Christ-centred families in the 21st Century

4. Nurturing and educating our children

A foundation in the home• I chose to have my children have a strong foundation going

off to school, they learn the things of society while they are children, but at home we talk about the things they have encountered and help them take a Godly approach.

• By the time they are teens, they are very used to making the right decisions. We are open about the issues of the world to empower them to know as children how to deal with ugly issues….

• I am tired of Christadelphians judging my children from going to public school; they do not want their children to hang out with them as their children are home-schooled.

Importance of activities with children

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Ingredients of successful marriage

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Our responsibility

• Don’t assume that going to the meeting will make children accept the Truth.

• The primary responsibility for children's spiritual should be the parents - parents should not leave it up to Sunday School and Bible schools/youth groups to do the spiritual instruction.

The Bible 4 Life

• ‘A major strength of the Christadelphian community is its serious attention to regular Bible reading and its proper understanding’

• ‘Doctrine and precept must go hand in hand with the on-going study of God’s word’

• ‘My Journey in Faith’ - Ron Hicks

The Bible as a springboard

• Having frank and detailed conversations with one's children: discussing issues and being willing to listen and to offer advice.

• Not being afraid of doubts or discussing tricky questions - but talking it through and respect and nurture ones children's developing conscience and moral framework.

Activities with children

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• Sharing meal time together ***** • Having no other activities that stop us from going

to Bible class, CYC, Bible School as they grow up *****

• Spending time with Christadelphian children outside of meeting time, nurturing those friendships that we want to last a lifetime far more than worldly alliances *****

Also…

Sports, the Arts

• Sports especially can pull us away. and we can put a greater emphasis on achieving sports goals over what God wants. This often will keep us away from meeting sending the wrong signals to our children.

• All did musical instruments in school. Learning to cooperate and work toward a common goal was very important

A key ingredient

• Parents and children bonding through love for each other and fun times together

The electronic age

Managing the reality• It seems unrealistic to expect they will not use

any of the "modern" technologies of life - the trick is teaching them self-discipline and the risks/dangers of such and how these technologies can be used in a positive way (eg keeping in touch with "fringe" people, making public statements about what you believe).

• Our son has had friends come to youth group due to comments made on FB - them realising he was religious and asking questions which led to attendance.

A balanced view

• There are practical tools that can be very useful for keeping in touch with friends and family a distance away, and nurturing relationships between individuals who don't see each other very often.

• However there are applications that are potentially corrosive, foster inclinations toward unwise use of time and subject material.

‘Don’t let the world squeeze you into its own mold’

• The world pressures kids to "have it all" in terms of spending money, education, extra-curricular activities at school…

• Whereas if we let our kids slow down a little, they might be able to focus better on spiritual things in their high school years.

Our example

• We must have discussions with our children all through their lives about our faith and how it impacts upon us in every situation.

• They will learn by example that it's a real, living faith for EVERYday situations