Our Children Are Leaving the Faith

The Barna Group reports that 97% of f teens from Christian homes abandon a biblical worldview.¹ Considering that we are labeled as a “Christian nation”, this is a quite alarming statistic. Are you kids going to be ready to persevere in the faith? What can you do as a parent to help them?

We believe that God has given parents a unique opportunity to influence and encourage their children to continue in the faith. To that end, we are excited to announce that we are almost ready to launch a new educational resource, built on unapologetically Christian principles, and specifically designed to equip parents in the task of discipling their children for Jesus Christ!

Coming April 2017...The Christian Discipleship Curriculum

Next month, we are releasing a new core curriculum for homeschool families called the “Christian Discipleship Curriculum.”  This new curriculum will ground students in five areas of study that we believe are critical to passing on the faith to the next generations: 1. Bible,  2. Worldview & Culture, 3. History, 4. Literature, and 5. Christian Character.

Each course is based on these four essential pillars of distinctively Christian education. We believe it is because of a neglect of these pillars that we are seeing our children walk away from the faith and we would encourage you to prioritize these pillars in the educational process of your own children.

Pillar #1 - Family Discipleship

"And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord." (Ephesians 6:4)

Fathers and mothers are responsible for raising their children in the atmosphere of the Lord’s nurture (Deuteronomy 6:7, Ephesians 6:4). Fathers and mothers should teach God’s words in the context of daily life. God calls fathers as leaders of their homes, to be involved in this discipleship at key, strategic points.

“Family discipleship” must involve the consistent and diligent teaching of God’s recommended curriculum: the Bible. Teaching your children the Psalms, Proverbs, and Gospels is essential and basic to a Christian education.

Fathers and mothers must keep a careful eye on their children’s spiritual condition, faith, and character.

Pillar #2 - Biblical Worldview

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, But fools despise wisdom and instruction." (Proverbs 1:7)

What will it look like to teach our children with a biblical worldview? First, Jesus Christ must be preeminent in history, literature, and science (Colossians 1:18). Christ’s kingdom and His church must become more important in the student’s mind than the work of men’s hands in building their own kingdoms.

Secondly, the most essential building block of knowledge (above and beyond every other component) is the fear of God (Proverbs 1:7). The materialism and anti-supernaturalism assumed in modern evolutionary science cannot be tolerated by any Christian family.

Thirdly, our children must be prepared with strong biblical foundations and a robust apologetics methodology (2 Corinthians 10:4-6).

Pillar #3 - Best Teachers, Best Books

"A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone who is perfectly trained will be like his teacher." (Luke 6:40)

The best teachers write the best books. Therefore, we must always prefer Christian teachers over non-Christian teachers because our students will be like those that teach them. The great Christian writings are the compendium of the pastors and teachers God has given the church over 2000 years (Ephesians 4:11). These are the teachers that God has given us.

Abiding and enduring books are a thousand times worth reading over the books that come and go through the centuries. The pagan teachers and writers have become one of the most influential tools of the devil to cause Christian students to stumble. It is wise to set your children at the feet of the best teachers by reading the greatest Christian books.

Pillar #4 - Worship and Life Application

"But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was." (James 1:22-24)

Without life application, knowledge is fleeting and becomes an exercise in pride and self-deception. Discipleship and mentorship must include life application.

The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom, and real reverence will result in worship. Our children must be trained to praise and worship God in the chemistry laboratory.  Worship is the great purpose and end of all of life for the Christian.

Stay tuned for more details as we launch the Christian Discipleship Curriculum Series over the next several weeks!

^{1. http://www.christianitytoday.com/edstetzer/2009/march/barna-how-many-have-biblical-worldview.html,
https://www.barna.com/research/barna-survey-examines-changes-in-worldview-among-christians-over-the-past-13-years/}