What Would God Teach Our Children if He Were Raising Them?

What would God teach our children if He were raising them?

Ultimately, that is the question we should be asking ourselves when choosing the things our children are involved in and guiding them in the way they should go.

What would He have them watch? What would He have them read? What would He have them be involved in?

When you think about it, your children are really God’s children…not yours. Yes, in a way, they are your children, but God has entrusted you with the responsibility of raising the children He gave you for HIS glory.

One aspect of raising children that every parent has to decide upon is their method of education.

Let’s take a moment and filter this crucial decision through the same question we asked earlier: If God were raising this child, how would He educate them? Would He make sure they were educated in such a way that steals glory away from Himself and places the miracle of the creation of the universe on happenstance? Would He make sure His children were taught it was totally fine to be the opposite gender of what He, as their Maker, created them to be?

Would God teach His children to defy His authority?

Let’s flip this question around. Would you want your children reading and/or watching things that taught them to totally disrespect YOUR authority? Luke 6:40 says, “A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher.” Do you know your children’s teachers at school? What about their “teachers” in the culture? Do you know their friends? Are all of those influences pushing your children closer to the Lord, or pulling them away from Him?

If we are, ultimately, raising children for God’s glory, does it really matter if our children are “in tune” with the culture? If they wear the latest immodest fashions or watch the new, God-shaming television show, or follow the coolest people on social media?

Contrary to what you may think, I’m not advocating selling your home and moving to the woods… 

Yes, your children are going to be exposed to the sin in the culture, but when our children are exposed to the sinfulness all around them, we, as Christian parents, need to be ready to teach our children what God says about that sin.

How did your children learn to respect the people they currently look up to?

Do their friends think highly of those same people? Does the culture present those people as being “the” people to follow and imitate? How often are your children surrounded by those influences? If your children respect the people of the culture, could it be because they are constantly surrounded by others that do the same thing/think the same way? Think back to Luke 6:40 which says a student will become like his teacher. A student of the culture will become like the culture. The opposite is true, though, as well. A student of the Lord will become like the Lord!

While the easiest way to raise your children to love the Lord is to start off their training in that way, if that’s not the route you have taken up to this point, it’s not too late to begin now! Just keep in mind that you may have to “un-train” your children before you can “re-train” them.

The most important thing to remember in this process is that you cannot accomplish this alone!

You need Jesus to guide YOU as you point your children to Him!