As parents, we need to get the 411, so we don’t have to dial 911. The 411 is the information we need to navigate our kids and all the parenting challenges we face. After all, no kid ever was born with an instruction manual detailing how to raise them perfectly.

Here are some thoughts about parenting that I have learned: 

1) It’s More Important To Raise Godly Kids Than Just Good Kids

We have to remember that the primary goal of parenting as a follower of Christ is to raise up Godly kids, not just good kids. Good kids are good, but Godly kids are best. In fact, if you raise up Godly kids, they will be good kids by overflow. The more they have a Godly foundation, the more they will want to do what is good. The more we love Christ, the more we love people and want to be good to them. The more we feel God’s purpose in our lives, the more we want to make a difference in our community and world. It’s great to have academic or athletic kids talented at specific skills and knowledgeable, but it’s vital that they have Christ in their lives above all those things. 

2) Give Your Kids Experiences  

It’s not enough just to talk about God, read them scriptures, or theorize about life. You have to give them an opportunity to experience God’s presence in their lives. This can be done by getting them involved in the church, serving locally or on a mission trip, reaching out to their friends and being a Godly example, taking them to spiritual camps or events, basically, by creating opportunity any way you can. Kids learn by experience, not just by information. The older we get, the more we value information, but kids are not cognitively there yet. So you have to value experiences over information, especially the younger they are. 

3) Give Your Kids Encouragement 

Kids need a sense of identity. In fact, it’s one of their greatest needs. As parents, we have to be the ones that help them develop their identity or the world will. This means you have to be the first to constantly remind them of who they are in Christ and the value they have. You can’t overdo this encouragement thing. No one ever suffered from being encouraged too much. However, most adults suffer from a lack of encouragement and value they received as a child, which has led to many problems for them. Always be helping shape the identity of your kids by encouraging the best things about them. Don’t just point out what they are not doing well; point out what they are doing well and keep repeating that. Reward what you want to be repeated, and over time, they will start living up to that expectation. Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “Treat a man as he is, and he will remain as he is. Treat a man as he could be, and he will become what he should be.”

These are just some quick thoughts about parenting that I hope are helpful to you.