| Christian Parenting: A Closer Look At Why So Many Children Don't Want The God Of Their Parents (Part 1) |
By Aaron Clark
DEVOTION TODAY Have you had yours?
 | |  | |  | |  | |  | |  |
and do everything from armed robbery to strip tease to murder. It was enough to shake me
inside and out. The number of similar incidents increased in churches everywhere and so did
the uncertainty of my children's future because we had teens and we were having problems,
too. Parallel this to secular children appearing to be in the same shape or better, and you have
a father on the edge of questioning the whole thing. I wished I could pause the rapid growth of
these little ones until I could find the answers, but I knew I couldn't and I grew quite desperate. I
asked Christian parents of young adults I admired only to find out that they really didn't know
how they did it. I asked others and I heard things ranging from "you never know what they're
going to do," to "you just have to let them find out on their own." With very little time before the
little ones became big ones, I started a diligent search for answers to some pretty tough
questions. Is there a guaranteed way to raise loving, faithful, God-fearing children? Is Christian
parenting just a roll of the dice? Why do some people who loved God as children just up and
turn away? Are there signs to look for? Are the answers in the bible in a way that I can
understand them? On and on I went until finally it occurred to me that I could ask God to help
me. So I asked and the answers started coming- in droves. What I found was not only shocking,
but some of the ingredients to the recipe for a violent and destructive young adult were in my
house. I was graced to meet and interview people who were engulfed in sin, some of which
totally denied that there is a God and others who had turned to other gods believing that there
are "many different paths." Some even worshipped satan! I found one thread that touched
about 95 % of their lives. They grew up in "Christian" homes! What was it that caused them to
decide to reject the God of their parents? As they opened up their lives, the reasons became
obvious and I narrowed them down to three things based on their answers; pride, hypocrisy, and
doctrinal issues. Almost every person I interviewed grew up around strong contention between
their parents. Those that didn't were blown away when their parents divorced. "Contention
cometh only by pride," says Proverb 13:10. The fighting was coming from pride. The days
without talking- pride. The rage- pride. The unwillingness to forgive until you conform- pride.
The beating or manipulating the children into submission because "you're not gonna embarrass
us"- pride. Not apologizing- pride. Not confessing that you don't have all the answers- pride.
Blowing up on the child for revealing how hypocritical you are- pride. All the while telling their
children how good God is and what a friend we have in Jesus. Believe it or not, these people
recognized at a very young age that church was all about their parents image and not God's.
The epitome of pride is man glorifying his own image! It's no wonder the devil is able to get
away with the lie that Christianity is just a means of control. Check back next week as I continue
with hypocrisy and doctrinal issues. God bless you and peace... Click here for Part 2
Home The Gospel Ask A Question Contact Us
inside and out. The number of similar incidents increased in churches everywhere and so did
the uncertainty of my children's future because we had teens and we were having problems,
too. Parallel this to secular children appearing to be in the same shape or better, and you have
a father on the edge of questioning the whole thing. I wished I could pause the rapid growth of
these little ones until I could find the answers, but I knew I couldn't and I grew quite desperate. I
asked Christian parents of young adults I admired only to find out that they really didn't know
how they did it. I asked others and I heard things ranging from "you never know what they're
going to do," to "you just have to let them find out on their own." With very little time before the
little ones became big ones, I started a diligent search for answers to some pretty tough
questions. Is there a guaranteed way to raise loving, faithful, God-fearing children? Is Christian
parenting just a roll of the dice? Why do some people who loved God as children just up and
turn away? Are there signs to look for? Are the answers in the bible in a way that I can
understand them? On and on I went until finally it occurred to me that I could ask God to help
me. So I asked and the answers started coming- in droves. What I found was not only shocking,
but some of the ingredients to the recipe for a violent and destructive young adult were in my
house. I was graced to meet and interview people who were engulfed in sin, some of which
totally denied that there is a God and others who had turned to other gods believing that there
are "many different paths." Some even worshipped satan! I found one thread that touched
about 95 % of their lives. They grew up in "Christian" homes! What was it that caused them to
decide to reject the God of their parents? As they opened up their lives, the reasons became
obvious and I narrowed them down to three things based on their answers; pride, hypocrisy, and
doctrinal issues. Almost every person I interviewed grew up around strong contention between
their parents. Those that didn't were blown away when their parents divorced. "Contention
cometh only by pride," says Proverb 13:10. The fighting was coming from pride. The days
without talking- pride. The rage- pride. The unwillingness to forgive until you conform- pride.
The beating or manipulating the children into submission because "you're not gonna embarrass
us"- pride. Not apologizing- pride. Not confessing that you don't have all the answers- pride.
Blowing up on the child for revealing how hypocritical you are- pride. All the while telling their
children how good God is and what a friend we have in Jesus. Believe it or not, these people
recognized at a very young age that church was all about their parents image and not God's.
The epitome of pride is man glorifying his own image! It's no wonder the devil is able to get
away with the lie that Christianity is just a means of control. Check back next week as I continue
with hypocrisy and doctrinal issues. God bless you and peace... Click here for Part 2
Home The Gospel Ask A Question Contact Us
After Pam gave birth to our sixth child of seven, I began
to take notice of the large number of children in Christian
homes that had gone completely south. It was especially
alarming when I had watched some of them grow up in
church - the songs they sang, the verse recitals, the
testimonies they gave; they were children that made you
wonder what you were doing wrong with yours. Then,
seemingly without warning, the bottom would fall out and
they would go crashing to the ground. I had seen the
sweetest, smartest, most adorable little children grow up
to take notice of the large number of children in Christian
homes that had gone completely south. It was especially
alarming when I had watched some of them grow up in
church - the songs they sang, the verse recitals, the
testimonies they gave; they were children that made you
wonder what you were doing wrong with yours. Then,
seemingly without warning, the bottom would fall out and
they would go crashing to the ground. I had seen the
sweetest, smartest, most adorable little children grow up