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Blog — Christian parenting

If Wednesday is the new Sunday then what does that mean for Christian education?

Posted by Liz Perraud at May 15, 2017

There was a day when schools and communities guarded Wednesday night as “church night.” Rarely were school sports practices or evening events scheduled. And then there wasn’t that day. Maybe the practice was more of a Bible Belt thing—most common in the south and midwest states. Growing up in the DC area I have no memory of Wednesday night reserved for religious reasons and it certainly wasn’t the case for my children. We all know about the gradual erosion of Sunday morning as “sacred” time. About 20 years ago, our soccer club ruled that no game would start prior to...

Parents Corner: Parents Partnering with Churches to Grow Faithful Children

Posted by Liz Perraud at Mar 06, 2017

By Shirley Carlson, La Crescenta Presbyterian Church, CaliforniaRelationships help define character, especially during the teen years. Your job is to help your child foster good relationships between Christ, you, and his friends. What defines a good relationship? Trust is extremely important as well as a relationship that mutually seeks the best for both parties. Get to know your teen's friends and ask your child what he seeks from this relationship. Deuteronomy 6:4-9 - "Impress (God's commandments) on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road ..." Are you doing this? Do you...

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Tags: Christian parenting, Fuller Youth Institute, Kara Powell, parenting, Reggie Joiner, sticky faith

No giant talking Yoda under the tree?

Posted by Liz Perraud at Dec 17, 2015

With my sons in their 20s, Christmas shopping and gift giving are different than when they were little. Money? Gift cards? Dinners out together? A new coat? Please tell me what you want (or need)! For the past several years, I’ve put “experiences” on my Christmas list when they ask what I want (or need). These experiences are time with them (and our daughters-in-law for the two who are married). I make them give me something on Christmas morning that tells me what idea they’ve come up with. There’s no just telling me about the idea. I want the certificate,...

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Tags: Christian parenting, Christmas gifts, Practicing Families

Relationships: 5 Actions for Character Strength

Posted by Liz Perraud at Oct 13, 2015

In the span of the last 24 hours, I’ve heard or read two reports about the importance of relationships. The first came from Search Institute with research about how schools can help parents help their children be good students. Typically, the emphasis has been on “parental involvement"--meeting with their child’s teacher, attending school meetings and events, and volunteering. Has this been the wrong emphasis? While recognizing that these opportunities may be of value, what is of more value, says their research, is helping parents with something that most are more willing and able to do: influence the quality of their...

Children's Moments: Tell (and show!) the story

Posted by Liz Perraud at Sep 10, 2015

In “Postmodern Children’s Ministry” Ivy Beckwith makes the case for no children’s messages/sermons/moments (“most children’s sermons do little to engage the community as a whole”). For those times though when she does participate in traditional children’s sermons she writes, “I’m very careful not to fall into the trap of using symbolic language and abstract ideas. While the adults love the traditional object lesson, most children never make the connection between the nifty science experiment and the spiritual truth it’s supposed to represent. Therefore, I use the children’s sermon to retell the biblical narrative on which the sermon is based.” Artist...