This is a 7 day challenge geared toward parents.  If you have a child (of any age) living in your home I invite you to take this challenge with me.  The challenge is born from a set of Parenting Skills I learned a year ago.  (Skill #4 , Fight for the Heart. You can watch the video of all 5 skills here.)

Fight for the Heart is a simple rule that reminds us of the value and impact of a parents words to their kids.  Our words are more valuable to our kids than we think.  Which is why praying over them is a critical,valuable function toward solidifying their foundation of faith.

So, I’m launching a 7 Day Challenge to pray over your kids.  Here’s how it goes…

• Set aside time each day for the next 7 days (morning or evening… whatever works w/ your schedule)
• Click here to download a document with prayers you can use OR check out these verses online and create your own
  • Psalm 1
  • Proverbs 2:1-8
    
  • Psalm 15
    
• Pray over your child using the power of God’s Word
• Share your experiences.  At the end of the 7 days, return here and leave a comment or send me an email at gina@lifechurch.tv and share your experience with us.  Your comments/email response automatically enters your name in a drawing for a $10 gift card to Starbucks.  who doesn’t love Sbux?!?

The point to the exercise is to utilize God’s Word to make His Presence a part of our kids’ lives and work powerfully on their behalf.  Will you join me on this challenge?  I’ll revisit this in a blog post next Thursday (August 27th).  Can’t wait to hear what God does.

Ready.  Set.  Pray!

Here we are… The 5th and final faith skill to build into our kids… (cue drumroll)

Skill #5:  Give to God

It’s important for children and teens to know how to give back to God and serve Him in the way they live their everyday lives

Again, I don’t think we’re hearing anything new here.  It’s the simplicity of living a life focused on God and not ourselves.  Whether it’s worshiping through song, the tithe, serving others… the key is focusing on God and following His desires for us, not our own.

Now, here’s the kicker question that applies to every faith skill.

1. Navigate the Bible
2. Personalize Scripture
3. Dialogue with God
4. Articulate Faith
5. Give to God

Do these faith skills only apply to kids?  Or are these skills each of us need to develop/sharpen in our own lives?

We tend to plan out the things kids are taught to ensure the objectives are clear. Consider this ‘continuing education’ for adults.  Which faith skill needs sharpening in your life?

Talking about the 5 skills to establish faith in our kids.  Catch the first 4 here.

Faith Skill #4: Articulate Faith

Create a safe place to discuss and wrestle with what kids believe.  This is key for our kids to make their faith their own.

Not just as parents, but as individuals, we can fear doubt.  We are scared of questions.  Sometimes it freaks us out when people question their faith.  We think we might lose them forever.  They might go off the deep end.

“Just have more faith.  Have more faith!”

I’m not discounting faith.  It’s a vital component to your relationship with Jesus.  But in order to make something your own, sometimes you’ve got to wrestle it down yourself.   I appreciate a good sermon, but I value scripture more when I labor through, question and digest it myself.

Give people in your home the space and the safety to question.  Have less faith in your explanations of God… and have more faith in the work God is doing in the midst of the wrestle.

Some of the best parenting advise I’d ever heard came from a 23 year old single man.  He said…

Talk less.  Pray more.

Do questions make you uncomfortable?  Do you allow people to question and wrestle with their faith?