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Full Transcript:

Note: This is an automated transcript and misspells or grammar errors may be present.

Wow. A timely, very important message, I think, for parents. We hope you listen to the end. We give some warnings at the end that are just crucial, I think, during these times for parents to hear.

We’re talking about obviously some current events that are happening in today’s podcast. And so you might want to use some discernment on if you’re going to have your kids listening to today’s podcast with you. But we are really excited to encourage parents on how to talk to their kids if they should talk to their kids, what age is all of those kinds of elements? And we have some really important questions to ask you as well.

Welcome to Courageous Parenting Podcast, a weekly show to equip parents with biblical truth on raising confident Christian kids in an uncertain world.

Hi, I’m Angie from Courageous.

Mom and Isaac from Resolute Man Together pursuing the mission to impact 10 million families and their legacies for the Kingdom of God.

We’ve been married for 23 years and are seeing the fruit from raising our nine children Biblically. Based on the raw truth found in the Bible.

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If you want access to all the episodes, show notes and other biblically based resources, go to be courageous ministries.org.

Join us as we start another important conversation about effective parenting in a fallen world. Well, hey, everyone, this is some heavy times. You know, there’s so many interesting, challenging things happening in the world. And we thought it was just so important to talk about this because your parents, you have children and the perceptions of our children and what they’re hearing is vital.

Kids are more receptive than we think they are, and they can tell when something’s going on, when their mom has an anxious heart, when they walk through the lobby holding your hand and they overhear people speaking about how Israel is at war or whatnot. So we’re going to be talking about that. This is, um, I mean, we’re not going to be talking about anything scary in the podcast, but I think that it it is to give you due diligence, this is the sort of conversation we’re having today. So it’s up to you if you want your kids listening or not. I know a lot of you listen with your kids, but if it were me, I would probably listen to the podcast on my own. We’re going to read some scripture today from Matthew 24 as well. So hopefully you can grab your Bibles and read with us and we’ll just tell you of some other verses that you should go read on your own. In addition, we live in fascinating times. We always say that that’s kind of a thing that Isaac encourages our kids with.

It’s because it’s the times we’re made to live in by God’s design. And so we embrace that and we get to be lights for Christ in it. But being a Christian isn’t easy. In fact, Paul promises that it’s going to be hard, actually, and I know people listening from all over the world, but I would say us in America have had a unique opportunity to have a lot of freedom and very low persecution regarding being a Christian. And some of that’s changing here. I know it’s much different some other parts of the world. So anyways, you know, we’re going to talk about in this episode how to make sure your children are encouraged, not discouraged. How and when do we talk to them about things happening in the world with some age recommendations and things like that? And how do we season that with balanced conversation to make sure our children are full of hope and joy during these unprecedented times? That’s really important. But before we dive in, we thank you for being part of the 10 Million Legacies movement. If you share this podcast episode or any of the episodes or social media or anything like that, give a five star review a written review that helps the algorithm so more people can find that podcast.

Right now it’s really important. You know, first of all, I want to say the podcast is up about 20% over last year in downloads, and last year was the best year ever. So this year is the best year ever in terms of, you know, podcast listeners. And so that’s amazing. Although the economy has shifted and some of the ways the ministry supports itself and supports our family have dwindled while some others have increased. But overall, what is our heart’s desire is more people are impacted regardless of the the revenue. Yeah, that is our society. We have a mission to impact 10 million legacies. But just know when you do purchase something or join the app community or things like that, that money goes directly to support this mission and our family. So we appreciate that all resources are be courageous ministry. Org and I encourage you to join the Be Courageous app. Just download it in your app store. It’s now free for the first week. You can cancel any time, but there’s so many exclusive resources in there and community and we’re in there active monthly Q and A’s, things like that.

Oh yeah, No, it’s great. And it’s been fun to see all the people that have been taking advantage of that free trial and and joining us and reaching out. So thank you, guys. It’s it’s fun to get to know you on a more personal level and a place that has freedom of speech for Christians where there isn’t censorship, I way more.

Comfortable to share freely there.

