While praying about which character trait to focus on for my monthly devotional, the word “secure” kept coming to my mind. This is not a traditional character trait that we tend to focus on as parents, and I tried to brush it away, but I felt God continuing to press it into my heart.
As I continued to pray and seek God on the matter, I felt that He wants us as parents to focus on security, because it is one of the most important attributes our children need to thrive in this life.
I began to think about this truth more, and it’s really undeniable – security is well documented in research as a primary need in children and humans in general. Dr. Larry Crab in his book, The Marriage Builder, talks about its importance for a strong marriage, and Dr. Tim Kimmel in Grace Based Parenting also discusses the importance of instilling a sense of security into our children. If you do a Google search, you will find a plethora of books on security.
So why is it so important? If you think about it, most of the terrible things that we pray won’t ever happen to our kids WON’T HAPPEN if they have rock-solid security in their relationship with Jesus.
Let’s think about this for a minute. If our children have a secure foundation in their relationship with Jesus:
-They are less likely to struggle with difficulties such as depression, anxiety, eating disorders, and self harm behaviors (aside from biological predispositions)
-They won’t give into peer pressure
-They will have their deepest needs met in God and will not look to drugs, alcohol, and unhealthy relationships for fulfillment.
And those terrible tragedies that are not a result of our children’s choices, but just happen as a result of living in a fallen world, will not overtake our children if they find their security in Jesus. Sure, they may go through difficult times, but they will be able to get through those trials, as bad as they may seem, because their sense of worth comes from Jesus, not their circumstances.
While security in God is not something we can control, we can teach our kids the important truths that the Holy Spirit can use to touch their hearts. Here are the truths we will focus on in this four-day devotional:
- God made you special.
- God forgives you and loves you no matter what.
- God is always with you.
- God has a plan for you.
As we walk through this Secure Heart Devotional with our children, let’s pray that God works in our precious ones’ hearts to give them a rock-solid security that can only come from Him!
Click here to watch a quick intro video to learn more about this devotional.
