As I have been working through the Proverbs, I cannot escape the special, immediate, practical applicability for those of us with children. After all, many of the Proverbs were written exactly for that purpose.
With this in mind, I want to share just a few tips of how I have been trying to use the Proverbs and the wisdom they point to with my own kids who are 5, 3, and almost 2. The following are a few strategies that we use in our home.
1. Use the question “What is the wise choice?” as much as possible.
Of course, this question presupposes that your kids have somewhat of a grasp of what wisdom is. You can adapt our “living skillfully” or “making life work” definition if you’d like to put the concept in terms that your kids can understand. No matter how old your kids are, know that it is never to late to start. We want to lay this foundation now while the stakes are not as high as when the “Who do I date/marry?” or “Where do I go to college?” questions inevitably come.
2. When the children choose wrongly, use the question “What would have been the wise choice in that situation?” as much as possible.
Like all kids (and people!), my kids misbehave and make unwise choices in lots of situations. Whether it is whacking one another out of frustration or accidentally pouring their juice on the floor when it could have been prevented by pushing it away from the edge of the table, these moments of ‘folly’ are often great opportunities to talk about how to avoid similar troubles the next time around. Even though it may take a little more effort on our part as parents, seize these “teachable moments” as they arise.
3. Do your best to always connect wisdom (or the lack thereof) to Jesus and the Gospel.
As I have mentioned before, we try to make everything we do a “Gospel Greenhouse” opportunity at our house. Since our kids are young and don’t yet know Jesus, they need to hear the saving message of Jesus as often as possible. Every chance we get, we are talking about how Jesus died for our sins and will forgive us when we ask Him. Naturally, some of the most natural opportunities for broaching the topic are when an offense has been committed. I believe the same principle can be applied in regard to wisdom. When we are encouraging them to walk in wisdom either before or after the fact, we can naturally talk about Jesus as the ultimate embodiment of wisdom and that He will share His wisdom with us through His Word, through our parents, etc. If it is after the fact, we can talk about why we make wrong choices sometime in the first place (sin and its affects on the world) and why we need to be redeemed.
In the coming entries, I will be sharing more on this topic as well. If you liked what you read, forward it to someone else.
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