Well, and I know people are going to see it. So anyway, let’s dive in. No censorship. That’s right. So we wanted to talk. Today’s topic is how do you as a parent protect your children from letting any times discourage your kids? Yeah, right. I think that that is ultimately one of all of our parenting goals. We’re going to ask some hard questions. I think it would be healthy for us to be thinking of one particular question multiple times throughout their day. And it’s this question that God really laid on my heart, which is if you are a parent in Israel right now, what would you say and do? How would you react? What would you be talking to your kids about? And I bring that up because sometimes I think that in our humanity, it’s easy to be consumed with all the things that we have on our to do list, our schedule, what’s going on in our proximity of our life and our communities, and to not take the time to let it sink in and put ourselves into someone else’s shoes so that we can truly be empathetic and weeping with those who weep and loving people. Well, and. And. Really prayerfully bringing things before the Lord on behalf of other people. And right now we we know that God’s chosen people in Israel are under massive attack. So, Isaac, would you maybe share a little bit of just kind of bring some people to date if they’re not really aware of what’s going on?

Sure. And I think we all agree that not everybody has all the information perfect on anything. Right. But I am pretty careful about looking into what I can see. And here’s my perception of what’s happening. Is Hamas from the Gaza Strip funded by Iran. Iran has the money because the Biden administration seized $6 billion. Former two that Obama and seized billion, 1.7 billion, I believe. So they have money and that money is being used to sponsor terrorism against Israel. And they did one of the greatest attacks, Terrorist attacks. One of one of two, I think, in history. Right. So it’s it’s it’s devastating. And they came in we have what’s called an or Israel has what’s called an iron dome that the US helped them implement, which shoots rockets out of the sky. So the thousands of rockets have been lobbed into the country, but they also have troops in Israel, terrorist troops, because they came in on paragliders, which are these little small engined crafts with like parachutes on top. And they came in two at a time with guns and so forth and came down, stole cars. And now they have militia in the in Israel, just indiscriminately killing people. Kind of reminds.

You of that movie Red Dawn, right? Yeah, it kind of does.

It’s kind of interesting, but it’s an all out attack. And and now, you know, they caught him by surprise and now Israel is doing the counterattack, but they’re doing it more heavily than they have probably ever. So it’s looking devastating on all sides. It’s very sad and it’s just a sad time. So a lot happening in the world. In another example is I saw this out there that Putin and the President Erdogan, I think you say his name of Turkey, both said if America gets involved, then they’re going to get involved. And so this could escalate into something. Some people are wondering. I was wondering, is this Ezekiel 38 through 39, the the War of Gog and Magog. And there’s some elements of it that look like it could be that. But we don’t want to jump too fast to conclusion. And regardless of what’s happening in the world, we want to stay hopeful and we want to navigate things well with our children and how we talk about things because it’s important they have a strong hope in their future. So we’re going to talk about that because that’s really important. How did I do know?

I thought you did awesome. One thing that I think is important for people to hear, we were talking about how this is actually a topic that’s relevant regardless of if you’re listening currently right now, we’re in the month of October of 2023. I think that today’s date is the eighth that we’re recording. So tomorrow the podcast comes out, you’ll be hearing this tomorrow. And so I’m sure more things will be coming to light that Isaac did not mention in the next 24 hours, of course. And so have some grace with him there on that if something big happens. One other thing that was really interesting is that there have been a couple earthquakes in the last couple days, one that hit Afghanistan and and had some really large casualties, actually, which is interesting. And so we you know, we don’t we’re not bringing this to you guys, too. Uh, our heart is not to insert fear or to tempt you to have anxiety or overwhelm or any of that. I think that as believers, when we are struggling with the human emotion of fear, which we’re going to talk more about that in regards to your children in the later part of the podcast. But when you’re struggling with fear as a believer, we know what God’s word says about fear. We’re going to talk about that. But that’s really a symptom of something deeper in our relationship with God.

And so we are bringing up what is the most currently in the world. It’s the most talked about thing that is happening. And the truth is, is like we said at the beginning of the podcast, children are very perceptive. They hear and understand more than we think they do. And so we want to bring a conversation that is heavily focused on how do you parent your kids and talk about or not talk about these kinds of things with your children? How do you prepare the next generation to be resilient, confident, courageous kids for an uncertain world when we know that what the Bible says about end days is that it’s going to continually get worse before the end is here. And so knowing that every gen. Generation should have the the vision of I want to equip my children to be able to handle even more than I’ve had to experience in my life. And so as parents, that would be our exhortation to other parents. We are walking in the trenches with you guys. We have littles, we have middles, and we have teenagers and we have adult children who have their own family like or moved out. And and so there’s this element of like, how do you navigate all of that when you have a family with many children as well who are sitting at the table and maybe you want to share with some of them more than you would the youngers, and we’re going to talk about that today.

