by Dr. Paul A. Kienel
Christian schools have been a part of the fabric of American society since the Pilgrims and Puritans waded ashore in 1620 and 1630. Yet there are Americans, even Christian Americans, who are woefully uninformed about Christian schools. Here are seven common questions about Christian schools:
1. How can you mix Christian faith with an academic curriculum? How do you integrate the two?
The relationship between faith and learning is as old as the Bible itself. Second Corinthians 10:5 instructs us to “bring every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ...” The Apostle Paul said that in Jesus are “all the treasures of wisdom and... knowledge” (Colossians 2:3). One Christian school educator aptly described Biblical integration as, “Bringing the knowledge of Jesus Christ and the truths of Scripture to bear on the formation of young minds seeking to know the world.”
He said his school, “Offers an environment where change can happen in the personal lives of young people. Here, a vision of God’s grace in Christ may be glimpsed, depths of character explored, love and integrity moved from principle into action and quality in one’s life. We provide the opportunity for real change by communicating the essentials of Christian character.”1
Biblical integration is spiritual in nature. It can only be done by educators who are true believers in Jesus Christ.
2. How can Christian school students adjust to the “real world” if they do not attend a school that teaches a non-Christian point of view?
It may surprise some people, but there is no Biblical support for training Christian children in a non-Biblical environment.
Decades ago Yale University’s President, Timothy Dwight, said, “Education ought everywhere to be religious education... parents are bound to employ no instructors who will not educate their children religiously. To commit our children to the care of irreligious persons is to commit lambs to the superintendency of wolves.”2
Christian psychologist Clyde Narramore said, “A tree that is planted in poor soil doesn’t have the advantages that one planted in good earth has. Contrary to some belief, we do not grow through resistance. Children do not develop because they resist food. Their growth comes as a result of good food and care.”3
The Bible describes life on this earth as warfare. Warriors are never trained in enemy territory. School is a training ground. A primary purpose of a Christian school is to prepare students to be non-conformists to the world. The Bible says, “And be not conformed to this world...” (Romans 12:2a), but at the same time we are to be prepared to live victoriously in the world. Note the words of the new Testament’s Dr. Luke who wrote, “...when a student is fully trained he will be like his teacher” (Luke 6:40). Simply put, if you want your children to live as Christians they must be taught by Christians.
3. Generally speaking, how does Christian school education compare academically with non-Christian schools?
Year after year, standardized achievement test scores affirm that students taught by Christian school educators achieve well above the national norm. In fact, in twenty-seven years of testing with the Stanford Achievement Test our students have never achieved less than one full year ahead of the national norm. It is, indeed, a commendable record.
4. Do Christian schools offer a wide range of student activities which broaden their educational experience?
Depending on the financial strength of the school, most Christian schools offer a wide range of student activities such as fine arts, speech meets, academic meets, spelling bee, student leadership conferences, cheerleading camps and all kinds of sporting activities. This past year, 56,807 students participated in student activities sponsored by the Association of Christian Schools International. This does not include of course, the wide range of student activities offered by individual schools.
5. Is the enrollment in Christian schools open to students of all races?
Each school that joins the Association of Christian Schools International must affirm annually on its school application form that students of all races are welcome. Since the message of Christ is available to all, so our schools are available to all provided student applications meet other minimum requirements of the school.
6. Are Christian schools growing in number?
Not only are new Christian schools being started, but established Christian schools are also experiencing solid growth. This past year has been the largest growth year in the history of the Association of Christian Schools International. The combined student enrollment of the 3,174 member schools of ACSI was 661,475 this year - an increase of 95,940 students. This year 35,228 teachers attended ACSI teacher conventions, an increase of over 3,367 over the previous year! These figures are remarkable indicators of the Lord’s rich blessing on Christian school education.
7. What about the future of Christian school education?
I am in my 28th year of service as President of ACSI. Never have I seen the momentum for growth, for spiritual commitment and for academic excellence as I see this year in our Christian schools around the world. I believe if we will stay true to our Christian purpose God will continue to smile with favor upon us.
1 Thad Gabelein, Stony Brook brochure, Stony Brook, New York.
2 Timothy Dwight, President of Yale University (1795-1817).
3 Dr. Clyde M. Narramore, Your Questions Answered About Christian Schools, 1983, ACSI, La Habra, California, p. 49.
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TRAINING YOUR CHILDREN TO TURN OUT RIGHT! Headline Animator
Friday 13 February 2009
Thursday 12 February 2009
A Few Things Christian Schools Cannot Do For Your Child
by Dr. Paul A. Kienel
There are 662,350 students attending ACSI member schools and colleges this year. A conservative estimate of the cost parents will pay in tuition this year adds up to a combined total of $1,854,580,000. If the taxpayers were paying for the expense of educating our Christian school students in the public school ($5,010 x 662,350) the grand total would be $3,318,373,500. Christian school parents clearly pay less for Christian school education than taxpayers pay for public education. We pay significantly less and we clearly receive significantly more in quality academics and in positive, Christ-centered training for our children. A problem arises, however, when parents expect more from the Christian school than they should. Permit me to list a few things Christian schools cannot do for your child.
1. Christian schools cannot be a substitute for a quality home environment.
The number one training influence in the life of a child is his or her home. A parent, more than teachers and pastors, is the primary model for children to follow. Parents are the “pattern makers” for Christian living, attitudes toward life, attitudes toward others, work ethics, basic manners, money management, health habits, manner of speech, goal setting and study habits. Pastor Chuck Swindoll says, “Home is where life makes up its mind.” Quite frankly, the impact of the Christian school is severely limited if the home is not what it ought to be. No teacher can compensate for an unstable home.
2. Christian schools cannot guarantee a perfect school environment.
Some parents are unrealistic about other students in their child’s Christian school. They expect a degree of perfection among mortals that simply is not attainable on earth. Perhaps you have heard it said that “If you find the perfect church - don’t join it - you will ruin it.” Christian schools are decidedly better than the secular public school alternative but they are not perfect. Students come to the Christian school with varying degrees of spiritual maturity. Some are not Christians. There is a wide variety of intellectual ability, emotional development, home training and personality patterns among the students in any school, including the Christian school. The typical Christian school setting is not the “sheltered environment” that critics make it out to be. As the father of three daughters who attended Christian schools, I advised my children to carefully select their close personal friends - even in the Christian school. Remember, any time two or more people get together in any kind of institution there is room for improvement in at least one of them! If this were not so, there would be no need for Christian schools.
3. Christian schools cannot increase the level of your child’s intelligence.
It simply is not true that we are all created equal. In the broadest sense, in a free society we are created with an equal opportunity. But God has fashioned each of us with varying degrees of intelligence, imagination and drive. Christian school educators cannot, nor should they, push a child beyond his or her ability to perform. Children need a reasonable level of intellectual stretching and academic challenge, but caring Christian school teachers cannot perform nor should they attempt to perform “academic miracles” to please parents who may have an unrealistic view of their children’s abilities. Parents and teachers alike should know that a child’s academic success in school is only part of the total composite of qualities that God can use to make a person worthy of our respect, love and admiration. Never judge a child’s future worth to the world on his current academic prowess in school.
4. Christian schools cannot duplicate parental love and support.
Most adults have forgotten the emotional stress we experienced as children at school. The very nature of a school requires that it maintain an orderly, disciplined environment if learning is to occur. The process of learning can be emotionally stressful and mentally stretching. Parents can greatly reduce the pressure our children may feel by encouraging them, inspiring them and loving them.
Children and young people need parental love and support when they experience disappointment in a youthful friendship or even a youthful romance which has “gone sour.” It happens. It’s part of the process of growing up and parents can help immeasurably with their understanding.
5. Christian schools cannot replace the spiritual influence of a parent.
Read the words of Moses in Deuteronomy 6:6-9, “These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.” Christian school education may be frustrating for your child if the Christian principles taught at school are not a continuation of the Christian principles taught in your home. If yours is not a Christian home, I urge you to respond to the invitation of Jesus Christ, the incomparable Savior of the world. Accept Him as your personal Savior and then in His strong name train your family in a manner that will please Him. You will not regret it.
