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To: nmh

"Where you and I may not agree is that a child has NO wisdom."

Whether or not this is true does not nullify the fact that teenagers want to be independent and make their own choices.

"That's where the parents have to "live it" and help them grow in wisdom. In our house my daughter doesn't have a "choice" in being a Christian. She's happy yo be on with how we go about it."

That's a good thing, but many kids who are forced against their will to be Christians often rebel because they don't feel supported, or trusted to make their own spiritual decisions. Faith is very personal, and comes right from the heart and can't be forced from outside the heart. You can't force one to love Christ by forcing him to attend church. Christ doesn't look upon a church attendee and bless him because he was drug there, He looks upon those with "circumcized hearts" with favor, regardless of church attendance.
I have seen both ends of the spectrum and how you deal with this issue depends on the child's nature and personality type. A passive child will accept anything, while a dominant child won't. He has to come into it on his own. Hence, he is raised with full knowledge, but the decision to accept Christ as his personal savior is his decision and his alone because your relationship with God is between two people. The story of Saul is most inspiring in this respect. He rebelled and rebelled, but because of his personality type, it took an act of Christ to move his heart.


213 posted on 02/15/2005 9:47:03 AM PST by followerofchrist
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To: followerofchrist
A good parent knows how to mold the will of the child without breaking the spirit. It's really not hard to do. I would NEVER give my daughter a "choice" about it.
215 posted on 02/15/2005 3:28:24 PM PST by nmh (Intelligent people recognize Intelligent Design (God).)
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To: followerofchrist

I missed part of your reply.

My daughter isn't the passive type! LOL! We also spank her when necessary. Ultimately it is a persoanl relationship and a choice however as parents we don't offer "choices". For example I don't explore other beliefs to see which one she wants to pursue. She can do that later when she is better grounded. The time to get to a person is when they are a child.


216 posted on 02/15/2005 3:31:34 PM PST by nmh (Intelligent people recognize Intelligent Design (God).)
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