I just want you to know, like because this is a conversation, it’s not cookie cutter. So we’ll share maybe a little bit of what we’ve been doing. Um, but we wanted to just bring to you guys this topic first and foremost. So let’s dive into Matthew chapter 24. Okay. Okay. So obviously I’m not going to be reading all of the chapter, but I would encourage you guys to go back to it. We’re going to start at verse three to set the stage. The disciples are with Jesus on the Mount of Olives, and they say to him, Tell us when these things will be and what will be the sign of your coming and the end of age. Verse four says, And Jesus answered them, See that no one leads you astray. For many will come in my name saying I am the Christ and they will lead many astray. And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed. So first of all, we’re not supposed to be alarmed by this. Why would we not be alarmed if we’ve read this scripture? If we’ve read Luke 21, we’re not going to be alarmed that this sort of thing is happening. Sad? Yes. Alarmed? No. Right. And so it says, see that you are not alarmed, for this must take place.

But the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. And all these are but the beginning of birth pains. Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death. And you will be hated by all nations, for my name’s sake. And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. So many are going to fall away from the Lord. Okay? And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, I would say that in America we’ve definitely seen that in certain states more than others, and the love of many will grow cold. But those who endure, the one who endures to the end will be saved. So this is the exhortation right to endure to the end. And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations. And then the end will come. And we just thought that it was important to even emphasize that last verse, because as people are sharing on social media and their polling and it’s difficult, I get it when I share on social media because I would love to just be able to share the entire chapter and go, Oh, and also look at this over here in Ezekiel and look at this.

If you could share what you want to share, it would be long. It would be a book.

Isaac That’s true. So we need to have grace with people. But the truth is, is there is this element here that we cannot ignore, that this gospel right here is going to be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. And there are other things, too, right? Like I look at verse 22, it says, And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, the days will be cut short. And then verse 24, it says, For false Christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you beforehand. So Jesus is warning us. He’s sharing this scripture with us beforehand so that we’re warned. We’re not alarmed. We can discern. And this is why it’s so important to have like family Bible time and be reading all of scripture and not eliminating parts of scripture when we’re reading the Bible with our kids because we don’t want our kids to be alarmed either. If we’re reading through this scripture with them and we’re explaining some things, it helps them to not be alarmed.

I do have a equation for you, although equations aren’t usually great in the Christian world. Right? But I’m going to give you an equation real quick that I’m making up. Okay? It’s that if we want to make sure that we’re not instilling fear or discouraging our children about their futures, then you know, we should probably share Scripture ten times for every one bit of truth about what’s happening in the world. So a 1 to 10 ratio.

So one current event, ten times the scripture.

Yeah. And of course it’s made up equation, but it’s for effect for you to think about that. What is the ratio of conversation about Scripture and God’s truth compared to challenges happening in the world and things like that? And I think that’s important right here in Revelation 1615. It says, Behold, I’m coming like a thief. Right. You never know when a thief is going to break into your house, right?

So as you be totally prepared, you be totally right.

He just waiting there. The guns, the police hiding everything. Right. You’d be so ready. Right. Come on, bring it right. And your family wouldn’t even be there, right? So, like a thief. But no, we don’t know when a thief is coming. So behold, I’m coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake. Oh, stays awake spiritually, stays awake, keeping his garments on. And he may not go about. He may not go about naked and be seen exposed. So who are exposed? Maybe just going through the motions of Christianity, not really leading spiritually in the home, not really reading scriptures to our family, praying together, worshiping together. Church is more like just going to check it off. And worship was awesome. Got a great message, forgot about it on Tuesday and go about the normal business and so I think that we have to be awake. What I just described I wouldn’t think is awake. How would you describe being spiritually awake? And we don’t know when Jesus is returning, but we need to be awake and we need to be ready. So this is part of this next thing we want to talk to you about is we need to believe in two things at the same time. One is what this says. We need to be ready. Jesus, come back any day. We need to always be spiritually ready. And the great question is, I like that question you asked is if you were in Israel as a parent right now, what would be the most important thing to you? One, get to safety and protection of your children, but also, number one in a higher number one is what is the spiritual condition of my children? How do they share the gospel?

