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Posted Sunday, April 5
Grace Based Parenting” wrapped up our 10 week course this past Sunday. What did we learn? Here is just a taste. Grace based parents....
- want to raise kids who love God, live for Him, and make an impact in their world.
- simply treat their children the way God treats His!
- know their children’s 3 inner needs: a secure love, a significant purpose, & a strong hope.
- know the balance between protecting their children in their helplessness and preparing them for independence.
- do not make it their aim to raise safe kids. Instead, they want to raise strong kids.
- allow their children the freedom to be different, vulnerable, candid and to make mistakes.
- commit to bringing children up from their sin; legalism puts them on a high standard and works overtime to keep them from falling down.
- spend their time entrusting themselves to Christ. They live to know God more. Their children are the daily recipients of the grace these parents are enjoying from the Lord. If you watch them in action, they appear peaceful and very much in love with God.
They are especially graceful when their children are hardest to love.
Grace is not so much what we do, but how we do what we do! Make no mistake, grace-based parenting is not the easy way out. It is a commitment to be involved in children’s lives every step of the way. These homes establish rules and standards. However, when children mess up, they are disciplined with grace and love. One parent summed the series up well by saying, “It takes the fear out of parenting. It allows us to put our children in God’s hands and control.”
So the question is: how can I get involved? How can I find out more? Several couples have expressed interest in the class, but for various reasons, could not attend this time around. Prayerfully consider leading or attending another class. This would be great for a small group It is beneficial for parents with young children up through young adulthood. If you are interested in leading or attending this class, please contact Jon and Beth Ritzema 708-444-1992.
What’s next for those of us who took the class? We may plan a reunion in 6 months to see how we are doing. There are three books in Dr. Kimmel’s model of Grace Based Parenting: Grace Based Parenting, Raising Kids Who Turn Out Right and Raising Kids for True Greatness. There is a video series based on the second book. Raising Kids Who Turn Out Right. We are praying for God’s leading on when and if we may try to do that series as well.
We are so appreciative of those of you who lifted us up in prayer. We could definitely feel the Holy Spirit present as we met. We are praying that the tools we learned will filter beyond our parenting into all our relationships and will positively impact our church!