Parenting Series

 Do you know what mercy is?

Mercy is “tenderheartedness and compassion toward someone in need” (Tripp p. 195) 

Mercy is “compassion or forgiveness shown toward someone whom it is within one’s power to punish or harm.”  (google)

When I was growing up I was taught that mercy was “unmerited favour”. 

Mr. Tripp asks us to remember what it is, and to also remember, how much we need mercy in our own lives. Can you remember how important mercy is to you in your own walk with the Lord.

Now .. holding that in your mind.  Think about your children. 

Now.. think back to the beginning of this series when we learned about how we should see ourselves as ambassadors.  Parents who represent God to their children. 

So how can you show mercy to your children as you are shown mercy by God?

1. By remembering the mercy you have received.  How God convicts us for our poor actions changing our hearts so that we can better parent our children. 

2. Mercy drives our hearts in compassion to help our children, so we can show them Christ at every opportunity, which helps us show them what is going on in their heart, which helps us leave what must be left to God. 

3. Mercy drives us to admit our failings, to confess them before God and, when needed, before our children. 

4. Mercy requires us root all we say in scripture, relying on God’s words to see us through.  Taking advantage of the opportunities he places before us.

5. Mercy calls us to be slow to anger and ever so quick to forgive.   I have to admit… This one is hard!  Oh it is, I’ve got a quick temper…but I have an equally quick forgiveness bar.  It is so easy to forgive and let things fall to the past.  I need God to help me show grace BEFORE I get angry about things…. oh how I need him in this. 

6. Seeing mercy in action does something odd you know… (at least for me).  Seeing mercy in action calls me to prayer more than anything else.  God has given me grace upon grace and it is SO not deserved….so it helps me to see my need for more grace and mercy so that I can be a better parent to my lad. 

Be a parent of mercy.
Show your children the Lord God who loves you.
And you will be a better parent.
Really.  🙂

Thanks for joining me as I went through Parenting by David Paul Tripp, in the next week or so I’ll be introducing another book.  Which one I’m not entirely certain yet.

This post may contain affiliate links – using affiliate links from A Net in Time helps fuel this blog and our homeschool – thank you!

©2006-2017 A Net In Time. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. A Net In Time . We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites

Rest.  Ah what does the mean?

Sometimes in the busyness of parenting and raising a child we forget something, something that is so vital it is surprising that we forget it. What do we forget?
We have forgotten how to rest in the one we trust most.  God.  To just rest in him.  To remember his grandeur and holiness.

The more we see that part of God, the more we are able to rest in him.  To be burdened, overwhelmed or troubled.

To bring those burdens and feelings before the Lord.  He won’t shame you for them, but he will help you through them, giving you guidance and support.  He does!  God doesn’t call us to parent on our own but to parent with him.

Mr. Tripp refers us to a bible passage

Matt 28:18-20
18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Not your typical parenting passage, but a passage that does speak to what our main purpose in parenting is.  To do everything you can to encourage, call and train your children to be disciples of Christ.   THAT is our job in a nut shell.

And does he leave us to do this on our own?  NO!  He promises to be with us always, even to the end of the age. 

Some things to remember as a Christian parent
1. you won’t be punished for your failure.  
2. you are welcomed by grace to new beginnings
3. you are not left to your limited resources
4. God blesses you with right here, right now wisdom.
5. You do not have to load the burden of your children’s welfare on your shoulders every morning.
6. God will never close his ears to your cries for help.
7. Weakness is not a curse, it’s a blessing.
8. Success is about faithfulness, not results.

Remember.. we can’t change the hearts of our children, and that’s not our job.  Our job is simply to call them to know the Lord, to encourage, help, show the way, but we can’t force it.  Only God can bring them to true faith.

Want to follow along?  Here’s where you can find it.
Amazon.ca: Parenting: 14 Gospel Principles.
Amazon.com: Parenting, by Paul David Tripp.

Did you know that the schoolhouseteachers.com has a parenting section to it?   And one of those classes is about how to raise faithful children?  Cool eh?  You can find it here.

Only $139 US for the entire year, with courses for the entire family from preschool up to parenting.  🙂   Good stuff eh?