Christian school education is a major force for good in the lives of our children. It can be enhanced if the church, the home and the school are all on the same spiritual and academic frequency.
Read More ..
There are 662,350 students attending ACSI member schools and colleges this year. A conservative estimate of the cost parents will pay in tuition this year adds up to a combined total of $1,854,580,000. If the taxpayers were paying for the expense of educating our Christian school students in the public school ($5,010 x 662,350) the grand total would be $3,318,373,500. Christian school parents clearly pay less for Christian school education than taxpayers pay for public education. We pay significantly less and we clearly receive significantly more in quality academics and in positive, Christ-centered training for our children. A problem arises, however, when parents expect more from the Christian school than they should. Permit me to list a few things Christian schools cannot do for your child.
1. Christian schools cannot be a substitute for a quality home environment.
The number one training influence in the life of a child is his or her home. A parent, more than teachers and pastors, is the primary model for children to follow. Parents are the “pattern makers” for Christian living, attitudes toward life, attitudes toward others, work ethics, basic manners, money management, health habits, manner of speech, goal setting and study habits. Pastor Chuck Swindoll says, “Home is where life makes up its mind.” Quite frankly, the impact of the Christian school is severely limited if the home is not what it ought to be. No teacher can compensate for an unstable home.
2. Christian schools cannot guarantee a perfect school environment.
Some parents are unrealistic about other students in their child’s Christian school. They expect a degree of perfection among mortals that simply is not attainable on earth. Perhaps you have heard it said that “If you find the perfect church - don’t join it - you will ruin it.” Christian schools are decidedly better than the secular public school alternative but they are not perfect. Students come to the Christian school with varying degrees of spiritual maturity. Some are not Christians. There is a wide variety of intellectual ability, emotional development, home training and personality patterns among the students in any school, including the Christian school. The typical Christian school setting is not the “sheltered environment” that critics make it out to be. As the father of three daughters who attended Christian schools, I advised my children to carefully select their close personal friends - even in the Christian school. Remember, any time two or more people get together in any kind of institution there is room for improvement in at least one of them! If this were not so, there would be no need for Christian schools.
3. Christian schools cannot increase the level of your child’s intelligence.
It simply is not true that we are all created equal. In the broadest sense, in a free society we are created with an equal opportunity. But God has fashioned each of us with varying degrees of intelligence, imagination and drive. Christian school educators cannot, nor should they, push a child beyond his or her ability to perform. Children need a reasonable level of intellectual stretching and academic challenge, but caring Christian school teachers cannot perform nor should they attempt to perform “academic miracles” to please parents who may have an unrealistic view of their children’s abilities. Parents and teachers alike should know that a child’s academic success in school is only part of the total composite of qualities that God can use to make a person worthy of our respect, love and admiration. Never judge a child’s future worth to the world on his current academic prowess in school.
4. Christian schools cannot duplicate parental love and support.
Most adults have forgotten the emotional stress we experienced as children at school. The very nature of a school requires that it maintain an orderly, disciplined environment if learning is to occur. The process of learning can be emotionally stressful and mentally stretching. Parents can greatly reduce the pressure our children may feel by encouraging them, inspiring them and loving them.
Children and young people need parental love and support when they experience disappointment in a youthful friendship or even a youthful romance which has “gone sour.” It happens. It’s part of the process of growing up and parents can help immeasurably with their understanding.
5. Christian schools cannot replace the spiritual influence of a parent.
Read the words of Moses in Deuteronomy 6:6-9, “These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.” Christian school education may be frustrating for your child if the Christian principles taught at school are not a continuation of the Christian principles taught in your home. If yours is not a Christian home, I urge you to respond to the invitation of Jesus Christ, the incomparable Savior of the world. Accept Him as your personal Savior and then in His strong name train your family in a manner that will please Him. You will not regret it.
Christian school education is a major force for good in the lives of our children. It can be enhanced if the church, the home and the school are all on the same spiritual and academic frequency.
Training Your Children to Manage Money
In the days of the Klondike gold rush, two miners struck a huge deposit. Feverishly excited, they unearthed more and more gold each day. Meanwhile they neglected to store up provisions for the winter. Then came the first blizzard. Nearly frozen, one scrawled a shaky note explaining their predicament. Months later a prospecting party discovered the note, along with two frozen bodies lying on top of a huge pile of gold.
Today countless children grow up begging and grabbing and clinging onto all the things money can buy. As adults, they rarely outgrow this shallow self-centeredness, but simply graduate to more money and bigger toys. Living their lives on earth as if this were all there is, they fail to prepare for their eternal future.
Christ told the story of a rich fool, to whom God said, "This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself? This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God" (Luke 12:20-21).
Five minutes after we die we'll know exactly how we should have lived. But then it will be too late. The good news is, God gave us his Word so we don't have to wait till we die to discover how we should have lived. And God gave our children Christian fathers, so we could show them what the world will not-how to live now in light of eternity.
1. Give your children something greater than money-your time. Our children won't remember what we did for them nearly as much as what we did with them. I've never heard anyone complain, "Dad was always around, but I never had enough material possessions." I've heard many lament, "I had lots of stuff, but Dad was never there for me."
The best thing you can do for your kids is put them on your appointment calendar. Cancel other things to make time with them. Work hard, but don't work such long hours that you miss your brief window of opportunity to shape your children for eternity. No man ever looks back and says "I wish I'd spent more time in the office, and less with my children."
2. Use life's teachable moments to train your children. "Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it" (Proverbs 22:6). Deuteronomy 6:6-9 tells fathers to impress God's commands on our children and "talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road." When we're alert, life brings countless opportunities to teach our children an eternal perspective on life, money, and possessions.
One night when they were six and eight, my daughters asked me to play the game of "LIFE," a popular board game I'd never played. One of my girls expressed disappointment when she landed on a space that made her a teacher rather than a doctor or lawyer-despite the fact that in real life she wanted to be a teacher! Why the disappointment? Because it meant she would receive a lower salary the rest of the game. And money, after all, is what LIFE (and for many people life) is all about.
LIFE presents the choice of whether to have children. Because there's a minimum amount of money but no minimum amount of children required to win the game, my girls kept choosing money over children. When I chose children instead of money, it surprised them. Choosing children might mean losing the game, and who plays a game with the intention of losing?
The whole event turned out to be an excellent teaching opportunity. I shared with my daughters Scripture's infinitely higher regard for children than money, and how "winning" and "success" are very different in God's eyes than the world's. Next time they played the game I noticed they made decisions that would make them "losers" by the game's standards, and winners by God's.
3. Take a field trip to a junkyard. How can we teach our children the emptiness of materialism in a memorable way? Take them to a garage sale and show them how things that people spent great amounts of money on are now sold for pennies.
Or, take them to visit a dump or junkyard. Show them all the piles of "treasures" that were formerly Christmas and birthday presents. Point out things costing hundreds of dollars, that children quarreled about, friendships were lost over, honesty was sacrificed for, and marriages broke up over. Show them the remnants of battered dolls, rusted robots, and crashed cars. Let them look at the expensive furniture and electronic gadgets that now lie useless. Point out to them that nearly everything your family owns will one day end up in a junkyard like this.
Then read, or ask them to read, 2 Peter 3:10-14, which says when Christ returns the whole world "will be destroyed by fire" and "the earth and everything in it will be laid bare." Ask them the ultimate question: "when all that you owned lies abandoned, broken, burned and useless, what will you have done that will last for eternity?"
What will survive the coming holocaust of things? The answer is, only God, His Word and people. Explain to your children how life should be invested in the eternal. Read to them Matthew 6:19-25, where Jesus says, "Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven." Tell them "you can't take it with you," but according to Jesus, you can send it on ahead!
4. Teach your children to link money with labor. Once I mentioned we couldn't go out for dinner because we didn't have enough money. My youngest daughter said, "Just go to the money machine and get all you want." She referred to the Automated Teller Machine. This was a great chance to teach her money doesn't just magically appear in a machine, but is earned through work-good, hard, and well-done work. Fathers can show our children how to work, to make things, to sell them. We can show how work can be meaningful and fun as well as financially profitable.
