The statistics
of Christian kids turn away from the faith is alarming. Are we losing the
generation to all sorts Anti-Christ campaigns and ideologies? I watched my mom
raise three teens successfully until they became women.
As a teenager, my mom was a go-to-person for all my teenage issues, puzzling questions and ideas. My mom was a praying mother who had a lot of her own personal challenges but that didn’t
deter her from raising in us God’s own way. I know God had favoured her greatly in
this area.
I had to sit and analyse all
the various factors that made her successful at this. So I would like to share
some of these tips that sure worked for her hopefully will do same for you.
1. Prevailing prayer that changes things. Entrust
them in God’s hands daily.
Philippians 4:6 “Be careful
for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let
your requests be made known unto God”.
2.
Knowing what Gods promises are for
your kids and believing them to work in your kids lives. Share relevant
scriptures daily with your teens. It goes a long way.
Deuteronomy 6:7 "And thou shalt teach them diligently
unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and
when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest
up".
3.
Be always available. Are you
always there when they need you most? Or do you have the “busy- mom-syndrome”? Be
at the events they want you to participate in. Go and cheer them up and be a
proud parent.
4. Laugh and listen to
their jokes. Pay attention to their
discussions. Don’t give of the impression that they are disturbing you. They will
simply crawl into their shells.
5. Be observant use your
eyes too. Talking is not just enough especially
when they attempt to keep something away from you
6. Cherish every moment you share with them and feel free to let them know you do.
7. Just a little
indulgence with your discretion for very little
matter will make you have firsthand knowledge when they venture into no-go
areas.
8.
When they make a mistake, Correct in love. You may keep your cool to avoid saying something you will regret later.
Reassure them that you love them enough to forgive them and trust them enough
to make the right decisions
Proverbs 29:17 “Correct thy son, and he
shall give thee rest; yea, he shall give delight unto thy soul”.
9. Don’t let your social
network be where you get to know our kids better. Face-to-face communication avails you the opportunity of
· Observing facial expression and body gestures
· Fosters bond between you and your teen.
· Observe sincerity or insincerity as the case may be.
· Touching , hugging and kisses are sign you are closer encourage it
· Phrases like “I love you”, “I care a lot about you”, “God loves you
a lot” etc are better said in person than via sms etc.
10.
Avoid yelling at your teens. Give them
words of encouragement. It will boost their self-confidence, self- acceptance,
self-esteem. You probably did a lot worse when you were their age.lol.
11.
Be kind and courteous towards them. Treats when they do well is encouraging.
12.
Keep your personal problems personal. Share with them relevant issues only when absolutely necessary. Many
teenagers are not emotionally capable of handling parental issues. They also
have their own emotional challenges.
13.
Don’t live out your personal dreams and aspiration in their lives. Let God’s counsel over their lives prevail. This can frustrate
life out of any teenager.
Recall, every
teenager is an individual allow the Holy Spirit guide you. God bless you.
If you
have successful tips that work feel free to add to this list in the comment section below.
For more reading visit;
http://www.gotquestions.org/falling-away.html
Thanks and God Bless for reading.
Labels: Parenting