# Lessons Learned From the Book of Life, Part 2

## Metadata
- Author: [[Faith, Family, and Freedom with Curtis Bowers]]
- Full Title: Lessons Learned From the Book of Life, Part 2
- Category: #podcasts
- URL: https://share.snipd.com/episode/33fb36a4-f562-4019-93e3-187c83ba1e40
## Highlights
- Practicing What You Preach: Parenting Principles and Family Bonds
Summary:
Practicing what you preach as a parent creates a vital consistency that influences children's behavior positively.
Children learn significant lessons from their parents’ actions; demonstrating honesty and transparency helps them perceive their parents as genuine role models. Instead of allowing children to dictate daily choices before age ten, parents should assert authority to establish a sense of order and responsibility, thereby avoiding confusion about roles.
Developing healthy eating habits early on fosters positive tastes, shaping lifelong preferences.
Regular family worship and memorization of scripture instill discipline, self-control, and a robust moral foundation.
Parents are encouraged to model and explain the reasons behind instructions, enhancing understanding. Creating unique family traditions fosters pride and unity, while involvement in beneficial activities strengthens familial bonds. It is essential to engage in pursuits that build the family independently, preparing them to thrive even when external support fades. Ultimately, instilling values early, encouraging obedience, and nurturing a strong family identity lead to children who are well-equipped to navigate the world.
Transcript:
Speaker 1
Parents, grandparents, future parents and grandparents. Here's some things, a few things I've learned in my life. I'm still in the process of raising my family so I'm not speaking as one who says you know do what I did or anything like that. I'm still praying that God will have mercy on our efforts and allow our children to break free from the world's lies and live a life that's pleasing to him that's standing for truth and Righteousness. But I have learned a lot of things from different people and tried to implement a lot of different things in our life. But I guess rule number one, Brandon, and everybody else is as a parent, practice what you preach. Make sure you are being the person you want your children to be. It's so vital that that consistency in our life, people are drawn to that when they see your words and your actions match. It's rare today, but when they see it people are drawn to that. It allows us to have more influence for the right reasons. There's a poem I think I've shared once before, but it goes like this. I'd rather see a sermon than hear one any day. I'd rather you walk with me than merely point the way. The eye is a more ready pupil than ever was the ear. Good advice is often confusing, but example is always clear. That's what you want to be as a parent. You want to be an example where you are walking the walk, talking the talk, and when you make a mistake and stumble you, I'm so sorry for that, that was wrong, to say that or do that, or you're Just being transparent so they see if nothing else, mom and dad are the real thing. I think thing we learned growing up and raising our children, I wish I would have done a little more faithfully, is until they're about ten years old, don't ask them all the questions Parents normally do. What do you want to wear today? What do you want for breakfast? What book do you want to read? Do you want to do now? It's like we're training them to believe they are the boss. Because we always ask them everything. What shoes would you like to wear? Do you want an apple or an orange? Whatever. All these things. We're telling them indirectly. You're the boss. Because I always ask you for permission to, or what you want to do. You're the one that decides that. And I think as we did that with some of our kids more, because it's natural to do it that way, but I don't think it's the right way. I would say until your child's about ten, don't ever ask them anything. Just say, oh, this morning for breakfast we're having oatmeal and oh and then we're gonna read this book today and here's what I would like you to wear today where they start to learn at A young age that the parents were the boss and they learn how to submit to that authority and if they're like oh I don't want to wear that say that's what you need to wear in our family if we Had something to eat you're like I don't like that then you were going to have it the next couple meals for your food, whatever it was. You learn real quickly, I better just eat it, whether I like it or not, and be grateful I have something to eat. To just, what do you want? And how much more would you like this? Would you like that? Or we're always lying to the children by the way we treat them into believing they're the boss. So then when we say it's time to go to bed now, they're like, no, I don't want to. Well, they're confused. They're like, why do you get to tell me when to go to bed? But I get to pick everything else. Anyway, something I've learned I think is very important. Eating very healthy, I think is a great gift you could give your children. I'm so thankful my parents did that, so that you acquire a taste and you had to eat everything on your plate. But you acquired a taste for what is good. And then all the junk and stuff like no, no, no. We always had plenty of the good stuff and so we weren't allowed to have the bad stuff and I am so grateful I see now today you know 40 years later from growing up a lot of my friends who parents Let him have candy bars and cokes and all the time once they got on their own or that no one is directing your your path. You go over to their house and they open up their fridge all it is is junk food donuts and coke and candy and junk. And I'm like they acquired a taste for that when they were young. Where they were allowed just to have too much of that. And so then once they were in authority where they can decide what they're going to eat or not. They said well I just love that stuff. So that's all they eat. But anyway, I would just really encourage you that bad habits that start early aren't breakable most of the time. I've noticed that. I'm sure you still can, but it seems so, so hard. Another thing I've encouraged you in, parents, grandparents, maybe it's with the grandkids or whatever, but lots of Bible. Family worship every day. Singing a few hymns, reading a few verses, the father explaining them to the family, talking about those things and then praying together. And then also, we didn't do this quite as faithfully as this, but I think starting at two years old, if you have a memorized two verses a week, every week the rest of their life, they'd skip The habit two verses, you memorize them and then you save them the next week. I think the gift you're giving them in hiding God's word in their heart will be something that is priceless in the long run like Proverbs says. We had our children memorize the book of Proverbs and some of them were still working on that. But the girls that did that very quickly I've just seen the blessing of their life from having all those Proverbs hid in their heart where they know what it means to be wise. I think if you train early and often instant cheerful obedience is the only option. Starting at 12 months old they learn you have to obey and you have to obey cheerfully which is honoring your parents. Why do parents want that? Well the Bible says if you honor your parents things will go well with thee. I mean that's the most incredible promise ever. God says that you honor them it will go well with thee which means if you do not honor them it will not go well with thee. And so you realize I really want to teach my children to honor me not because I have any value it's because God told them to do that. And if they honor me I know things will go well with them. So that's why we teach, humbly teach this. I'm nobody, but God said to do this. So please try to do this. And then you parents and grandparents try to be honorable people. Or it's easier to do that. Because you are loving and kind and consistent and faithful. ([Time 0:07:00](https://share.snipd.com/snip/d90afbba-1719-4e00-8d3d-c86a4e65a0b7))