Author: Jim Corbett

Did you know that in God’s eyes there is no such thing as a generation gap? That whole concept is nothing more than spiritually ignorant, psycho-babble hogwash. Spiritually alive parents who have chosen to invest in their children, considering them more important than themselves and spiritually alive children, who have chosen to invest in the family by the power of the Holy Spirit, have no time to buy into that ridiculousness.

The generation gap concept was created by spiritually impotent people, who attempted to incorporate their impotence into guiding and directing their offspring. It is nothing more than a way to excuse their inability to lead their children as they continue to walk in their own ways and thinking. What they really need to do is submit to God through Jesus Christ so that the life of Christ can flow in them through the power of the Holy Spirit. It is God’s wisdom, strength, love, etc. that we need – not ours. Ours will not truly get the job done. Of course, each generation has its own tastes and preferences; but communication, understanding, mutual love and respect, discernment, and prayer overcome any differences and allow generations to flow together with peace and harmony.

Raising godly children requires a lifetime of investing in them, most of the time in ways that violate our personal comfort zones. It is going to take a lot of surrender of our own ways to the Lord, a lot of prayer, a lot of selfless choices, placing their well-being above our comfort; and a lot of heart work. Yes, heart work. However, the eventual satisfaction and rewards of seeing a child being formed by God and the character of Jesus going forth through our children more than compensates for whatever price we may have to pay.

Godly children, who eventually become godly adults, are the goal and heart desire of Father God for both marriage and family. His standards are higher than the world’s standards and most of the standards in the typical church of today. He is after the heart of our children, not their compliance. His methods raise the bar in comparison with “normal” child rearing.

[While education is vitally important and must be part of any child’s growth process, which child lives a more significant life – one who has all of the degrees in the world, a successful business, and a mediocre life in Christ; or one who has the priorities of God as his priority, dedicating himself to bringing others to significance while having few of the successes of the world?]

Investing in our children God’s way creates generations of strong, healthy children, who are full of integrity and inner wealth and capable of not only overcoming any of the challenges that come their way, but actually prospering because of them. Raising children God’s way brings proper credit to the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ and a testimony of His eternal work.

Knowing this, each of us has a choice to make at some point in our lives. This moment may be that time for you. You can approach child rearing with an attitude that your children are the ones who need to conform to His ways on their own, or you can settle it in your heart, once and for all time, that who you are and who you become in Christ is a major factor in determining who they will become.

Let’s talk more!

Jim Corbett

Fathers, are you only disciplining your children when they do something wrong, or do you spend your life nurturing them in the path they should go? Discipline alone on a continual basis leads to a “I can never do anything right” attitude in a child. It leads to a beaten spirit that says, “Why try? He won’t like what I do anyway.” This attitude fosters the seeds of rebellion and heart separation. It turns a child away from a father’s sound biblical influence of love and encouragement to his or her peers’ worldly perspective.

Nurturing, on the other hand, leads to loving interaction and proper companionship between father and child. Their relationship is like the one between a craftsman and his apprentice.

A true craftsman is a person with practiced skills, skills that over time make him an expert because of the perfection found in his work. When a craftsman takes on an apprentice, the purpose of their association is to hand down the craftsman’s skills to someone who chooses to be a study of him. The craftsman guides, instructs, directs, and nurtures the skills of the apprentice with understanding and patience as he learns. It is a relationship for the good of the apprentice. When the skills handed down are mastered by the apprentice, he is then a craftsman himself and the process is completed. The new craftsman has what is necessary to function properly in what he does.

So it is supposed to be with a father-child relationship. The father - a man who has learned what he knows from the throne room of his Father - is ordained to pass those skills down to his offspring by guiding, instructing, and teaching his children so they can navigate their time in the world with Christ-like character. This teaching includes loads of love, encouragement, and enthusiastic monitoring. The result for you is a person who is ready to function as a significant legacy. The benefit to the child is the ability to fulfill his or her task of representing Christ properly to a dying world. Your children are waiting for the wealth you have to give them!

Let’s talk more!

Jim Corbett

Whether it looks like it or not at this time, your children need you to be a godly father to them. No matter how far they may be into the world or how far they seem to be OK without your loving input in their lives, they need you.

If you’ve taken on the role of disciplinarian and minimized the role of nurturing father, the relationship with your child has more than likely gone south. Any form of real, loving communication is more than likely a thing of the past. If that is the case, your input into their lives is less than minimal and in some cases non-existent.

I had a friend who counseled a man and his daughter. Their only form of communication was loud, aggressive, and wounding at every turn. It was clear that both parties had long ago abandoned any hope of meaningful interaction. The possibility of joy in their relationship was hopelessly off the radar.

Here’s the counsel my friend gave the father in front of the daughter. For the next two weeks, he was to allow her to express anything - even her deepest hurts, angers, and wounds that he had created - without fear of any return comment, defense, or grudge on his part. He promised to keep his mouth shut and allow her to express anything she wanted.

For the first four days, a torrent of his violations toward her - real or perceived - poured from her heart. Wounds from long ago - most of them long forgotten by the father - spewed forth every time she opened her mouth. On about the fifth day, something pretty incredible happened. It started with her asking questions about his violations. He began to apologize and accept the blame for everything without transferring it to her in any way. She responded to that with tears and deeper communication of her wounds. He simply started to hold her close, physically and in his heart.

After about a week, meaningful dialog became part of their lives. They decided to hold each other in high esteem. The relationship took on the glow of love rather than the fire of anger. Beginning steps were made to a long, proper father-daughter relationship. This may not be something for you, but ask the Lord for His direction in your situation. You are the daddy. You begin the healing by humbling yourself in any way that the Lord directs. Will you do it for His sake and theirs?

Let’s talk more!

Jim Corbett