Teaching Children
Got a good question from a really great mom who is also a friend, and thought it might be helpful to others:
Q:. How would you teach young kids about end times. We have been doing some, but I do NOT want to instill fear in my kids about it as I want them to walk in freedom in the spirit & bravely know who they are in the times coming. But my people are quite young minus my two older girlies. But do you have a resource or teaching or ideas on how to talk freely about the upcoming events without making it seem fearful?
My Answer:. The simple but not super easy answer is night and day prayer. Imo, empowering kids into this is essential.
Joel 2/Rev 7/Ezek 9 all describe the reality of crying out day and night making people safe. Kids totally get this. What's more, they get, even little ones, how messed up the world already is! The fear is already entirely present. That is actually the problem. The events of the book of Revelation are honestly no more fearful than the daily grind into darkness we are in right now. The death is simply increasing, and the rebellion, and the response of the church, and the hatred of the world towards the true Jesus.
In fact, a big problem with end time study is not getting the right paradigm. Many of us look forward to "the day it gets really bad." This is not helpful, because we are already there. We are there! The fact that it doesn't seem "really bad" is judgment on the church. It is.
We don't want to scare our kids, but even worse, we don't want to deceive our kids...the worst thing possible is a daily new normal that leaves them feeling like depravity is totally normal. This creates a heart super hard to seeing the truth of a need to change! It's a hardness against repentance that comes from wanting our kids to feel like everything is fine when it isn't.... especially when they are a big part of changing it (Malachi 4). Many parents are stealing the one thing that would give their kids a huge softness in the increasing darkness: eyes to see.
Many parents, in the interest of not scaring the kids, are totally inoculating them to the one thing we all need: a soft heart to repent for themselves and on behalf of their city...and vision to change the trajectory of a city in intercession.
Jesus said over and over "do not be deceived!". Unfortunately, in a comfortable society...one that is now false comfort...we intentionally deceive kids to make them feel safe. BUT, that deception is going to really come back to haunt us as offense takes the place of comfort and the kids decide we simply aren't real, true, or possibly even good. The Bible describes this...the children becoming the oppressors (Isaiah 3). This has happened in every social revolution...kids are turned against parents and become the tools of the revolution.
The way we guard against this is tell the kids the truth of how the end times are already happening all around us (every writer of the new Testament did the same), and then we gather together to repent on behalf of those who don't know any better, AND ourselves. We separate ourselves as much as possible from the root sins we see maturing all around us. For example, if a murder occurs in my town, I repent for the anger, the root of murder, in my own heart and I get authority over murder. Kids can easily understand this and it moves us (and our kids) from pointing the finger to taking responsibility for how we contribute to the trouble. Plus, it makes US and our kids more ready to meet Jesus, which is the entire point of the end times.
I am continually amazed at the way kids at my church prophecy and pray and take authority over things that are happening in our city. As they do this, fear begins to vanish.
Hiding kids from the truth doesn't cast out fear, perfect love does, and it releases a boldness in the day of judgment. As we let our kids see US getting into corporate intercessory prayer to music...enjoyable prayer as a lifestyle.... THEY learn how to fall in love, and in line, with Jesus. THIS is what makes them unafraid in a way that can't be shaken. Falsley calming fear will eventually stop working. God allowing trouble makes Biblical sense, and the answer to trouble, which is letting it reveal how much God wants us to partner with Him to push back the trouble so we know Him, makes Biblical sense only in this context, because this is the truth. Honestly, this is always true. Most of what you and I know of God's protection and goodness was show to us in the FACE of trouble.
It's never too early to start telling kids the truth of what is happening around them and then telling them how to change it and then changing it in prayer with them. I think you probably already do all of this. The one thing you probably lack is the right context for the end times, meanning it isn't "going to GET really bad" It already is, and the terrifying part is we barely feel it and keep delaying our "all in" response to some other day.
