We spotted a stray flake of snow a few days ago in the Valley. And, there is enough of a nip in the air, to make it acceptable to start Christmas shopping.
So, here is a gift idea: Gospel-Powered Parenting: How the Gospel Shapes and Transforms Parenting
I would especially commend it as a gift for fathers.
Looking back on these families and others like them, I notice the results have been mixed. Some children thrived. Their youthful faith blossomed in adulthood. They married well, and became stable, productive participants in their local churches.
Others did not fare so well. Many have completely abandoned their parents’ faith. Why? What went wrong? Why did some parents succeed and others fail? Was it a failure of technique? Most of the parents disciplined their children, some more than others. We all loved them.
The results appear to have nothing to do with where the child was educated. In my experience, there have been no qualitative differences in the spiritual output from home schools, Christian schools, or public schools.
The common denominator between success and failure seems to be spiritual depth and sincerity of the parents, especially the spiritual depth and sincerity of the father. There seems to be a strong correlation between the faith, commitment and sincerity of the family’s head and the spiritual vitality of his adult children. . .
In my experience, the most effective parents have a clear grasp of the cross and its implications for daily life. The implications are manifold. They include the fear of God, a marriage that preaches the gospel to its children, deeply ingrained humility, gratitude, joy, firmness coupled with affection, and consistent teaching modeled by parents daily. (pages 14-15)
