Even with disappointments, raising children is the greatest thing you will ever do. Grace parenting is all about raising your children not to recognize your fences built by law and fear, but a heart that recognizes rebellion to God’s grace…
Psalm 51:1-4 NLT
1 Have mercy on me, O God, because of Your unfailing love. Because of Your great compassion, blot out the stain of my sins. 2 Wash me clean from my guilt. Purify me from my sin. 3 For I recognize my rebellion; it haunts me day and night. 4 Against You, and You alone, have I sinned; I have done what is evil in Your sight. You will be proved right in what You say, and Your judgment against me is just.
How children turn out is far more contingent on what is going on inside them than outside them, unnecessarily tight boundaries undermine the desire of the Holy Spirit, Who is working to build a sense of moral resolve in their hearts…
I. What does a grace-based family look like?
A. Grace-based parents spend their time
B. They live to know
C. Their children are the daily recipients of the
D. They are especially graceful when their children are
Luke 2:39-52 TPT
39 When Mary and Joseph had completed everything required of them by the law of
Moses, they took Jesus and returned to their home in Nazareth in Galilee. 40 The child grew more powerful in grace, for He was being filled with wisdom, and the favor of God was upon Him. 41 Every year Jesus’ parents went to worship at Jerusalem during the Passover festival. 42 When Jesus turned twelve, His parents took Him to Jerusalem to observe the Passover, as was their custom. 43 A full day after they began their journey home, Joseph and Mary realized that Jesus was missing. 44 They had assumed He was somewhere in their entourage, but He was nowhere to be found. After a frantic search among relatives and friends, 45Mary and Joseph returned to Jerusalem to search for Him. 46 After being separated from Him for three days, they finally found Him in the temple, sitting among the Jewish teachers, listening to them and asking questions. 47 All who heard Jesus speak were astounded at His intelligent understanding of all that was being discussed and at His wise answers to their questions. 48 His parents were shocked to find Him there, and Mary scolded Him, saying, “Son, Your father and I have searched for You everywhere! We have been worried sick over not finding You. Why would You do this to us?” 49 Jesus said to them, “Why would you need to search for Me? Didn’t you know that it was necessary for Me to be here in my Father’s house, consumed with Him?” 50Mary and Joseph didn’t fully understand what Jesus meant. 51 Jesus went with them back home to Nazareth and was obedient to them. His mother treasured Jesus’ words deeply in her heart. 52As Jesus grew, so did His wisdom and maturity. The favor of men increased upon His life, for He was loved greatly by God.
E. When your children are hardest to love, your advice should look like this…
1. You are a
2. You may struggle doing the
Never forget that most issues that require discipline with your children are not about
II. Grace-based families are a breath of fresh air…
A. When it comes to boundaries, their exhortation to their children would be, “If it
B. Graceparents are
C. They process their day-to-day life with an air of
Romans 8:38-39 TPT
38 So now I live with the confidence that there is nothing in the universe with the
power to separate us from God’s love. I’m convinced that His love will triumph over
death, life’s troubles fallen angels, or dark rulers in the heavens. There is nothing in our present or future circumstances that can weaken His love. 39 There is no power above us or beneath us—no power that could ever be found in the universe that can distance us from God’s passionate love, which is lavished upon us through our Lord Jesus, the Anointed One!
1. The
2. They are especially
Psalms 23:4 TPT
4 Lord, even when Your path takes me through the valley of deepest darkness, fear will never conquer me, for You already have! You remain close to me and lead me through it all the way. Your authority is my strength and my peace. The comfort of Your love takes away my fear I’ll never be lonely, for You are near.
3. Parents who operate by
4. When a child’s