We live in an ungodly world with ungodly influences. There’s plenty of temptation to behave like everyone else, and our young people are particularly at risk in this area. To keep them from making mistakes that could ruin their lives, children and teens desperately need to see a good example modeled for them. When kids get on the wrong path, it’s because there’s something important missing from their lives; that missing element is Jesus Christ. 

Over the years, Jesus has been kicked out of school systems, God has been banned from the workplace, and prayerful assemblies have brought threats of lawsuits. It’s no coincidence that evil is spreading faster than ever before. To save our future generations, we must abandon political correctness and not be afraid to speak His name. “Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes. And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt write them upon the door posts of thine house, and upon thy gates” (Deuteronomy 11:18-20). This isn’t a suggestion, but a commandment.

God has tasked parents, grandparents, and caregivers with teaching children His Word. Not only does this involve studying our Bible every day, but setting the example through our behavior. Children often do what we do, rather than what we say. “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6). Teaching them and demonstrating the Word profoundly affects their lives.

We mustn’t let the world, which doesn’t know God, dictate to us how to raise our children. While they’re growing up they need firm but loving guidelines as to what’s acceptable and what’s not, what’s right and what’s wrong. Contrary to some childcare books on the market written by “experts” in the field, loving and godly discipline is not only okay, it’s mandatory. God is our heavenly Father; we can and should model our parenting style after His Word.

God loves us and our children more than we could ever imagine. He knows what’s best for us; therefore, we must pay close attention to the wisdom He’s trying to impart. “Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right. Honour thy father and mother; which is the first commandment with promise; that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth. And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:1-4). Using the Bible as our child-rearing guide helps our sons and daughters grow up safe from the evil that takes over the mindset of so many young people. We all want our children to live happy, successful lives and be a blessing to others; the power to help them do that lies within the pages of the Bible.