Do You Shelter Your Children?
Written by bunnytrails on May 29, 2008 – 1:00 am -
Do you “shelter” your children?
That’s a bad word in some circles, we’re finding. Something is creeping into the church (and even the homeschooling community) and it isn’t biblical. It is an “anti-sheltering campaign” of sorts, and it’s full of holes. Think about it. What does it mean to shelter? Protect. Defend. Guard. Preserve. Watch over. Shield. Safeguard. Hmmmm, so far so good, right? Sure, until “pop psychology” comes in and tells us that we should allow our children to taste a little of the world in order to understand it or pray for it. That we should not “over-shelter” them. Nonsense.
What’s the opposite of shelter? Expose. Endanger. We parents are called to be like our Father in Heaven. He is the greatest “Shelterer” there ever was, and it is us He shelters – or watches over; protecting us, preserving us, shielding us. Praise Him for this! Glory to God who knows how to parent (shelter) us perfectly. May we as parents follow this model – His model. Let’s continue to shelter (love) our children as He loves us. Dismiss the garbage that crawls in; don’t buy it. We’re promised there will be false teachers, liars in the church. I want to keep my eyes focused on Christ, come what may.
Parents: Keep sheltering them. You are bringing them up in the love and admonition of the Lord, not in the latest speaker/teacher. May you be blessed as you continue to walk in obedience! Lord, thank you for sheltering me. Please never stop. “Over-shelter” if You will (if there is such a thing). Fine with me! Over-protect, Over-defend, Over-guard me; please do! I’ll take it all, Lord. Keep me tight to Your side. I’m safe there. There, I can breathe. It’s where I live.
For thou hast been a shelter for me, and a strong tower from the enemy.
-Psalm 61:3
Gena Suarez
The Old Schoolhouse Magazine
Posted in Thursday Thoughts |
May 29th, 2008 at 9:44 am
Excellent post!! So often I have heard we ’shelter’ our children too much - but I don’t think there is truly such thing when it is done according to the Word.
I think (most) people just don’t understand the concept. The unfortunate thing is when relatives speak words of untruth to our children in regard to how they are being raised. I recently even had one of the kids say something about being a ‘prisoner’. Now, you would think from that comment they were not allowed outside - or were locked in their room all day, and nothing is farther from the truth. Our kids just don’t have what the world sees has ‘normal’ freedoms. I have said to so many people recently - our society has gotten two words confused ‘normal’ and ‘norm’. What has become the ‘norm’ (allowing our children to partake in all sorts of evil) - is not ‘normal’. BIG difference.
Thank you so much for your words of encouragement. They are balm to this mother’s heart!!
Blessings -
Camille
May 29th, 2008 at 11:58 pm
Thank you Gena. Sometimes it takes finding the opposite of a word in order to find a better definition. Christians have been fed too many lies and it’s time we rise up and proclaim the truth of the matter. Thank you for having TOS. A friend gave me a copy when I first brought my kids home. I loved it so much I subscribed then subscribed for her as well.
June 9th, 2008 at 12:29 pm
My thoughts exactly! I will take my Father’s sheltering any day over what the world will give me. I have been accused of sheltering my children too. Once, when one of my daughters was 6 (and still on training wheels) a friend invited her over to play. His mother suggested she just “ride her bike over”– across a very busy road. “My kids ride over there all the time,” was her reasoning. My daughter was riding with training wheels and *NOT* consciously watching for cars even, at that point! This mother could simply not understand why I insisted on DRIVING her the four blocks to their house, and she told me my daughter would never grow up to be an independent person if I didn’t allow her to ride her bike over. She is now 16, and *very* independent and trustworthy. Sheltering is not a bad thing, it is a necessary part of parenting. Thanks for the great post.