The Mom, Wife, Dream Life

Disciples are not automatically born with knowledge of Christ; it must be instilled into them, taught to them, and explained to them. 

Are Individuals Naturally Good?

It is safe to say, though, that I believe everyone is born with the Light of Christ, the spirit of God, and the desire to do good. Each baby born is beautiful, perfect, and straight from Heaven. Parents have the most important responsibility to teach their children from a young age who Christ was, who He is, and who he helps us to become.

“Husband and wife have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and their children. “Children are an heritage of the Lord. (Psalm 127:3) Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, and to teach them to love and serve one another, observe the commandments of God, and be law-abiding citizens wherever they live. Husbands and wives—mothers and fathers—will be held accountable before God for the discharge of these obligations… Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities. By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children. In these sacred responsibilities, fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners.”

These words come from one of the most important documents I have ever had the chance of reading, believing, and living as best as I can in my life. This specific document is sacred to me, sacred to my family, to our religion, and sacred to all mankind. It is called “The Family A Proclamation To The World.” You can find the link there and read the spiritual fulfillment from it for yourself.

What Can I Do to Teach My Child to Become Like God?

Well-behaved kids do not happen automatically behave. It takes consistency, patience, love, and responsible parenting to get there. Who better to follow than the greatest example that’s ever lived? Our Savior, Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ taught with ultimate, 100% love and selflessness. He is the greatest Samaritan; he’s kind, gentle, and always willing to welcome anyone with open arms. This is who we need to be looking up to for how to act and live in our own lives. This is how we teach our kids how to be well-behaved. This is how we show them how to be righteous disciples of God.

We are not perfect, but we have the one true example that was and continues to be. Why not look to Him? Why not follow in his footsteps and try our best to live like him? That’s what I want to do, and that is what I will try to do forever onward. 

What Are My Husband and I doing to Raise Well-Behaved Children?

Some things we are doing to raise well-behaved kids include:

• Teaching them manners.
• Reading the Scriptures to help them gain an understanding of them.
• Praying together as a family and letting them say the prayers too.
• Communicating our feelings and explaining why we are feeling them.
• Allowing our children to cry and express their emotions in the ways they can at their ages.
• Respecting their boundaries and allowing them to say “No” with age-appropriate questions and situations (such as asking for a hug).
• Setting boundaries with electronics, screen time, candy, and unhealthy foods.
• Sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with music, stories, scriptures, testimony, videos, etc.
• Showing them what reverence looks like at church, at home, in public, and at family members’ houses.
• Creating an environment (aka our home) full of peace, acceptance, love, and understanding.

Though we are not perfect at doing these things, we have a lot of practice in being patient and trying to do better about these points. It’s not hard to at least try these things. Sure, it might not work for you, or work out exactly how I said, how you imagined, or how you planned, but with consistency and a desire to teach your child or children how to be Disciples of Christ, it is possible. This is just what we do as a family and as a couple to increase our Faith and testimonies in Christ. 

What Can I Learn From My Children?

Just like wanting our children to be well-behaved, God wants us to be well-behaved adults, too. After all, we are all sons and daughters of God, so technically we are all children in the eyes of our Heavenly Father. Therefore, we all have the obligation to be disciples of Christ and the responsibility to be well-behaved, obedient children of God.

Not only are the teachings of Christ necessary to teach our children, but they are also necessary to apply to our own lives so that we may be the teachers our children need to learn discipleship in the first place. I hope we can all be humble enough to look inside ourselves and realize that we are never too far from the embrace of God. To come back and receive his helping hand to become better, to get better, and to do better in our lives. Raising little disciples, not just well-behaved kids, is possible for all parents if we turn to Him, embrace Him into our whole lives and souls. If we are willing to be obedient and we actively and consistently choose to do so as best as we can, only then can we raise the disciples that God needs to further the work of Christ on earth.

“Our goal for raising disciples should be the same as the goal for all disciples: to become more and more like Christ every day.”

“Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” (Proverbs 22:6)

McKenna Sanders

The Mom, Wife, Dream Life Blog

I want to hear from you! Fill out the form below!