Do they know Jesus? Do they Right. Like are they are they are they right with God? Are they reconciled with him? And this is a huge thing that as parents, we in America, I think that we can look at what’s happening to those who are in Israel. Right. When we empathize and we we can feel a sense of urgency to make sure that we’re discipling our children and we’re doing the best that we can to not just put that spending time in the word or having that hard conversation about the doubt that maybe our 12 year old is having or whatnot, but really dig in with them so that there’s no spiritual rocks unturned or exposed.

Yeah, so that’s one. We’re supposed to live awake, spiritually awake. Jesus could come back. We don’t know exactly when he’s coming back. You can see signs. You can read Ezekiel 38 through 39. You can read prophecies, you can see things happening. It’s interesting. We should be aware of those things, but we don’t know for sure when Jesus coming back. And the other side of things is that we should also believe that it’s possible that we’re going to grow to old age and then our children are and their children and their children and their children and.

Hundreds of.

Generations. Well, Isaac, how could you say that? I mean, it’s pretty obvious we’re in end times. Well, we have been in end times since Jesus ascended into heaven.

Truthfully. And when the Bible was written, the the apostles themselves were looking for the signs of the age and thought that it was going to be coming soon.

And that’s what he said right there in John, which is I’m going to come like a thief in the night. That was the conversation the disciples were having Him, I think they were on a mountain.

Mount of olives. Yeah, well, the thief in the night was in Revelation. But. Yeah, right, right, right. Yes.

He also said it there too.

Yeah. Yeah. And so I think that what’s important though, is that we recognize that there have been many points in history where people thought the end was right. Now, I mean, imagine what it was like during the Holocaust. I’m sure that a lot of those who were experiencing the massive genocide and attacks on their families thought, where is the savior? Is this the end of the world? And so the reality is, is we we recognize, especially when you’re looking at history, when you are teaching your kids history, like like we have been for many years because we’ve been homeschooling to understand that this isn’t the first time that there’s been an attack on Israel. Right? Like there are regular attacks on Israel. But there have been really big wars that have also happened where people even thought then was going to be the end of age or the beginning of the end.

You and I’m sure you’re not just thinking about Israel, you’re thinking about this thing in Ukraine. You’re thinking about corruption of leaders. You’re thinking about the agenda for 2030 by the World Economic Forum. You could think on and on and on and on about all these things and go, wow, this is really it’s heating up. It’s heating up. Things are heating up. They are our children have to be more resilient. They’re going to have to be more joyful and hopeful. They’re going to have to be more entrenched with the word of God and know it like on the tablets of their heart.

Well, and Jesus even uses birth pains as an example, which is such a perfect imagery for those of us. Obviously, if you’re listening to a parenting podcast, you probably had a child and so you understand how within birth pains the natural progression of things. Generally speaking, a typical text birth text like the birth, yes, we’ll go, you’ll have contractions, but they’ll get more intense and more intense. And then you hit transition and then it’s it’s still a little while. It’s different for each person, but it gets more it comes into.

Doubt, then comes in the doubt. Right, Mama? Doubt.

Exactly. You think I can’t do this? And then you’re through transition and you have a baby in your arms after. But you’ve also had to push really hard. I mean, and it’s different for everybody. But this is the thing. When you think about birth pains, that truth of contractions getting stronger and hitting a transition there, that is a beautiful picture, but it also is Jesus is so smart when he uses that as an example, because he does know that birth has been different for every person. And so there’s still an element of mystery when you use birth pains as an example for That’s a beautiful analogy.

And I have been saying this for about a year, I believe two years. I believe we in the great transition, a great transition where there’s seismic shifts in the condition of the world and direction of the world, technological advancements that are worldwide. They’re worldwide and and, you know, greater access to information all over the gospel and the gospel greater.

Yeah.

So we’re getting closer to the possibility of every single person having access to knowing what the Bible says.

Yeah, there’s still areas in the world that need translations of Scripture, or they need to learn another language to be able to read it and understand it. But we are getting closer. That is true.

Literally with technology right now, like on Twitter. What language would you like to read your tweets in?