A common mistake we dads make is to indiscriminately dole out money to our children as life goes by. This teaches them to think money comes easily or automatically. As a result they disassociate money from work. Eventually they feel it's their right to have money available even when they haven't worked for it. This misguided thinking is what puts able-bodied people on welfare rolls. The government fosters the handout mentality, but often it's learned first in the home, where character is built and lifelong attitudes are forged.
5. Teach your children how to save. Children learn the value of money and the discipline of self-control through saving. We helped our daughters open savings accounts years ago. If your child wants a major item, say a telescope, help him make a plan to save for it over a period of six months. Help him think of jobs to accomplish his goal. If he sticks with it (he may not), buying that telescope won't be an impulsive decision. And once he gets it, he's likely to take good care of it.
The same applies to a college education. I know parents who save for their child's education, while he spends his money irresponsibly. Remember, the quality of anyone's college education improves dramatically when he has a substantial part in paying for it.
6. Get your children started on the lifetime adventure of giving. We taught our children to tithe from the very earliest age (Leviticus 27:30; Malachi 3:8-10). They often gave more, but that 10% was untouchable. If Grandpa gave them ten dollars for Christmas, the question wasn't "What can I do with ten dollars" but "What can I do with nine dollars?" The other dollar wasn't theirs-it belonged to God.
The holy habit of giving is like the holy habits of Bible study and prayer and witnessing and hospitality. These things need to be integrated into our lifestyle. Those not raised in a home where they learn this are at a great disadvantage later trying to develop new habits as adults. Children raised in giving families would no sooner stop giving than brushing their teeth.
When we make decisions to give sacrificially to God's kingdom, we need to include our children, so they can both learn and get in on the blessing. Once we received a large and unexpected amount of money from book royalties. We sat down with our children, and discussed what we could do with the money. I explained we could use it to feed hungry people and reach them with the gospel. I also pointed out the money would entirely pay for a two week Hawaiian vacation for our whole family. We asked our girls what they thought. They enthusiastically encouraged us to give it to help the poor and lost. (Five years later the Lord provided a wonderful place to stay free in Hawaii. But at the time our children weighed the options, exercised their convictions and joyfully gave.)
7. Provide your children with financial planning tools. When the girls were five and seven, I gave each three jars labeled "Giving," "Saving," and "Spending." I explained that every time they received money, they were to first put at least ten per cent into the giving jar, then distribute the rest between the other two jars as they wished. Once they put money in the giving jar, even beyond the tithe, it was dedicated to the Lord and they couldn't use it some other way. Every Sunday morning they'd empty their giving jar and bring it to the offering at church.
Similarly, when they put money in saving, they were not to take it out and spend it on anything spur of the moment, but reserve it for some upcoming special expenditure or "a rainy day." However, they were free to transfer money from saving and spending to giving, or from spending to saving. As the jars lined up, it went this way-you can transfer money to any jar on the left, but never to a jar to the right.
I'll never forget that night. The girls were so excited they immediately took the money they already had and distributed it in the jars. They arranged the jars just right on their dressers, and literally spent two hours talking and figuring things out. My seven - year - old asked me to show her how to figure percentages on our calculator. She broke down her then one dollar a week allowance, and wrote on the jar labels, completely on her own, "Giving: $.25 a week," "Saving: $.25 a week," and "Spending $.50 a week." For the next five years, this simple system resulted in more financial education than any single thing we did.
Remember, a child cannot learn money management unless he has money to manage, and unless he earned that money himself. (Otherwise he's giving or spending his parents' money, not his.)
8. Teach your children how to say "No." Few things we teach our children are important as the discipline of saying "no." We must model the principle of delayed gratification, and teach the value of avoiding an expenditure when the money could accomplish a higher purpose if given away or saved or used more wisely. God commands and commends self-control one of the highest Christian virtues (Galatians 5:22-23; Titus 2:1-12).
Children are by nature impulsive spenders, and need our help to develop sales resistance. Every time we say "no" to our child about ice cream, candy, a new doll or squirt gun, we can teach him there are higher values than immediate gratification. Self - control learned by children in one area often carries over into others. A child who learns to say "no" to unnecessary purchases is much more prone to say "no" to sexual immorality or drugs.
Of course, tight-fisted stinginess is as negative as careless self-indulgence. Our goal is not to be penny-pinchers fretting over every expenditure, but joyful, responsible and generous stewards.
9. Show your children how family finances work. Bring home an entire paycheck in one or ten dollar bills. Or, use play money in an amount corresponding to your paycheck. Put the money in piles to show exactly how much goes to what expenses each month. This way your children can visualize where the family's money goes.
Some things will surprise the children, and they'll ask you questions. You'll probably end up reevaluating and making some healthy changes yourself. (Comparing the amount you give away with the amount you spend on various items may be particularly convicting.) Your children may see things in perspective for the first time. A child who's told to turn off the lights when he leaves the room, or to shut the front door behind him in the winter, suddenly understands why when he sees the stack of money that goes to pay the electric bill.
10. Never underestimate the power of your example. Albert Schweitzer said, "There are only three ways to teach a child. The first is by example, the second is by example, the third is by example."
Whether consciously or not, we continuously train our children, engraving our values in them as if drawing with a stick in wet cement. Children learn most effectively not just from what we say, but from what we do. Our actions speak louder than our words. (Sometimes so loudly our children can't hear a word we're saying!)
When it comes to handling money and possessions in light of eternity, dads, the most important point is this: sometimes our children will fail to listen to us; rarely will they fail to imitate us.
by Randy Alcorn, Eternal Perspective Ministries, 2229 E. Burnside #23, Gresham, OR 97030, 503-663-6481, www.epm.org
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Today countless children grow up begging and grabbing and clinging onto all the things money can buy. As adults, they rarely outgrow this shallow self-centeredness, but simply graduate to more money and bigger toys. Living their lives on earth as if this were all there is, they fail to prepare for their eternal future.
Christ told the story of a rich fool, to whom God said, "This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself? This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God" (Luke 12:20-21).
Five minutes after we die we'll know exactly how we should have lived. But then it will be too late. The good news is, God gave us his Word so we don't have to wait till we die to discover how we should have lived. And God gave our children Christian fathers, so we could show them what the world will not-how to live now in light of eternity.
1. Give your children something greater than money-your time. Our children won't remember what we did for them nearly as much as what we did with them. I've never heard anyone complain, "Dad was always around, but I never had enough material possessions." I've heard many lament, "I had lots of stuff, but Dad was never there for me."
The best thing you can do for your kids is put them on your appointment calendar. Cancel other things to make time with them. Work hard, but don't work such long hours that you miss your brief window of opportunity to shape your children for eternity. No man ever looks back and says "I wish I'd spent more time in the office, and less with my children."
2. Use life's teachable moments to train your children. "Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it" (Proverbs 22:6). Deuteronomy 6:6-9 tells fathers to impress God's commands on our children and "talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road." When we're alert, life brings countless opportunities to teach our children an eternal perspective on life, money, and possessions.
One night when they were six and eight, my daughters asked me to play the game of "LIFE," a popular board game I'd never played. One of my girls expressed disappointment when she landed on a space that made her a teacher rather than a doctor or lawyer-despite the fact that in real life she wanted to be a teacher! Why the disappointment? Because it meant she would receive a lower salary the rest of the game. And money, after all, is what LIFE (and for many people life) is all about.
LIFE presents the choice of whether to have children. Because there's a minimum amount of money but no minimum amount of children required to win the game, my girls kept choosing money over children. When I chose children instead of money, it surprised them. Choosing children might mean losing the game, and who plays a game with the intention of losing?
The whole event turned out to be an excellent teaching opportunity. I shared with my daughters Scripture's infinitely higher regard for children than money, and how "winning" and "success" are very different in God's eyes than the world's. Next time they played the game I noticed they made decisions that would make them "losers" by the game's standards, and winners by God's.
3. Take a field trip to a junkyard. How can we teach our children the emptiness of materialism in a memorable way? Take them to a garage sale and show them how things that people spent great amounts of money on are now sold for pennies.
