by Dennis and Barbara Rainey
June 22
Where Are the Parents? 2 Timothy 2:22
Now flee from youthful lusts, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.
I wish I heard more Christian parents struggling over how they will help their preteens and teenagers control these dangerous sexual desires. But I don't.For almost three decades many Christian parents have watched as our culture has performed surgery on our children's morals-an amputation of conscience. It's no mistake that schools are full of kids who do not know right from wrong.
The bottom line is we are not challenging our youths with a high enough standard. You and I know our culture is calling them into immorality. The forces today are simply too powerful for our youths to handle their sexual urges alone. We need to help them learn how to avoid kicking their sex drives into high gear.
A lot of parents pass this responsibility on to their youth pastors. But they are no substitute for parents who will train their kids about sex.
Barbara and I are the God-appointed guardians of our children's purity. Will we be 100 percent successful? Sadly, no. We will fail. And our children are not robots; they will make some choices and will fall short at times. Rather than lowering biblical standards, however, we want to help our kids (and you) go for the gold: innocence.
When I hear parents talking, I sense many feel pretty helpless to protect their sons and daughters from getting involved sexually prior to marriage. Others are confused; they aren't sure what is right or which direction to go, so they say very little to their children, or nothing at all.
Yet kids want their parents to challenge them. They need parents who will help them protect their innocence. In fact, I'm starting to read surveys that show teenagers are upset at adults who assume they are going to have sex before marriage. They want to be challenged to something higher, something better.
Prayer:
For the families in your church and community. Pray for a movement of parents who would join you in protecting their children's innocence.
Discuss: As a parent, how do you feel about your responsibility to help your children control their sex drives?