Yeah, it definitely technology has made a huge game change. It’s in that specific arena. But I think that there’s an important question that we need to ask you guys, because we when it comes to these end days and what’s happening, what you know, what you believe and what you perceive actually affects your parenting. And that’s really what this is about. So the truth is that how your opinions are about what your your I don’t want to say feeling, but what you’re perceiving, your opinions about what you’re perceiving that’s happening in the world in relation to the timeline, the biblical timeline of end days is going to affect parents in some negative ways and in some positive ways, right? And so we’ve talked about the importance of discipling your children. Obviously, that’s a good way that this could definitely be a kick in the pants for some parents, right, where it’s like, man, have I really have I actually discipled my kids? Have I shared the gospel with that child? Have I you know, I can tell this kid’s really struggling, but I’ve been putting it off to have and really because I want peace in my home and I don’t know how to navigate that situation or I don’t want to confront that sin, but in reality, sin separates us from God and leads to death. So now I know I need to there’s some really good, like, motivation depending on your opinions of what are happening today that could lead you to to have the important conversations. You know, it’s interesting.

Persecution tends to lead to spiritual strength, actually. And you see that in a lot of ways, in a lot of places and so forth. And I know not everybody’s from America, but a lot of are. And in America, there’s been very low spiritual persecution. We’re starting to see some of it. You get canceled on Instagram and Facebook. We experienced that. Some of those things light compared to what happens around the world. And but that’s going to grow even in America, right? I think we had a special time where persecution was low and it’s going to grow. So, you know. But you know what? But what apathy also happens when there’s not resistance, apathy, spiritual apathy, you know, parenting, apathy. And you just have to ask yourself, don’t compare to others. No. Are you doing what God is calling you to do regardless if you’re already doing it better, whatever you think is better than the people around you, Are you doing what God is calling you and telling you to do and prompting you to do? Is the priorities truly the discipleship and tending to the hearts of our children and pointing them to Jesus every chance we get and sharing the love of God to them and and showing an example of a relationship with God through you. Because they actually see a relationship with God. They see you trusting God when they pray and circling back and sharing what God did and not taking credit for it yourself. These kinds of things are so important. We’re going to dive into some warnings now in a second. But first, we want to invite you to the Parenting Mentor program.

You guys, we’ve been doing this courageous parenting mentor program for almost five years now. Can you believe it? In just a couple months, it’s going to be a five year anniversary of doing the program. We’ve had over 3000 go through the Parenting Mentor program and had just amazing testimonies of God doing some really awesome things through the reading of Scripture and pointing scriptures out and having really deep conversations with people about topics that are relevant to parenting today. And we get the parenting is hard. We’ve been parenting for 23 years. We’re still parenting, and we get what it’s like to be parenting kids who are in Generation Z and kids that are in Generation Alpha. And so we have dedicated this time to connect with people. There’s a six week self-paced course. You can go at it at your own pace, but we do have three lives during those weeks as well that we connect with people in our app and we do a 60 minute teaching 30 minute Q&A. You also get parenting packets each week that go along with the one hour session for that week that we’re going to help you and your spouse get in alignment. I think that that really is our heart, is that parents would be parenting together as a team.

I think one of the unique things is that Angie and I are doing it together, so it’s easier for husbands to be involved. And that happens so often. And when the wife and the husband are both going through the program, which isn’t always the case, right? They don’t have to both go through it. Sometimes someone’s away and the wife has to catch up, the husband and that kind of thing with the parenting packets. And that works too. But it is really powerful to get your marriage aligned. And I think a lot of times people find spots they weren’t aligned where they didn’t even know it, but it was hurting their parenting and they didn’t even realize it. And so, so important. Check that out at Courageous Parenting.com. Well, hey, let’s dive into some warnings here.

