I. Micro-managing our children's lives
• helicopter parenting - hovering over our children
• children don't learn how to think for themselves
2. Being over-competitive for our children
• puts undue pressure on children
3. Overscheduling our children's lives
• can be caused by fear that our children will be left out or left behind
4. Overprotecting and rescuing our children
• leads to children not taking responsibility or learning from their mistakes
• allow children to take increasing responsibility for themselves
• pass on information and values to give them a moral framework to live by
• Helping children make good choices
never too soon to start (see the account of John the Baptist in the womb in Luke 1:44, The Bible)
never too late to start (see the Parable of the Lost Son in Luke 15: 11-24, The Bible)
turn fears and longings into prayers
when to pray:
with them before they go to sleep
teaching them to pray (thank you, sorry, please)
on our own
with others
in traffic jams or when cleaning up or ironing
when prompted (often at moments of potential danger or temptation for our child)
everyday
what to pray for:
friendships
schools
their health
their safety
their marriage partner (most children will marry one day and their marriage partner may well already be alive somewhere)
their response to God’s love
their characters – use the fruit of the Spirit as a list to pray through: love. joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (see Galatians 5: 22-23, The Bible)
pray with them, particularly at bedtime
pray for yourselves as parents
Take some time to pray for your child(ren), and plan to make it a regular routine. Our Christianity 101 Course may help you explore the topic of prayer, God and Christianity in more depth.
