The natural way to raise children…

How did your children learn to talk?

Did you sit down with an alphabet chart and teach them phonics?

Did you grill them on vocabulary every day?

Did you work at it very hard at all?

Most of us taught our children to speak by speaking to them, reading to them, pointing at the cat and saying “CAT.”

We taught them to speak by example.

Did you know you could do such a complicated thing?

Really, think about it.

The English language, for example, has 44 sounds. (19 vowel sounds including 5 long vowels, 5 short vowels, 3 dipthongs, 2 ‘oo’ sounds, 4 ‘r’ controlled vowel sounds and 25 consonant sounds).

And don’t ask me what a “dipthong” is…

Through daily, repetitive, natural conversation with your little ones, you taught them to master every one of those sounds.

Beyond that is the issue of vocabulary (words and their meanings).

The average 5 year old has a vocabulary of 2100 to 2200 words. By the time your child is 12, they will be speaking almost 50,000 words!

And you taught them almost all of those words through simple, natural interaction and speech.

The natural way to raise Godly children

Raising godly children is not much more difficult. In fact, God tells us to do exactly the same thing…

Deuteronomy 6:7-9 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

Look through the verse again to notice all the “natural” everyday things you are commanded by God to do with your children…

talk of God’s commands and ways when you sit down.
talk of God’s commands and ways when you walk around.
talk of God’s commands and ways when you lie down.
talk of God’s commands and ways when you get up.
make them a part of every moment of life (bind them on your hands).
make sure you see them everywhere (frontlets between your eyes).
put them around your house for you and your children to see.

It’s not rocket science. It’s life, lived in the presence of God. And THAT is the natural way to raise Godly children.

But it doesn’t begin there…

My Dad tells a story of one of his friends who he calls “a character.” This man, thinking he was being funny, taught his son to count, “1 – 2 – 3 – FOUR!” (with the number 4 about an octave higher in pitch). It was cute… until the kid went to school and was made fun of by the other kids and criticized by his teacher. This man knew the right way to count but for the sake of being funny taught his kid to do it the wrong way.

Raising your children to follow God’s ways is similar. You need to know God’s word and ways before you can rightly teach them to your children. Then you have to be diligent to see that you do it.

Deuteronomy 6:5-6 You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.

Before you try to go all “natural” on your kids… make sure it’s natural for you. You need to…

love the LORD yourself… with ALL your heart, ALL your soul, and ALL your might.
And God’s words have to be on YOUR heart.

If you need help getting on the right track, I have a free set of 19 spiritual growth lessons you can download right now.

Don’t let the role of being a spiritual mentor to your children be an intimidating thing. Love God. Learn His word. Teach it to your children naturally, like you taught them to speak.