Okay? So let’s just say it really bluntly. If you are talking to your kids about the current events that are happening and you believe that the end is soon. Or even if you believe the end is not soon, because there’s those two beliefs, right? There’s the belief that the end of all time is soon, and then there’s the belief that it’s not soon. These are birth pains. The regardless of your belief, you could be based upon how you are sharing what’s going on, potentially inviting the spirit of fear and scaring your children or discouraging them. And I want you to think about those three words because they’re actually very different, right? Spirit of fear. Then there’s discouragement and then there’s scared, right? And so when humans deal with fear in different things like that, it it can become an opportunity. I think parents, we need to understand that fear is. Is really a symptom of something deeper in our relationship with God, and that God’s word has a lot to say about fear, and that we should view this as an opportunity, not being upset that our kids are scared or whatnot. And this is like anytime, not even if you’re talking to them about current events, let’s just say you’re not and you have a child that struggles with fear. Our view is that parents should view that as an opportunity to disciple their children in how to handle struggles and hardships and things that are seemingly scary in life. Because if we’re not equipping our children with the truth and helping them to to grow up in the Lord, if you will, and we’re not helping them to become more resilient, then we’re not really equipping confident, courageous kids that are going to be resilient in the uncertain world.

We’ve already said that. And so this is really a charge for parents to understand that if they have children that struggle with fear, first of all, regardless of the topic today, you have an opportunity to help encourage your child to become stronger in the Lord and be able to handle more for the future, which is an important thing. However, when it comes to kids of different ages, I just want to say something like, as parents, we have to use discernment. We have to evaluate where our kids are at in spiritual maturity, but also just in emotional maturity and what can they actually handle. And it’s going to be different from kid to kid. But generally speaking, if your child is seven and under, like we probably wouldn’t be talking a lot about what is going on war wise with our kids. They may know there’s a war in Israel and we need to pray for them and be a part of those prayers. But that would probably be the extent, simply because we wouldn’t expect our children to be able to have the kind of maturity and and faith and trust in the Lord to not become overwhelmed with fear, number one. But also we don’t expect our children to have the emotional maturity of someone who has the Holy Spirit and dwelling within them, right?

Yeah. And I believe if they’re older than that, it is important to teach them things gradually and so forth, because it’s not only important to disciple our children towards God, but it’s also important to help them understand the world they’re going to be navigating through and the history on certain things and how things work. And because there’s all kinds of reconditioning happening of historical events in the world and we need to make sure they have an accurate understanding of things and perception of things. So I think it’s really important that part of the education in your home is educating them on a biblical perception, on things happening in the world so they don’t get fooled or swayed by wayward philosophies.

Which is what the Bible warns us. That is going to happen more and more in end days, right? There’s going to be false teachers. There’s going to be false prophets, people who are leading people astray. Even the elect is what it says. And so recognizing that that is a warning from God and he actually within that scripture, also tells us to pray, right? So we need to be praying, but also like understanding like, okay, so where is that age of when you do teach your kids? And like I said, it’s not cookie cutter. You have to discern where your kids are at and what they can handle. But part of being able to discern that is if they’re asking you questions, if they’re perceiving things or hearing things in the church lobby or or maybe they sit in the sermon and they heard some things on Sunday. Did you follow up with your kids and go, Hey, do you have any questions about what the pastor was talking about? I know that that might have sounded a little bit scary when he was talking about X, Y and Z. Like we as parents need to, like, not just be so focused on, oh, whoa, what’s happening and processing it in our own brains.

But we need to go. Whoa. Okay, hold on a second. My five year old was just sitting here. Now I need to follow up. I need to do the discipling process. And I think that, you know, as you’re having that conversation, you can discern where your kiddo is at, how much they can actually handle and or not. Right. And our jobs as parents is to protect our children. That is true. And so there’s an element of not oversharing too much information because that’s really not that’s going to be putting a burden on your child. That is not for them. That’s going to be discouraging. And the Bible actually tells us fathers do not provoke your children lest they become discouraged. I think another way that parents in situations like this or in life events like this can provoke their children is by bringing up things that are too heavy for them to fully understand and grasp and that can provoke them to become discouraged. Now, when we’re saying discouraged, what can that mean?

Well, it can mean like if they don’t think they’re going to live on Earth for more than five years, they may have no vision then for a future bride or family or having kids if they if they hear. You much that the world is dangerous and, you know, people are dying and things like that. It’s not balanced with nine other hopeful scriptures in times of that, then they could be like social anxiety. Why would I want to bring children into this world? I think there’s going to be a problem ten years from now of a lot of Christian children not wanting to have children. And that is not the answer. We should continue to be fruitful and multiply. We should have godly offspring and disciple them so that they can glorify God with their lives. And more people come to know him. Right? We need to be the go to God. So, you know, as every there’s a different plan for every family and God has it and you’re there as a married couple on the journey, you know, And so every family size is different. But we should be encouraging our children, not discouraging them for having families. And you’re like, amen. Yes, I agree. But what are the side conversations they might be listening to, hearing the noise around them? Sometimes that could be discouraging that over time.

