors to teach them to their children, so the next generation might know them— even the children not yet born— and they in turn will teach their own children. So each generation should set its hope anew on God, not forgetting his glorious miracles and obeying his commands.”
1. Start with a plan.
Age 0-5: Discipline.
(Proverbs 13:24 NCV) “If you do not punish your children, you don’t love them, but if you love your children, you will correct them.”
(Hebrews 12:11 NLT) “No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.”
Age 5-12: Training.
(Proverbs 22:6 NCV) “Train children to live the right way, and when they are old, they will not stray from it.
(Deuteronomy 6:6-7 CEV) “Memorize his laws and tell them to your children over and over again. Talk about them all the time, whether you’re at home or walking along the road or going to bed at night, or getting up in the morning.”
Age 12-19: Coaching.
(Joshua 24:15 NIV) “Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve...But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”
(1 Corinthians 15:33 NIV) “Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character.”
Age 19+: Friendship.
(Proverbs 24:3 NIV) “It takes wisdom to have a good family, and it takes understanding to make it strong.”
2. Be principled.
✓ Identify your unique values.
(Jeremiah 6:16 NIV) “This is what the LORD says: “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.”
✓ Identify your single most important objective.
(Proverbs 17:24 GN) “An intelligent person aims at wise action, but a fool starts off in many directions.”
✓ Check your progress regularly.
(Proverbs 21:5 Message) “Careful planning puts you ahead in the long run; hurry and scurry puts you further behind.”
3. Stay present.
(Psalms 127:3-5 NLT) “Children are a gift from the Lord ; they are a reward from him. Children born to a young man are like arrows in a warrior’s hands. How joyful is the man whose quiver is full of them! He will not be put to shame when he confronts his accusers at the city gates.”