Joe Thorn recently shared on his blog an interesting question his young son asked while discussing salvation. This can be an encouragement for when we parents practice Deuteronomy 6.
My son got in a bit of trouble yesterday morning. He was yelling at his sister who was not playing the way he wanted. I told him to stay in his room by himself for a while while his sisters played elsewhere. A little later I told him to come in and talk with me. We laid on my bed, looking up at the ceiling, and talked about sin, salvation and sanctification. It wasn’t a lecture, but a conversation. It was good. It’s the kind of thing we talk about when we sit in our house, walk by the way, when we lie down, and when we rise.
At one point I was explaining that once we trust in Jesus, God not only rescues us from the penalty of our sin (justification), but he changes us, and begins to make us more like Jesus (sanctification). My six-year-old asked, “Do we get superowers?!” He wasn’t trying to be funny.
I answered, “Yes, we do get superpowers. 9 of them in fact. These are powers we didn’t have before believing, and after believing these powers grow stronger as we continue to follow Jesus. The powers are: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”
Elias said, “No. I mean, like, powers that let you do things!”
I explained, “Are you kidding? Patience and self-control are far more powerful and life changing than web-slinging or shape-shifting.” And from there we continued to talk simply and practically about the power of God that is not only for us to save us, but also in us to change us. I love these conversations.
Be sure to read the rest of his post for more info.
Great conversation. That is part of the “in season, out of season” type of sharing the Word. You could move from there to the Proverbs passage that says the man who controls his temper is stronger than a warrior who conquers a city.
I love it! This is true parenting!