When the disciples heard their purpose, to be fishers of men, they were so excited that they dropped their nets to immediately follow Him. It’s interesting that in Jesus’ first encounter with His disciples, rather than work on their sin issues or build their flawed character, Jesus calls them to a purpose of making disciples. Oftentimes we think that our children need to be fully mature before God can use them. We think they have to fully know and understand God’s Word and work through their many character flaws, and then when they are older, God will give them a purpose in His kingdom. But Jesus shows us a different model.



















1. Know God’s Love
Before our kids can love others as Jesus does, they need to experience Jesus’ love for themselves. In John 15 above, Jesus commanded His disciples to love others as He first loved them. How can our children truly experience God’s love?
Our kids first get a glimpse of God’s love through us.
Imagine with me that you and your kids have been planning all month to go to the zoo during Spring Break. Your children used the zoo map to create a well-planned tour through the zoo, making sure not to miss any of their favorite animals. The morning of your zoo trip, you wake to pouring rain. What now?
You know your zoo has a rain-or-shine policy and you won’t get your money back. You don’t have a poncho that will fit your youngest child and you don’t want your stroller to get soaked. What are your options?
As I have been searching the Scriptures to discover what character traits Jesus taught His disciples, I have noticed that one of the virtues He emphasized most frequently was humility. I wonder if this is because we humans have such a hard time being humble, or if humility is one of the foundational character traits to acquire in order to develop other virtues, such as a servant’s heart. In order for our kids to learn to serve others with the right attitude, they must first learn humility. Here are a few ways we see Jesus teaching this important virtue to His disciples.
This month we will discuss how Jesus taught his disciples to be like Him in character. He did this through His example, explaining why character is important, highlighting other people’s character, and through correction and encouragement.
One of the character traits Jesus focused on with His disciples was obedience, or teaching His disciples to follow His ways.
Jesus taught the disciples obedience.
Easter is around the corner, and it is one of children’s favorite holidays- mostly for one reason alone- CANDY! What kid doesn’t love to wake up to a basket-full of candy or do an egg hunt and see how much candy he or she received!
Guest Post: By Mindy Hite
I would like to introduce Mindy Hite to you, a dear friend, speaker, author, and mom of three boys, who is sharing with us today about protecting our kids from the lies of the enemy. For more information on Mindy and her wonderful resources, check out her bio at the bottom of this post.
A Mama Heart Like Jesus: Finding Great Christian Movies for Kids
One way we can encourage our kids in their faith, character, and love for Jesus is by letting them watch good Christian movies with a Biblical message. Kids are drawn to screens, whether we like it or not, so what better way to encourage them by providing a message of truth rather than one full of the world’s lies?
Equipping Our Kids to Be in the World But Not of the World
If you have been around church lingo or attended Bible studies, you have probably heard the term “to be in the world but not of the world” based off of John 17 (see above). This is an important concept to teach our kids because as Mamas, we cannot shelter our kids completely from the world, nor did Jesus do this with his disciples. Jesus taught his disciples to be in the world, but to not live as the world lives. In order to learn from Jesus, let’s look at three ways He taught His disciples to be in the world but not live like the world.
3 Ways to Protect Our Children From Evil
“If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.” Matthew 5:29 (ESV)
1. Jesus taught His followers to stay away from evil.