Or, take them to visit a dump or junkyard. Show them all the piles of "treasures" that were formerly Christmas and birthday presents. Point out things costing hundreds of dollars, that children quarreled about, friendships were lost over, honesty was sacrificed for, and marriages broke up over. Show them the remnants of battered dolls, rusted robots, and crashed cars. Let them look at the expensive furniture and electronic gadgets that now lie useless. Point out to them that nearly everything your family owns will one day end up in a junkyard like this.
Then read, or ask them to read, 2 Peter 3:10-14, which says when Christ returns the whole world "will be destroyed by fire" and "the earth and everything in it will be laid bare." Ask them the ultimate question: "when all that you owned lies abandoned, broken, burned and useless, what will you have done that will last for eternity?"
What will survive the coming holocaust of things? The answer is, only God, His Word and people. Explain to your children how life should be invested in the eternal. Read to them Matthew 6:19-25, where Jesus says, "Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven." Tell them "you can't take it with you," but according to Jesus, you can send it on ahead!
4. Teach your children to link money with labor. Once I mentioned we couldn't go out for dinner because we didn't have enough money. My youngest daughter said, "Just go to the money machine and get all you want." She referred to the Automated Teller Machine. This was a great chance to teach her money doesn't just magically appear in a machine, but is earned through work-good, hard, and well-done work. Fathers can show our children how to work, to make things, to sell them. We can show how work can be meaningful and fun as well as financially profitable.
A common mistake we dads make is to indiscriminately dole out money to our children as life goes by. This teaches them to think money comes easily or automatically. As a result they disassociate money from work. Eventually they feel it's their right to have money available even when they haven't worked for it. This misguided thinking is what puts able-bodied people on welfare rolls. The government fosters the handout mentality, but often it's learned first in the home, where character is built and lifelong attitudes are forged.
5. Teach your children how to save. Children learn the value of money and the discipline of self-control through saving. We helped our daughters open savings accounts years ago. If your child wants a major item, say a telescope, help him make a plan to save for it over a period of six months. Help him think of jobs to accomplish his goal. If he sticks with it (he may not), buying that telescope won't be an impulsive decision. And once he gets it, he's likely to take good care of it.
The same applies to a college education. I know parents who save for their child's education, while he spends his money irresponsibly. Remember, the quality of anyone's college education improves dramatically when he has a substantial part in paying for it.
6. Get your children started on the lifetime adventure of giving. We taught our children to tithe from the very earliest age (Leviticus 27:30; Malachi 3:8-10). They often gave more, but that 10% was untouchable. If Grandpa gave them ten dollars for Christmas, the question wasn't "What can I do with ten dollars" but "What can I do with nine dollars?" The other dollar wasn't theirs-it belonged to God.
The holy habit of giving is like the holy habits of Bible study and prayer and witnessing and hospitality. These things need to be integrated into our lifestyle. Those not raised in a home where they learn this are at a great disadvantage later trying to develop new habits as adults. Children raised in giving families would no sooner stop giving than brushing their teeth.
When we make decisions to give sacrificially to God's kingdom, we need to include our children, so they can both learn and get in on the blessing. Once we received a large and unexpected amount of money from book royalties. We sat down with our children, and discussed what we could do with the money. I explained we could use it to feed hungry people and reach them with the gospel. I also pointed out the money would entirely pay for a two week Hawaiian vacation for our whole family. We asked our girls what they thought. They enthusiastically encouraged us to give it to help the poor and lost. (Five years later the Lord provided a wonderful place to stay free in Hawaii. But at the time our children weighed the options, exercised their convictions and joyfully gave.)
7. Provide your children with financial planning tools. When the girls were five and seven, I gave each three jars labeled "Giving," "Saving," and "Spending." I explained that every time they received money, they were to first put at least ten per cent into the giving jar, then distribute the rest between the other two jars as they wished. Once they put money in the giving jar, even beyond the tithe, it was dedicated to the Lord and they couldn't use it some other way. Every Sunday morning they'd empty their giving jar and bring it to the offering at church.
Similarly, when they put money in saving, they were not to take it out and spend it on anything spur of the moment, but reserve it for some upcoming special expenditure or "a rainy day." However, they were free to transfer money from saving and spending to giving, or from spending to saving. As the jars lined up, it went this way-you can transfer money to any jar on the left, but never to a jar to the right.
I'll never forget that night. The girls were so excited they immediately took the money they already had and distributed it in the jars. They arranged the jars just right on their dressers, and literally spent two hours talking and figuring things out. My seven - year - old asked me to show her how to figure percentages on our calculator. She broke down her then one dollar a week allowance, and wrote on the jar labels, completely on her own, "Giving: $.25 a week," "Saving: $.25 a week," and "Spending $.50 a week." For the next five years, this simple system resulted in more financial education than any single thing we did.
Remember, a child cannot learn money management unless he has money to manage, and unless he earned that money himself. (Otherwise he's giving or spending his parents' money, not his.)
8. Teach your children how to say "No." Few things we teach our children are important as the discipline of saying "no." We must model the principle of delayed gratification, and teach the value of avoiding an expenditure when the money could accomplish a higher purpose if given away or saved or used more wisely. God commands and commends self-control one of the highest Christian virtues (Galatians 5:22-23; Titus 2:1-12).
Children are by nature impulsive spenders, and need our help to develop sales resistance. Every time we say "no" to our child about ice cream, candy, a new doll or squirt gun, we can teach him there are higher values than immediate gratification. Self - control learned by children in one area often carries over into others. A child who learns to say "no" to unnecessary purchases is much more prone to say "no" to sexual immorality or drugs.
Of course, tight-fisted stinginess is as negative as careless self-indulgence. Our goal is not to be penny-pinchers fretting over every expenditure, but joyful, responsible and generous stewards.
9. Show your children how family finances work. Bring home an entire paycheck in one or ten dollar bills. Or, use play money in an amount corresponding to your paycheck. Put the money in piles to show exactly how much goes to what expenses each month. This way your children can visualize where the family's money goes.
Some things will surprise the children, and they'll ask you questions. You'll probably end up reevaluating and making some healthy changes yourself. (Comparing the amount you give away with the amount you spend on various items may be particularly convicting.) Your children may see things in perspective for the first time. A child who's told to turn off the lights when he leaves the room, or to shut the front door behind him in the winter, suddenly understands why when he sees the stack of money that goes to pay the electric bill.
10. Never underestimate the power of your example. Albert Schweitzer said, "There are only three ways to teach a child. The first is by example, the second is by example, the third is by example."
Whether consciously or not, we continuously train our children, engraving our values in them as if drawing with a stick in wet cement. Children learn most effectively not just from what we say, but from what we do. Our actions speak louder than our words. (Sometimes so loudly our children can't hear a word we're saying!)
When it comes to handling money and possessions in light of eternity, dads, the most important point is this: sometimes our children will fail to listen to us; rarely will they fail to imitate us.
by Randy Alcorn, Eternal Perspective Ministries, 2229 E. Burnside #23, Gresham, OR 97030, 503-663-6481, www.epm.org
Tuesday 27 January 2009
BEWARE OF THE TOY INDUSTRY
It is equally important for parents to beware of the toy industry. When our kids were growing up we never allowed Barbie Dolls or any other such thing in our house. Now there are Bratz (franchised by MGM) and a slew of other sexualized dolls.
The following timely warning is from a concerned grandmother:
“I attend a fundamental church but have noticed that some parents don’t seem to have any qualms about allowing their young daughters to play with Barbie dolls. And even Polly Pocket dolls are becoming more immodest in their clothing. Also the accessories for both Barbie and Polly Pocket dolls promote a worldly look and a worldly lifestyle. ... I believe that these kinds of dolls are too immodest for girls of any age to play with, much less little girls around the ages of 4 and 5. They definitely promote the wrong message and wrong focus in a young girl’s life, and I really don’t even want our granddaughters to bring their scantily dressed dolls into our home because I feel that by allowing them to bring their dolls into our home, we’re also condoning and promoting a wrong focus and mindset in the lives of our granddaughters.”
