The Parenting for Faith Course - Living Rock Church

Introduction

Based on the book Parenting Children for a Life of Faith, the Parenting for Faith course is a video-based resource for communities that can be downloaded or live-streamed. The course, handbooks and promotional materials are all free to download and use or you can purchase a DVD and handbooks if you prefer. It's normally run in a church or small group, but can be used by individuals as well. The goal of the course is to help parents discover that they are perfectly positioned to show their children the reality of a life with God and to empower them to have their own vibrant two-way relationship with him.

Positioned for Influence

Note - to watch this session please sign up for a free account on the Parenting for Faith website. Key idea You are perfectly placed to do this! Summary As parents, we are perfectly positioned and perfectly equipped to daily and easily show our child the reality of a day-to-day life with God – and God has shared with us in the Bible a simple plan for us to encourage our children into a vibrant, two-way relationship with God. Session outline Introduction God-smart or God-connected? Skipping rope spiritual parenting God’s plan for God-connected kids How the course will help Main session Comfortable in the crowd? Showing the tip of the iceberg Creating windows into our relationship with God Inviting our children to connect with God alongside us instead of with us

Making Sense of Life

Note - to watch this session please sign up for a free account on the Parenting for Faith website. Key idea Giving your child a spiritual framework Summary As parents and carers, one of the most powerful things we do is to help our children and teens make sense of the world so they can engage well with it. We give them a framework for navigating life. They need a spiritual framework, too, so they can learn to understand the world with God’s truth all over it. Session outline Introduction We naturally create frameworks for our child’s life Seeing the world as God sees it – a spiritual framework for life Main session How to verbally frame, part 1 – explain everything! How to verbally frame, part 2 – help them see the relationship between God and people in the Bible

Unwinding Wrong Views

Note - to watch this session please sign up for a free account on the Parenting for Faith website. Key idea Helping our children build a healthy understanding of God Summary We can be so keen to help our children connect with God that we forget that they have to want to connect with him. No matter how equipped they are to connect, many choose not to because they find him unlikeable or unappealing. There are five common views of God that children can create in their heads which cause a disconnect. In this session, we’ll think about how we can accidentally contribute to these views and how we can proactively unwind them. Session outline Main session The God disconnect Five common views of God and how to unwind them Journeying to a healthy view of God

Conversational Prayer - Chat

Note - to watch this session please sign up for a free account on the Parenting for Faith website. Key idea Helping our children develop a heart-to-heart connection with God Summary We can all struggle with prayer – and so can our children. Over the next two sessions, we will be looking at releasing our children into a two-way conversation of sharing life with God and him sharing back. 'Chat' is the first stage of that conversation and this session will equip you to introduce your child to chat. Session outline Introduction 'Doing prayer' vs enjoying the relationship What chat is Main session Avoiding the ‘high priest’ role Learning to do ‘chat’ The overflow of chat

Conversational Prayer - Catch

Note - to watch this session please sign up for a free account on the Parenting for Faith website. Key idea Being ready to hear from God with our whole body and mind Summary Helping our child to hear God’s voice is one of the most precious gifts we can give them. Jesus' death and resurrection not only bought us the ability to talk to God personally, but also bought us the ability to hear his voice clearly and confidently. 'Catch' is just a way of showing children how to be prepared and expectant with their whole bodies to receive God's communication. Session outline Introduction God loves speaking to his people and has created us to be able to hear him Main session Samuel and Eli Developing a language – 'catch' How does God speak to us? Discerning God’s voice

Surfing the Waves

Note - to watch this session please sign up for a free account on the Parenting for Faith website. Key idea Building on our children’s connection with God Summary So far we've discussed some important principles about how to parent for faith, but as with any part of parenting it’s a job for life! So how do we continue to disciple our child on this journey? In this session, we will learn about a simple six-stage model that will enable you to proactively disciple your child whether they are 4, 14 or 40, and how, as our children’s spiritual lives come in waves, we can jump on board to disciple our children in any season of life. Session outline Main session Passing on our values - a fan for life! The six-stage model - chat and catch

Prayer Ministry for Children

Note - to watch this session please sign up for a free account on the Parenting for Faith website. Key idea Helping our children connect when it's tough Summary Sometimes our children need a bit of help connecting with God. This could be because they are having a hard day or because they are struggling to connect. Sometimes they just need someone alongside them. On those days, we as parents can help our children meet with God face-to-face. In this session, we will be looking at a simple model of prayer ministry designed for use with children and teens to ensure we keep our high-priest hats off and our coach heads on, and we will be giving it a go ourselves. Session outline Main session Not praying for them, but helping them to pray A child and teen-friendly model Six steps What if I’ve caught from God? What if my child’s stuck? It’s designed to be an everyday part of life

Helping Children Connect with Church

Note - to watch this session please sign up for a free account on the Parenting for Faith website. Key idea Thriving, not just surviving! Summary For most Christians, getting our children to church and hoping they love it occupies a large part of our brains! But our kids don't always enjoy church and often don't want to be there, and we can feel powerless to help them engage. In this session we will look at how we can help our children grow in the biblical values of what church is and their place in it, so they feel connected, powerful and loved in their communities. Session outline Introduction A bleak picture? Main session Your secret weapon: No matter what the church is doing, I can… Applying the six-stage circle - worship Applying the six-stage circle - radical love Doesn't the church need to change?