As far as practically teaching kids about judgment. You probably already know this too:. Pray, and then try
Q:. How would you teach young kids about end times. We have been doing some, but I do NOT want to instill fear in my kids about it as I want them to walk in freedom in the spirit & bravely know who they are in the times coming. But my people are quite young minus my two older girlies. But do you have a resource or teaching or ideas on how to talk freely about the upcoming events without making it seem fearful?
My Answer:. The simple but not super easy answer is night and day prayer. Imo, empowering kids into this is essential.
Joel 2/Rev 7/Ezek 9 all describe the reality of crying out day and night making people safe. Kids totally get this. What's more, they get, even little ones, how messed up the world already is! The fear is already entirely present. That is actually the problem. The events of the book of Revelation are honestly no more fearful than the daily grind into darkness we are in right now. The death is simply increasing, and the rebellion, and the response of the church, and the hatred of the world towards the true Jesus.
In fact, a big problem with end time study is not getting the right paradigm. Many of us look forward to "the day it gets really bad." This is not helpful, because we are already there. We are there! The fact that it doesn't seem "really bad" is judgment on the church. It is.
We don't want to scare our kids, but even worse, we don't want to deceive our kids...the worst thing possible is a daily new normal that leaves them feeling like depravity is totally normal. This creates a heart super hard to seeing the truth of a need to change! It's a hardness against repentance that comes from wanting our kids to feel like everything is fine when it isn't.... especially when they are a big part of changing it (Malachi 4). Many parents are stealing the one thing that would give their kids a huge softness in the increasing darkness: eyes to see.
Many parents, in the interest of not scaring the kids, are totally inoculating them to the one thing we all need: a soft heart to repent for themselves and on behalf of their city...and vision to change the trajectory of a city in intercession.
Jesus said over and over "do not be deceived!". Unfortunately, in a comfortable society...one that is now false comfort...we intentionally deceive kids to make them feel safe. BUT, that deception is going to really come back to haunt us as offense takes the place of comfort and the kids decide we simply aren't real, true, or possibly even good. The Bible describes this...the children becoming the oppressors (Isaiah 3). This has happened in every social revolution...kids are turned against parents and become the tools of the revolution.
The way we guard against this is tell the kids the truth of how the end times are already happening all around us (every writer of the new Testament did the same), and then we gather together to repent on behalf of those who don't know any better, AND ourselves. We separate ourselves as much as possible from the root sins we see maturing all around us. For example, if a murder occurs in my town, I repent for the anger, the root of murder, in my own heart and I get authority over murder. Kids can easily understand this and it moves us (and our kids) from pointing the finger to taking responsibility for how we contribute to the trouble. Plus, it makes US and our kids more ready to meet Jesus, which is the entire point of the end times.
I am continually amazed at the way kids at my church prophecy and pray and take authority over things that are happening in our city. As they do this, fear begins to vanish.
Hiding kids from the truth doesn't cast out fear, perfect love does, and it releases a boldness in the day of judgment. As we let our kids see US getting into corporate intercessory prayer to music...enjoyable prayer as a lifestyle.... THEY learn how to fall in love, and in line, with Jesus. THIS is what makes them unafraid in a way that can't be shaken. Falsley calming fear will eventually stop working. God allowing trouble makes Biblical sense, and the answer to trouble, which is letting it reveal how much God wants us to partner with Him to push back the trouble so we know Him, makes Biblical sense only in this context, because this is the truth. Honestly, this is always true. Most of what you and I know of God's protection and goodness was show to us in the FACE of trouble.
It's never too early to start telling kids the truth of what is happening around them and then telling them how to change it and then changing it in prayer with them. I think you probably already do all of this. The one thing you probably lack is the right context for the end times, meanning it isn't "going to GET really bad" It already is, and the terrifying part is we barely feel it and keep delaying our "all in" response to some other day.
As far as practically teaching kids about judgment. You probably already know this too:. Pray, and then try
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