[Distributed by Way of Life Literature's Fundamental Baptist Information Service, an e-mail listing for Fundamental Baptists and other fundamentalist, Bible-believing Christians. OUR GOAL IN THIS PARTICULAR ASPECT OF OUR MINISTRY IS NOT DEVOTIONAL BUT IS TO PROVIDE INFORMATION TO ASSIST PREACHERS IN THE PROTECTION OF THE CHURCHES IN THIS APOSTATE HOUR. This material is sent only to those who personally subscribe to the list. If somehow you have subscribed unintentionally, following are the instructions for removal. The Fundamental Baptist Information Service mailing list is automated. To SUBSCRIBE or to UNSUBSCRIBE or to CHANGE ADDRESSES or to RE-SUBSCRIBE UNDER A NEW ADDRESS, go to http://www.wayoflife.org/fbis/subscribe.html. If you have any trouble with this, please let us know. And please be patient with us. We do not ignore any unsubscribe request, but we cannot always get to your request immediately as each person involved with maintaining the Way of Life web site does this only on a very part time basis and is busy with many other major activities, such as pastoring and missionary work. We take up a quarterly offering to fund this ministry, and those who use the materials are expected to participate (Galatians 6:6) if they can. Some of the articles are from O Timothy magazine, which is in its 25th year of publication. Way of Life publishes many helpful books. The catalog is located at the web site: http://wayoflife.org/catalog/catalog.htm Way of Life Literature, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061. 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org. We do not solicit funds from those who do not agree with our preaching and who are not helped by these publications, but from those who are. OFFERINGS can be made at http://www.wayoflife.org/fbns/offering.html. PAYPAL offerings can be made to https://www.paypal.com/xclick/business=dcloud%40wayoflife.org]
Read More ..
The following timely warning is from a concerned grandmother:
“I attend a fundamental church but have noticed that some parents don’t seem to have any qualms about allowing their young daughters to play with Barbie dolls. And even Polly Pocket dolls are becoming more immodest in their clothing. Also the accessories for both Barbie and Polly Pocket dolls promote a worldly look and a worldly lifestyle. ... I believe that these kinds of dolls are too immodest for girls of any age to play with, much less little girls around the ages of 4 and 5. They definitely promote the wrong message and wrong focus in a young girl’s life, and I really don’t even want our granddaughters to bring their scantily dressed dolls into our home because I feel that by allowing them to bring their dolls into our home, we’re also condoning and promoting a wrong focus and mindset in the lives of our granddaughters.”
[Distributed by Way of Life Literature's Fundamental Baptist Information Service, an e-mail listing for Fundamental Baptists and other fundamentalist, Bible-believing Christians. OUR GOAL IN THIS PARTICULAR ASPECT OF OUR MINISTRY IS NOT DEVOTIONAL BUT IS TO PROVIDE INFORMATION TO ASSIST PREACHERS IN THE PROTECTION OF THE CHURCHES IN THIS APOSTATE HOUR. This material is sent only to those who personally subscribe to the list. If somehow you have subscribed unintentionally, following are the instructions for removal. The Fundamental Baptist Information Service mailing list is automated. To SUBSCRIBE or to UNSUBSCRIBE or to CHANGE ADDRESSES or to RE-SUBSCRIBE UNDER A NEW ADDRESS, go to http://www.wayoflife.org/fbis/subscribe.html. If you have any trouble with this, please let us know. And please be patient with us. We do not ignore any unsubscribe request, but we cannot always get to your request immediately as each person involved with maintaining the Way of Life web site does this only on a very part time basis and is busy with many other major activities, such as pastoring and missionary work. We take up a quarterly offering to fund this ministry, and those who use the materials are expected to participate (Galatians 6:6) if they can. Some of the articles are from O Timothy magazine, which is in its 25th year of publication. Way of Life publishes many helpful books. The catalog is located at the web site: http://wayoflife.org/catalog/catalog.htm Way of Life Literature, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061. 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org. We do not solicit funds from those who do not agree with our preaching and who are not helped by these publications, but from those who are. OFFERINGS can be made at http://www.wayoflife.org/fbns/offering.html. PAYPAL offerings can be made to https://www.paypal.com/xclick/business=dcloud%40wayoflife.org]
BEWARE OF THE GIRLS’ FASHION INDUSTRY
The fashion industry today is morally perverted and is seeking to sexualize children from very early ages. The following warning is very timely:
“It was a hot summer’s day in 2002 when I decided to buy sandals for our 4- and 6-year-old daughters. I never anticipated our retail excursion would prove to be so educational. We’re talking sandals, now. Plain, ordinary sandals, the kind every one of us grew up in. But after going to eleven different stores I still couldn't find anything even remotely suitable. Why? Because every pair of sandals I found--every single pair--had high heels.
“High heels for a 4-year-old? How can a child run and jump and play wearing high heels? I'll tell you the answer: She can’t. Apparently, girls’ sandals aren’t meant for running and jumping and playing. They’re meant to make little girls look like tarts. ...
“It amazes me that 40 years after the sexual revolution that was supposed to ‘free’ women from the ‘oppression’ of men, we find ourselves teaching our daughters that their only worth is in looking slutty. Boys don’t respect girls anymore because girls don’t require and demand it. And it all starts by buying 4-year-olds high-heeled sandals and Bratz dolls.
“So, who is at fault for pre-sexualizing our kids? Sure, we can blame a lot of things. Society. The fashion industry. Hollywood. Public schools. Pick one.
“But what it boils down to is you, the parent, allowing it. Yes, allowing it. ...
“I’ve heard some parents say they can't ‘stop’ pre-sexualization because kids will learn it in school or from peers. Many parents feel victimized, swept helplessly along the tide of society and unable to do anything about it. Hogwash. It’s parents who are permitting inappropriate clothing, toys, posters and music into their homes” (“Sexy Six Year Olds,” WorldNetDaily, May 31, 2008).
[Distributed by Way of Life Literature's Fundamental Baptist Information Service, an e-mail listing for Fundamental Baptists and other fundamentalist, Bible-believing Christians. OUR GOAL IN THIS PARTICULAR ASPECT OF OUR MINISTRY IS NOT DEVOTIONAL BUT IS TO PROVIDE INFORMATION TO ASSIST PREACHERS IN THE PROTECTION OF THE CHURCHES IN THIS APOSTATE HOUR. This material is sent only to those who personally subscribe to the list. If somehow you have subscribed unintentionally, following are the instructions for removal. The Fundamental Baptist Information Service mailing list is automated. To SUBSCRIBE or to UNSUBSCRIBE or to CHANGE ADDRESSES or to RE-SUBSCRIBE UNDER A NEW ADDRESS, go to http://www.wayoflife.org/fbis/subscribe.html. If you have any trouble with this, please let us know. And please be patient with us. We do not ignore any unsubscribe request, but we cannot always get to your request immediately as each person involved with maintaining the Way of Life web site does this only on a very part time basis and is busy with many other major activities, such as pastoring and missionary work. We take up a quarterly offering to fund this ministry, and those who use the materials are expected to participate (Galatians 6:6) if they can. Some of the articles are from O Timothy magazine, which is in its 25th year of publication. Way of Life publishes many helpful books. The catalog is located at the web site: http://wayoflife.org/catalog/catalog.htm Way of Life Literature, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061. 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org. We do not solicit funds from those who do not agree with our preaching and who are not helped by these publications, but from those who are. OFFERINGS can be made at http://www.wayoflife.org/fbns/offering.html. PAYPAL offerings can be made to https://www.paypal.com/xclick/business=dcloud%40wayoflife.org] Read More ..
“It was a hot summer’s day in 2002 when I decided to buy sandals for our 4- and 6-year-old daughters. I never anticipated our retail excursion would prove to be so educational. We’re talking sandals, now. Plain, ordinary sandals, the kind every one of us grew up in. But after going to eleven different stores I still couldn't find anything even remotely suitable. Why? Because every pair of sandals I found--every single pair--had high heels.
“High heels for a 4-year-old? How can a child run and jump and play wearing high heels? I'll tell you the answer: She can’t. Apparently, girls’ sandals aren’t meant for running and jumping and playing. They’re meant to make little girls look like tarts. ...
