Young Married Sunday School

 

Discipling our Children

 

Starting October 19th at 9am and continuing for six weeks, this Young Married Sunday School class will be led by Josh Mulvihill.

 

If you have asked yourself any of the following questions this class may be helpful for you.

 

• What does my child need most from me as a parent and spiritual leader in their life?

• How can God use me to mold and shape my child’s life?

• What does a spiritually powerful life look like? How can I grow in it?

• What methods are most effective in training my child to become like Jesus Christ?

 

Successful parenting does not happen by chance. It happens by choice (and a lot of prayer). Raising whole and holy children requires intentionality – it requires a plan. As a pastor, I have had the opportunity to see lots of families up close and personal. Over the past decade I have come to the conclusion that the average parent does not have a clear and compelling vision for what their children are to become and a plan to get there. I find parents often put more thought and planning into areas of life that matter much less than raising children – careers, vacations, or building a new home.

 

A central doctrine in the Christian faith is the doctrine of the sovereignty of God. God has a plan for creation. He has desired outcomes in that he wants to be honored and glorified. God’s plan for making his name known involved the nation of Israel and now the church. When Jesus visited earth as a human being it was in accordance with God’s plan for the redemption of mankind. At some point, Jesus will return to fulfill God’s predetermined plan.

 

Not surprisingly, God has given parents a plan to raise their children. God’s plan includes focusing on the heart of a child for the heart is what determines behavior. The bible tells us that it is out of the heart that both good and evil flow. As parents, we need to direct our time and energy to the heart of our child.

 

Ephesians 6:1-3 tells us that God’s plan includes giving parents the authority over their children. Authority implies leadership. Leadership is not to be shared in some form of democracy. Instead, godly authority is to be obeyed by children. God’s plan also includes discipline. We are told that God disciplines those he loves. The goal of discipline is to correct and train. We will study discipline and the methods that God has given us as parents.

 

God’s plan addresses the character and integrity of the parent. Proverbs 20:7 says, “The righteous man leads a blameless life; blessed are his children after him.” Most people have to see it to believe it. Children are no different. Parents are the ones to show children how to love God.

 

Central to God’s plan for parenting is love. We are told that God is love and he tells us to love others just as God loves us. As parents, we need to learn how to love our children. It is relationships that ingrain belief. If we want to pass our faith on to our child, develop a solid relationship first and the child will be much more open to accepting what we have to say. We can’t build character into our children without a solid, loving relationship with our child.

 

In this six week course we are going to be studying the principles that God has given us as parents. We will be working together to craft a parenting plan that you can use with your children. The plan that God has given parents is a plan for discipleship. Together we will explore how we can grow in our effectiveness at one of the most challenging tasks we will ever be given – parenting!