I mean, long affecting. I just even think of adult conversations, whether it’s adult conversations at church or at a coffee shop, or maybe you have a play date and another mom comes over and she’s like, Hey, did you see what’s happening in Israel right now? And you guys just talk about it. But there’s no action, there’s no prayer, there’s no purpose in actually having that conversation that’s moving forward and hopeful. It’s just a fear, truly like a fearful conversation of, oh, I can’t believe this is happening. Oh, my goodness, this is crazy. And, you know, just like your kids see that and go, man, I just don’t I don’t know if we want to have more kids, you know, And just those conversations that you might be having with another fellow mom while your kids are sitting there playing with Legos right in front of you, like we as moms and dads need to be taking responsibility for the words that we allow to come out of our mouths around our kids.

And what if we they even hear us say, yeah, I don’t think we’re going to have more children. It’s just a little crazy world right now. What if they just heard that one thing? You are the God authorized examples and leaders and it’s it’s up to you and your relationship God and what you believe on that but your children that it could be devastating if your children heard something like that.

Oh, completely. And it’s going to make it difficult for them. I don’t know if any of you guys have ever struggled with this. When you’re expecting a baby, maybe, you know, babies are you’re on your fourth or your fifth or sixth. The more kids you have, the more you experience this. So I’m sure these moms that are listening can identify, but you have a little bit of fear of telling your mom or your sister or a neighbor that you’re pregnant again because you are anticipating the response you got the last time, which was, Oh, no, not another one or man, don’t you know how to prevent this? Or they say all kinds people say all kinds of rude things when they don’t have a biblical perspective of children. And the truth is, is if you experience that kind of fear and you’ve even shared that with your spouse and other little ears are listening, they’re hearing that, too. And so I just think that there’s an element of we need to be aware that our kids have ears and that they’re listening and be careful about what we’re saying out loud in front of them. And if we do, we need to follow up with a more hopeful conversation with our kids just so they understand that we really, truly believe kids are a blessing.

I would say if you’re not in a confident spot yourself with your walk with God and confidence about walking in this world with joy and peace in your heart and expectation for good things in the future, despite chaos in the world, then you might not be wanting to share things about the world with your children. You may not be in a place or where you’re healthy enough and strong with the Lord to do that, but I feel confident in doing that because I do believe it’s fascinating times we’re literally seeing. I believe some biblical things develop in our lifetime and prophecy, and I think that’s so interesting, so exciting. And I don’t know the exact timeline on things nobody does. But to to understand these things while at the same time not becoming so focused on that, that it lose the most important focus, which is tending my relationship with my wife and my children and focusing on discipleship and helping them understand biblical truth and walking out joy in the Lord despite circumstances and all of these things, pointing.

Them to think about like even just discipling our children and discerning when is a good time to talk to them about different things here, here’s where the rubber meets the road. For me as a mom, I think about my five year old and my two year old and my seven year old, my alpha generation kiddos and I would evaluate and go, okay, have I been discipling them first and foremost in the ten? In the first and second greatest commandment that Jesus gave us. Have I been discipling them in godly character and doing studies with them that are going to encourage them to be men of integrity and faith and prayer and consistent trustworthiness kind people? Have I been really, truly discipling them in those things? And if I have not, then why in the world would I lay this huge, heavy thing on them that would require all of those other things to be able to process it in a biblical way? That’s unfair of me to actually put something that’s that big on a child. And so I think that that’s something that we as parents need to really evaluate. Have I been doing the work to disciple them and to prepare them for this news so that they can process it and not let it be overwhelming? And if I haven’t, I need to get working on that because I need to be able to get to a place with them when they are over the age of accountability to where I can have these conversations and the reason why I’m bringing up the age of accountability is because this is huge. Like if you have kids that are over the age of accountability and you are still protecting your children from the realities of what are happening in the world, maybe there’s a good reason there.