“It amazes me that 40 years after the sexual revolution that was supposed to ‘free’ women from the ‘oppression’ of men, we find ourselves teaching our daughters that their only worth is in looking slutty. Boys don’t respect girls anymore because girls don’t require and demand it. And it all starts by buying 4-year-olds high-heeled sandals and Bratz dolls.
“So, who is at fault for pre-sexualizing our kids? Sure, we can blame a lot of things. Society. The fashion industry. Hollywood. Public schools. Pick one.
“But what it boils down to is you, the parent, allowing it. Yes, allowing it. ...
“I’ve heard some parents say they can't ‘stop’ pre-sexualization because kids will learn it in school or from peers. Many parents feel victimized, swept helplessly along the tide of society and unable to do anything about it. Hogwash. It’s parents who are permitting inappropriate clothing, toys, posters and music into their homes” (“Sexy Six Year Olds,” WorldNetDaily, May 31, 2008).
[Distributed by Way of Life Literature's Fundamental Baptist Information Service, an e-mail listing for Fundamental Baptists and other fundamentalist, Bible-believing Christians. OUR GOAL IN THIS PARTICULAR ASPECT OF OUR MINISTRY IS NOT DEVOTIONAL BUT IS TO PROVIDE INFORMATION TO ASSIST PREACHERS IN THE PROTECTION OF THE CHURCHES IN THIS APOSTATE HOUR. This material is sent only to those who personally subscribe to the list. If somehow you have subscribed unintentionally, following are the instructions for removal. The Fundamental Baptist Information Service mailing list is automated. To SUBSCRIBE or to UNSUBSCRIBE or to CHANGE ADDRESSES or to RE-SUBSCRIBE UNDER A NEW ADDRESS, go to http://www.wayoflife.org/fbis/subscribe.html. If you have any trouble with this, please let us know. And please be patient with us. We do not ignore any unsubscribe request, but we cannot always get to your request immediately as each person involved with maintaining the Way of Life web site does this only on a very part time basis and is busy with many other major activities, such as pastoring and missionary work. We take up a quarterly offering to fund this ministry, and those who use the materials are expected to participate (Galatians 6:6) if they can. Some of the articles are from O Timothy magazine, which is in its 25th year of publication. Way of Life publishes many helpful books. The catalog is located at the web site: http://wayoflife.org/catalog/catalog.htm Way of Life Literature, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061. 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org. We do not solicit funds from those who do not agree with our preaching and who are not helped by these publications, but from those who are. OFFERINGS can be made at http://www.wayoflife.org/fbns/offering.html. PAYPAL offerings can be made to https://www.paypal.com/xclick/business=dcloud%40wayoflife.org] Read More ..
GIRLS’ FASHIONS AND DOLLS
GIRLS’ FASHIONS AND DOLLS
July 17, 2008 (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org; for instructions about subscribing and unsubscribing or changing addresses, see the information paragraph at the end of the article) -
This verse reminds us that training in modest attire best begins in childhood. Many married women in Bible-believing churches did not have an opportunity to grow up in a godly Christian home and were not taught how to be modest when they were young, but now they have the opportunity to provide such a home for the next generation. This is a great blessing as well as a large responsibility.
The best time to teach a girl how to dress modestly is when she is a toddler. When she reaches teenage years she will be habituated to dressing in a feminine and modest manner and will not feel strange wearing a nice dress. She will also know how to be decent wearing a dress, because she learned it from her mother (and hopefully grandmother, aunts, etc.) from childhood.
One of our granddaughters is three years old, and her mother dresses her in nice dresses all of the time except when she is bathing and sleeping or getting ready for bed and is in her pajamas. She is learning how to sit properly in a dress. She is learning that her brother wears pants but she wears dresses, because she is different. My earnest prayer is that she will never turn aside from this modest and lovely and scriptural way of dressing.
Of course, the key is not merely dressing a child properly but teaching her why she is dressed that way, and instilling in her the Bible principles of modesty throughout her childhood, and praying that she will be saved and take these principles into her heart because she wants to please the Lord. Female fashions change constantly, and the Christian woman must learn how to apply Bible principles to whatever comes along.
BEWARE OF THE GIRLS’ FASHION INDUSTRY
The fashion industry today is morally perverted and is seeking to sexualize children from very early ages. The following warning is very timely:
“It was a hot summer’s day in 2002 when I decided to buy sandals for our 4- and 6-year-old daughters. I never anticipated our retail excursion would prove to be so educational. We’re talking sandals, now. Plain, ordinary sandals, the kind every one of us grew up in. But after going to eleven different stores I still couldn't find anything even remotely suitable. Why? Because every pair of sandals I found--every single pair--had high heels.
“High heels for a 4-year-old? How can a child run and jump and play wearing high heels? I'll tell you the answer: She can’t. Apparently, girls’ sandals aren’t meant for running and jumping and playing. They’re meant to make little girls look like tarts. ...
“It amazes me that 40 years after the sexual revolution that was supposed to ‘free’ women from the ‘oppression’ of men, we find ourselves teaching our daughters that their only worth is in looking slutty. Boys don’t respect girls anymore because girls don’t require and demand it. And it all starts by buying 4-year-olds high-heeled sandals and Bratz dolls.
“So, who is at fault for pre-sexualizing our kids? Sure, we can blame a lot of things. Society. The fashion industry. Hollywood. Public schools. Pick one.
“But what it boils down to is you, the parent, allowing it. Yes, allowing it. ...
“I’ve heard some parents say they can't ‘stop’ pre-sexualization because kids will learn it in school or from peers. Many parents feel victimized, swept helplessly along the tide of society and unable to do anything about it. Hogwash. It’s parents who are permitting inappropriate clothing, toys, posters and music into their homes” (“Sexy Six Year Olds,” WorldNetDaily, May 31, 2008).
BEWARE OF THE TOY INDUSTRY
It is equally important for parents to beware of the toy industry. When our kids were growing up we never allowed Barbie Dolls or any other such thing in our house. Now there are Bratz (franchised by MGM) and a slew of other sexualized dolls.
The following timely warning is from a concerned grandmother:
“I attend a fundamental church but have noticed that some parents don’t seem to have any qualms about allowing their young daughters to play with Barbie dolls. And even Polly Pocket dolls are becoming more immodest in their clothing. Also the accessories for both Barbie and Polly Pocket dolls promote a worldly look and a worldly lifestyle. ... I believe that these kinds of dolls are too immodest for girls of any age to play with, much less little girls around the ages of 4 and 5. They definitely promote the wrong message and wrong focus in a young girl’s life, and I really don’t even want our granddaughters to bring their scantily dressed dolls into our home because I feel that by allowing them to bring their dolls into our home, we’re also condoning and promoting a wrong focus and mindset in the lives of our granddaughters.”
[Distributed by Way of Life Literature's Fundamental Baptist Information Service, an e-mail listing for Fundamental Baptists and other fundamentalist, Bible-believing Christians. OUR GOAL IN THIS PARTICULAR ASPECT OF OUR MINISTRY IS NOT DEVOTIONAL BUT IS TO PROVIDE INFORMATION TO ASSIST PREACHERS IN THE PROTECTION OF THE CHURCHES IN THIS APOSTATE HOUR. This material is sent only to those who personally subscribe to the list. If somehow you have subscribed unintentionally, following are the instructions for removal. The Fundamental Baptist Information Service mailing list is automated. To SUBSCRIBE or to UNSUBSCRIBE or to CHANGE ADDRESSES or to RE-SUBSCRIBE UNDER A NEW ADDRESS, go to http://www.wayoflife.org/fbis/subscribe.html. If you have any trouble with this, please let us know. And please be patient with us. We do not ignore any unsubscribe request, but we cannot always get to your request immediately as each person involved with maintaining the Way of Life web site does this only on a very part time basis and is busy with many other major activities, such as pastoring and missionary work. We take up a quarterly offering to fund this ministry, and those who use the materials are expected to participate (Galatians 6:6) if they can. Some of the articles are from O Timothy magazine, which is in its 25th year of publication. Way of Life publishes many helpful books. The catalog is located at the web site: http://wayoflife.org/catalog/catalog.htm Way of Life Literature, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061. 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org. We do not solicit funds from those who do not agree with our preaching and who are not helped by these publications, but from those who are. OFFERINGS can be made at http://www.wayoflife.org/fbns/offering.html. PAYPAL offerings can be made to https://www.paypal.com/xclick/business=dcloud%40wayoflife.org]
Read More ..
