9 “But take care and watch yourselves closely, so as neither to forget the things that your eyes have seen nor to let them slip from your mind all the days of your life; make them known to your children and your children’s children” ~ Deuteronomy 4:9 (NRSV)
Teaching children is a huge task and awesome responsibility entrusted to every adult by our loving God. For it is God who grants the birth and formation of all life in every corner of the universe. God is an all-powerful God, for He alone is Alpha and Omega – the beginning and the end. Now that I have said this, putting it in this context, we must place all our duties squarely upon the teachings of God found in the Bible. Our children deserve nothing less. So today I will highlight the main responsibility that every human being holds in the education of all our children which is love in different forms.
3 “Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from him.” ~ Psalm 127:3 (NIV)
The Lord God is first and foremost loving, He loves all of us (His children) with absolute perfect agape love. He calls all of us to love each other with the same perfect love, though hard enough with adults we are called to love all the children equally. For God’s love for us results in children who He entrusted as offsprings in many ways a living testament to their family and living representative of their ancestors. With that view, (Parents), why would you do anything else but love them with all your heart and soul as the Lord God loves you?
Yet, in today’s current time the news is filled with parents leaving their children at home to go play a stupid video game, others leave their children in a hot car during the heat of the summer with the windows closed to go shop, trusting parents leave their children with nannies who are unqualified and end up hurting the innocent child, and parents who say to family members, teachers, and or friends after shipping their kids off to the grandparents house or to camp, “Finally, I have some alone time!”
My friends – you have children! In participating in this sacred duty you gave up your alone time, your personal time, your privacy, and your personal belonging and space! You chose to love, raise, and teach your children everything they must know to survive and be productive human beings who also is God fearing, God loving, and God-centered adults! That is your duty as a parent. The school community you have placed your child in was not setup to replace you, (the parent). My friends as parents, (YOU), are your children’s first and most important teacher! The children live with you… not the teacher, the children listen mostly to you, (the parent), not the teacher, the children watch everything, (you – the parents), do, say, and watch on T.V. and incorporate those habits – good or bad mostly from you, not the teacher.
As a parent I admit making mistakes, looking for help, being pushed around by society and societal norms which are absurd and not grounded in the biblical teachings given to us by God. The hard truth is some parents don’t place their children first, some parents go after money, career, personal happiness instead of finding happiness within their children. That was never my sins as I wanted to give my child every advantage in life and often times was persecuted for that, other people who called themselves professionals took all my time away from my child. In the end, I found myself alone and without my child all for teaching the Bible, uphold Christian morals, showing the truth, and uncovering the lies being spread. I hope those examples stuck! So, it angers me whenever I see or hear parents complain about spending time with their children, as that is all I wanted to do with mine.
Here is a list of things which parents are responsible for in raising a child, all within moderation and using a just hand;
- Love absolutely and fairly in everything you do and say.
- Discipline your children for the things they do wrong namely,
- Disrespecting others
- Cursing
- Stealing
- Bulling
- Lying
- Cheating
- Acting a fool
- Not being responsible for their own actions
- Not being loving or showing mercy
- Not living up to their word
- Teach your children to respect – give appropriate consequences
- Teach your children values
- Teach your child obedience – for it is a learned skill
- Teach your children politeness and proper etiquette
- Teach your children responsibility
- Teach your children humility
- Teach your children good manners
- Teach your children to be friendly – but also wise
- Teach your children honesty
- Teach your children not to be rude
- Train them in everything you know about your life, so they can pass these lessons on to their children
- Make them educated in all their academics – teach them the excitement of reading, learning, and exploring the world around them
Everyone Else
For the Classroom Teachers
Educate each child with passion, and excitement, show there is more than one way and that there is wisdom in the very act of learning. Look at all your students with love and care for each one of them without prejudice. Be the students best example always, and be the parent’s parent in the education of the children. Always defuse difficult news with compliments and meaningful questions – seek not preach. Push your students to learn and to love learning by challenging them and by giving them expectations. Set the bar and live it in the classroom, this will show you both serious and care for them by presenting material that they can reach. Help students and parents set goals, set aside time, and above all listen to all stakeholders. Discipline with purpose and allow the child to know why they are being corrected. Let them think about their actions and give them the space to save face and apologize. Remember, no one wants to hear they are wrong or have wronged another person. Be sensitive and be responsible for all your words and actions. Lastly, educate the whole child by addressing all the things in the list above.
Amen,
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