Shepherding a Child's Heart

Application Questions for Chapter 5
1. How do you define success? How would your child complete
this sentence? “What Mom and Dad want for me is … ”
2. You are pushed and pulled by the things that are listed under
unbiblical goals. Which of these unbiblical goals influences your
parenting the most adversely?
3. Remember, you are a shaping influence for your children.
What makes you tick? What would you say drives you day by day?
What do you fear, love, feel anxious about? What are the values
taught in your home?
4. Like Old Testament Israel, you are affected by the culture
around you. How has the culture impacted your view of children and
your goals for your children?
5. Are you in tune with the idea of living for the glory of God?
Does that thought pulsate for you, or is it a bland religious idea?
6. What are the subtle ways you are tempted to teach your
children to function in society on its terms?
7.
What mixed signals do you send to your children?

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Examples:
1. “Doing your best is all that matters to me” vs. “I don’t
want to see any more C’s on your report card.”
2. “Life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.”
vs. “Wait till you see what I got for you!”
8. True spiritual shepherding is a matter of nurture, not just
energy spent getting your children saved. How will this affect what
you do with them?
9.
Are the spoken and unspoken rules of your family life
consistent with true spirituality—living for the glory of God?

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Chapter 6
Reworking Your Goals
The first step in building a house is excavation. The excavator’s
job is site preparation. He pushes away the brush, dead trees, and
unwanted stumps to prepare a place to build. Our last chapter was site
preparation; we have cleared the brush. Now we are ready to build on
the site.