July 17, 2008 (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org; for instructions about subscribing and unsubscribing or changing addresses, see the information paragraph at the end of the article) -
“Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6).
This verse reminds us that training in modest attire best begins in childhood. Many married women in Bible-believing churches did not have an opportunity to grow up in a godly Christian home and were not taught how to be modest when they were young, but now they have the opportunity to provide such a home for the next generation. This is a great blessing as well as a large responsibility.
The best time to teach a girl how to dress modestly is when she is a toddler. When she reaches teenage years she will be habituated to dressing in a feminine and modest manner and will not feel strange wearing a nice dress. She will also know how to be decent wearing a dress, because she learned it from her mother (and hopefully grandmother, aunts, etc.) from childhood.
One of our granddaughters is three years old, and her mother dresses her in nice dresses all of the time except when she is bathing and sleeping or getting ready for bed and is in her pajamas. She is learning how to sit properly in a dress. She is learning that her brother wears pants but she wears dresses, because she is different. My earnest prayer is that she will never turn aside from this modest and lovely and scriptural way of dressing.
Of course, the key is not merely dressing a child properly but teaching her why she is dressed that way, and instilling in her the Bible principles of modesty throughout her childhood, and praying that she will be saved and take these principles into her heart because she wants to please the Lord. Female fashions change constantly, and the Christian woman must learn how to apply Bible principles to whatever comes along.
BEWARE OF THE GIRLS’ FASHION INDUSTRY
The fashion industry today is morally perverted and is seeking to sexualize children from very early ages. The following warning is very timely:
“It was a hot summer’s day in 2002 when I decided to buy sandals for our 4- and 6-year-old daughters. I never anticipated our retail excursion would prove to be so educational. We’re talking sandals, now. Plain, ordinary sandals, the kind every one of us grew up in. But after going to eleven different stores I still couldn't find anything even remotely suitable. Why? Because every pair of sandals I found--every single pair--had high heels.
“High heels for a 4-year-old? How can a child run and jump and play wearing high heels? I'll tell you the answer: She can’t. Apparently, girls’ sandals aren’t meant for running and jumping and playing. They’re meant to make little girls look like tarts. ...
“It amazes me that 40 years after the sexual revolution that was supposed to ‘free’ women from the ‘oppression’ of men, we find ourselves teaching our daughters that their only worth is in looking slutty. Boys don’t respect girls anymore because girls don’t require and demand it. And it all starts by buying 4-year-olds high-heeled sandals and Bratz dolls.
“So, who is at fault for pre-sexualizing our kids? Sure, we can blame a lot of things. Society. The fashion industry. Hollywood. Public schools. Pick one.
“But what it boils down to is you, the parent, allowing it. Yes, allowing it. ...
“I’ve heard some parents say they can't ‘stop’ pre-sexualization because kids will learn it in school or from peers. Many parents feel victimized, swept helplessly along the tide of society and unable to do anything about it. Hogwash. It’s parents who are permitting inappropriate clothing, toys, posters and music into their homes” (“Sexy Six Year Olds,” WorldNetDaily, May 31, 2008).
BEWARE OF THE TOY INDUSTRY
It is equally important for parents to beware of the toy industry. When our kids were growing up we never allowed Barbie Dolls or any other such thing in our house. Now there are Bratz (franchised by MGM) and a slew of other sexualized dolls.
The following timely warning is from a concerned grandmother:
“I attend a fundamental church but have noticed that some parents don’t seem to have any qualms about allowing their young daughters to play with Barbie dolls. And even Polly Pocket dolls are becoming more immodest in their clothing. Also the accessories for both Barbie and Polly Pocket dolls promote a worldly look and a worldly lifestyle. ... I believe that these kinds of dolls are too immodest for girls of any age to play with, much less little girls around the ages of 4 and 5. They definitely promote the wrong message and wrong focus in a young girl’s life, and I really don’t even want our granddaughters to bring their scantily dressed dolls into our home because I feel that by allowing them to bring their dolls into our home, we’re also condoning and promoting a wrong focus and mindset in the lives of our granddaughters.”
[Distributed by Way of Life Literature's Fundamental Baptist Information Service, an e-mail listing for Fundamental Baptists and other fundamentalist, Bible-believing Christians. OUR GOAL IN THIS PARTICULAR ASPECT OF OUR MINISTRY IS NOT DEVOTIONAL BUT IS TO PROVIDE INFORMATION TO ASSIST PREACHERS IN THE PROTECTION OF THE CHURCHES IN THIS APOSTATE HOUR. This material is sent only to those who personally subscribe to the list. If somehow you have subscribed unintentionally, following are the instructions for removal. The Fundamental Baptist Information Service mailing list is automated. To SUBSCRIBE or to UNSUBSCRIBE or to CHANGE ADDRESSES or to RE-SUBSCRIBE UNDER A NEW ADDRESS, go to http://www.wayoflife.org/fbis/subscribe.html. If you have any trouble with this, please let us know. And please be patient with us. We do not ignore any unsubscribe request, but we cannot always get to your request immediately as each person involved with maintaining the Way of Life web site does this only on a very part time basis and is busy with many other major activities, such as pastoring and missionary work. We take up a quarterly offering to fund this ministry, and those who use the materials are expected to participate (Galatians 6:6) if they can. Some of the articles are from O Timothy magazine, which is in its 25th year of publication. Way of Life publishes many helpful books. The catalog is located at the web site: http://wayoflife.org/catalog/catalog.htm Way of Life Literature, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061. 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org. We do not solicit funds from those who do not agree with our preaching and who are not helped by these publications, but from those who are. OFFERINGS can be made at http://www.wayoflife.org/fbns/offering.html. PAYPAL offerings can be made to https://www.paypal.com/xclick/business=dcloud%40wayoflife.org]
Thursday 22 January 2009
HISTORY OF CHANGES IN AMERICAN EDUCATION and thus the changes in government
The law changed and forced changes in education. It was not the nation that changed the law so much as it was a panel of nine men on a run-away supreme court bench. This happened in the 1920's, and in 1947-48, and again in the early 1960's.
Once they changed the explanation of history ie the Constitution, the rest of the nation took it like sheep, until now few know how things used to be understood. It's been taught wrong for over 50 years, and now, by omission, the true old history is no longer existent in the hearts and minds of America's youth, most teachers, and even lawyers.
Understandings of men changed and thus the goals of education was allowed to be changed.
Originally in America, our law and our education was based on God and the Bible. The change is that now our law and our education are based on men's opinions that contradict God and the Bible.
From 1607 until 1807 there could not be found in America a school which did not teach Bible understandings on their subjects. For this theme and coverage of 200 years of early American history, see the Founding Fathers and original thirteen colony charters and the constitutions of those colonies. Also see the Constitutions of the newly formed states as they came into the Union. Strong reference to God is made over and over. Also the NorthWest Treaty referenced how schools should be teaching scripture understanding to the children.
Christians came to Plymouth Rock for freedom of their religion. They instituted schools to train up their children in their beliefs.
95% of the founding fathers believed in God through faith in His Son Jesus Christ. See the materials, books, and videos from Wallbuilder Publishers for historical documents on the Founding Fathers.
1830- Horace Mann got the State of Pennsylvania to begin a new state school program that did not have the Bible .
1870- The teaching of law begins to change and have its effect on public schools. Harvard Law School Dean Christopher Columbus Langdell (1826-1906) applied Darwin's theory of evolution to law. Introduced the case-law method instead of the Constitution. Students studied the decisions of judges instead of the Constitution of the Founders. Students grew to become less and less aware of what the Founders said and more and more aware of what judges decided.
1870-1964, Roscoe Pound strengthened the ideas of Langdell, replacing him at Harvard Law School. Institutionalized "positivism", a kind of Darwinian theory of growing towards a goal by positive or forward steps of change and that positive change is necessary for society to evolve to its end form. So allowing changes in law. As the understanding of law was to change, so also would follow changes in the application of law to our school system.