Maybe. But I would tend to think that that instead we need to be carefully sharing with them things and testing the waters and challenging their faith and helping lead them to have a stronger faith so that they can handle those things. Because the truth is, is they need to be pointed to Christ and they need to be discipled in how to evaluate, how to filter these things that are happening, how to stand firm, right? Like when I think of those words, standing firm or having the belt of truth wrapped around my waist and the armor of God like this is where when your kids are past that age of accountability, whatever that age is, because we don’t believe there is one age for every kid. They’re on their own spiritual journey and it’s somewhat different. Their spiritual maturity based upon, honestly, the things that God has allowed them to experience and how he’s revealed himself to them and how they’ve experienced God. That changes everything for a child. It just does. And so as they are getting older, they start learning about these different spiritual disciplines like prayer and worship and and communion and all these different things. They’re experiencing God in different ways, spiritual gifts. And the truth is, is we as parents have an awesome opportunity to be pointing them to how the Bible is alive in more ways, like the Bible is alive. In all of those ways, the Bible is relevant for teaching and rebuke and correction and all throughout their whole lives, but it’s also relevant and alive when it comes to what’s happening in this world. And that is the part that’s exciting is like, Hey, kids, look, Jesus talked about this. Yeah, that should be encouraging your kids faith even more.

And that the Bible is real, that it keeps getting more and more validated by events in the world and so forth. So Joshua one nine says, Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened and do not be dismayed for the Lord. Your God is with you wherever you go. That is such an important scripture. That is the foundational scripture of this be courageous ministry. And it is so important that we’re saturating our minds with this truth and we’re not succumbing to fear, but instead we’re rising to faithful courage, walking in confidence that God is in control, that we trust the Lord, and that it doesn’t actually even matter, As Paul said what happens to me because I know where I’m going. He said it in some different words, but it’s super important.

Isaiah 35 four also says, Say to those who have an anxious heart. So do you have an anxious heart? Because if you do, I’m saying this to you does your child have an anxious heart? If so, you should say this to them. Say to those who have an anxious heart, be strong. Fear not. Behold, your God will come with a vengeance, with the recompense of God, He will come and save you. One of the coolest aspects, and I again, I don’t want to take away from what is happening today. That is hard and sad. And we have been very much had Israel and the Palestinians in our hearts, in our thoughts. We’ve been we’ve researched, we’ve talked with our some of our kids. We’ve I mean, it’s it’s a big deal, you guys. You should know that about us. Um, but there’s also this element of all the times throughout history where we have seen God step in and save his people, Moses and the Red Sea. I could go off on all of the examples of of ways that God has shown himself. And that’s what’s really cool. When you’re reading scriptures with your kids, you’re able to show him over and over and over again. But here we are again with Israel under attack. And I believe that God is going to save his people. I do believe that. And for us to be walking. In history right now, like living history is currently happening. And for your kids to see that should strengthen their faith.

In an unshakable kind of way. Yeah, because they can tell they’re, I mean, Lord willing, their grandkids. I live during that time when this happened. This is how God showed up for them. Like that is huge. Again, it goes back to what you perceive is true and your opinions about what’s happening in the biblical timeline with world events today. If you believe that it’s ending soon or it’s not ending soon, but regardless, our faith should be strong in the Lord. We should be focused and pointing our kids to him, keeping our eyes on Jesus. I don’t know if you knew this, but when you focus on him, like look up for a second while you’re listening to the podcast. If you’re looking like a lot of people, when they pray, they look up or they close their eyes. When you’re focused on God, if you’re praying and you’re focused on God and your eyes are closed, you can’t see anything else. Physically, that sense is shut down so that your brain and your heart can actually come into unity to focus on God. It’s so we need to keep our eyes fixated on the Word of God and fixated on him and prayerful to him. And when we do, we can’t think about anything else. Like you. Literally, it’s impossible to be thinking about other things while you’re thinking about. Him. While you’re thinking about that one thing.

Let’s renew our minds. Keep in the Word of God. Be praying in the spirit and encouraging our children towards a hopeful future. And I think that is essential. That’s one of the most important things that we have while discipling them in the Lord and at the right timing, educating them on how the world is operating so they can thrive in the world and glorify God in their lives.

Thanks for joining us. Hey, thanks for listening and being a part of the 10 Million Legacies movement. Go to be courageous ministry. Org For more biblically based resources Ways to switch where you spend your money that support the mission and information about the incredible be courageous app community for believers.

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