1902- Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. held that original intent and precedent held little value. Argued for thirty years that decisions should not be based upon natural law and its fixed standards but upon the felt necessities of the time and the prevalent political theories so that society could reach a social change to what men wanted.
1916- Louis Brandeis (1856-1941) urged the Court to be bold in leading society to change. He wanted the reason of men to be the ultimate rule, not the law of God nor the ideas of the Founders.
1930's - Blackstone's Commentaries on the Law widely discarded because it was absolute instead of relative. Relativism allowed for change. Relativism became a new term, more 'intellectual' for describing the positive changes needed for evolution of law and society. (the positivism of Roscoe Pound). Absolute values were discarded.
John Dewey1930's- John Dewey was an esteemed humanist. He was a prominent leader of new ideas in education. He wrote much on the effects of Darwin's theory of evolution on science, education, man and society. His premise can be summarized as saying that nothing is ultimately good in itself except positive change for the better. To this goal he rejected absolute values of God, the Bible, and men who believed in God.
Dewey's most positive value is positive change for the better. He was so recognized as a leader of new ideas concerning humanism ie synonym for socialism that he was invited to teach on establishing state schools for the betterment of the state. He taught in China at the University of Peking and in Turkey. Upon Dewey's return to California, he wrote an Americanized version of Karl Marx philosophies called "The Humanist Manifesto".
Dewey believed in the collective society like socialist of Russia and China being more important than any individualism. He views people as members of the larger society, to the exclusion of individual rights when the perceived needs of society would require the exclusion of personal rights. This thinking permeates the N.E.A today as a result of his works and others who followed in his footsteps. The state rights over individual rights is associated with the recent event in Pennsylvania where state authorities forced fifty young girls to be spread eagled on an examination table, for genital inspection, without parent's knowledge or consent. Such is the consequence of giving up individual rights to the state system.
1932- Benjamin Cardozo (1870-1938), said there is no law to bind the judge. He took judge-made law as a reality of life. Americans will remember our Constitution says Congress makes laws and judges apply those fixed laws to various situations. But Justice Cardozo wanted to make new laws from the bench of the Supreme Court by decisions unbound by tradition or precedent. He condoned the Court functioning as law-maker by overturning precedents of generations of Americans.
1930-1941, Charles Evans Hughes (1862-1948) the Court's Chief Justice for eleven years said "We are under a Constitution, but the Constitution is what the judges say it is."
1945-1953 - radical social change achieved by wide spread "positivists" or secular humanists.
1947- The new lawyer system of education, "positivism" or "secular humanism", ruled that schools could no longer teach Bible at school, only off campus, somewhere else! Everson Case.
1953- Earl Warren (1891-1974) became Chief-Justice and ruled for sixteen years.
1958- Earl Warren wrote, "The Constitutional Amendment must draw its meaning from the evolving standards of decency that mark the progress of a maturing society."
1953-1968, Warren's court struck down many traditional practices and proudly admitted doing it without legal precedent. The Court had "evolved" into something different from what the Founders designed it. The Court had become no longer a only a judge, but now it was the new law-maker! The court was now doing what by Constitutional authority only the Congress could do.
1962- School prayer struck down, Engel vs Vitale
1963- School Bible reading struck down, School District of Abington Township v. Schempp
1980- School display of Ten Commandments disallowed, Stone v. Graham
1985- School moment of silent time for prayer struck down, Wallace v. Jaffree
1989- Display of birth of Christ not allowed on public property, Allegheny v Pittsburg ACLU
1992- School graduation prayer struck down, Lee v. Weisman
1988- Hillary Rodham Clinton attends U.N. conference on world education in Thailand
1989 - Hillary and Vera Katz on board in New York, National Committee on Education and Economics
1991- Vera Katz as Mayor in Portland helps entire state of Oregon change to Goals 2000 system
1996- Twenty six states have programs of Goals 2000, Humanistic, New World Order economics driven system
1996 ---National Standards for History advises retraining and screening of teachers to only accept those who can adapt their attitudes to fit the new standards. This means those who are for the traditional and true history would be systematically excluded.
1996 Dr. Meno, Commissioner of Education, Texas says teachers need to be requalified according to conditions of the new set of goals. ie, exclude those who disagree with the new standards.
Interpretation by the editor, Larry Rice: Those educrats in the government system are glad to see big government standards take over education. You should want to place people in power who are agreement with William Bennett and who disagree with the Texas Education Commissioner.
1996 Texas Eagle Forum goes on the World Wide Web. Take a look at it! It is great.
SOCIALISM INTRODUCED STEP BY STEP INTO AMERICAN CULTURE
Both Karl Marx and Joseph Stalin said it could not happen that America would accept communism all at once. They knew that was impossible, but they also knew it was not necessary for it to happen all at once. They realized that a steady diet of little bitty morsels of socialism introduced into American society would eventually transform the whole system. The socialist planners were content to climb their mountain one little step at a time. They knew eventually the top would be reached. They realize that socialism is only a tiny step away from full communism.
These ideas and goals are being implemented right now in local books
1. Teach children's rights over parents rights.
2. Teach children to judge their parents. Hitler and Stalin did that.
3. Teach children how to begin changing their parents values. Remove esteem of parents from the children.
4. Teach what changes, teach the changes of people and society, with no reference to permanent values.
5. Teach the value of the new world system for the good of all men everywhere, one world under the U.N., but not under God.
6. Teach things that encourage belief in the psychic, occult, witchcraft, anything else but God.
7. Teach chaos instead of ordered systems.
8. Teach subjective values instead of any absolutes, especially don't teach the Ten Commandments, but instead tell them each person makes his own decisions of what is right and what is wrong.
9. Remove their connections to the roots of their own history, and they will wither and die as a nation.
10. Give more examples for children to follow of delinquency instead of obedient children.
11. Bring the children down to a level of the lowest street urchin without love of mother or father
12. Teach that the state has control over the children instead of the God given parents.
13. Removal of good role model's. By excluding references and explanations of Christian motivation from those famous deeds of America's historical great men, children are robbed of those good role models. When those men are characterized as deists and profit seekers their motives are misrepresented to the children. Children learn what they see. What a shame that so many people teach or believe our founding fathers were deists and established this country for economic gain. What a shameful revision of history it is to call Patrick Henry a deist. He recorded for all history a denial of deism and his affirmation of Jesus Christ.
Joseph Stalin said he didn't have to defeat us in gun warfare. He could do it through our children. He would poison their minds against God and family. Through educational system and tv the forces of socialism would invade the youth of America and destroy it from its roots. Then socialism would rule the world. That was Joseph Stalin's dream. That was his goal. America, it is up to you whether you will mock or take heed. The atheistic goals were first made public by the threat of communism, but are now hiding under the mask of Humanism. See the article on Two Views of the World found on the page for Graduating Seniors in the topic list.
Join the battle which has been declared. It is a battle for your children. It is your battle to fight, to win. When Jonah preached to Ninevah he declared the soon coming destruction. Jonah didn't make any if's and's or but's. He plainly said because of your sins, destruction is coming. That's the way it is in America today. There are many who have written about the decline and fall of America. I'm just showing the details of how the children are being affected. It's happening.
The ax has been laid to the very roots of our Constitution. The Supreme Court now makes laws. Not only does it make laws, it overthrows those which have existed for generations upon generations of Americans and calls them unconstitutional. Why? Because of the new morality that says, the end justifies the means, and if it seems good do it. And no man stood strong enough to stop that encroachment when it happened.
The Founders would have denied what the Warren Court did on the grounds of Treason. Why Treason? Because the Founders believed that whosoever attacked the strength and education of Christianity attacked this great nation which was founded on the principles of Christianity. It's OK to exercise free speech on the streets if one wants to attack Christianity, but it is High Treason for a judge to throw down laws that were established to protect Christian education according to individual faith of Americans.
The Socialist minded judges took a bold stroke at our roots and they got away with it. No one impeached them for Treason. Under the power of Mass Media, the public was given opium of "it's all for the good of the nation", and they sat back in their false humility and failed to stand up for Right
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