Ministering to Children in Difficult Times

I have appreciated Brian Croft's ministry for some time now. His book, Visit the Sick, Ministering God's Grace in Times of Illness is a particular favorite. Recently Mez McConnell re-posted his blog post on ministering to children in tough times. He spoke with a young child whose father left the family. In it we read

God teaches us important lessons when we suffer.  A very thoughtful question that came from her mouth was, “Why is God allowing my daddy to leave?  If God is good to us, then why would he allow this?”  Yes…only 6 years old.  I cannot tell her, her daddy will come home and everything will be alright.  I do not know.  What I did say is she needed to know a common way God is at work in the lives of all Christians, regardless our age.  God teaches us some amazing lessons when we suffer.  We may not see them now, but we will see them clearer when some time has passed.  I believe this smart little girl as well as other children can begin to understand this merciful quality about our sovereign God.

Very sound and Biblical advice. Advice even we as adults can and should apply during difficult circumstances.

He concludes with the following

Jesus will always be there for you.  I am uncertain if her daddy will come home, but I am certain that if this little girl trusts in Jesus Christ, Jesus will never forsake her or her mom.  Whether 6 years old or 60 years old, we must always turn the eyes of others off the struggle and urge them to fix their eyes upon Christ (Heb. 12:2).  I reminded her that even though those she loves in her life will let her down, Jesus will never forsake her.  I shared the gospel with her and allowed this to be a key time for her to see her need for Christ both for forgiveness of sin as well as to have a King and Father who will always be with her.

...Speak truth.  Remind children of the character of God and that he is faithful even in suffering.  Remind them of their need for Christ.  Do not be amazed years later if you look back on this painful moment as a turning point in that child’s faith as they grasped the truth of God’s Word because of a heightened desire for answers that provide hope. 

Extreme suffering is not a bad thing that we must endure. God gets glory and works in us to produce faith and good works. Let's embrace these times and those of others, especially children.

Read the entire article here. 

Parents & Children - Colossians 3:20-21

    Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged.
(Colossians 3:20-21 ESV)

Let Them Come - Mark 10:13-16

    And they were bringing children to him that he might touch them, and the disciples rebuked them. But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on them.
(Mark 10:13-16 ESV)

We castrate and bid the geldings be fruitful

This will be a sorrowful Christmas for many in Newtown and, indeed, around the country. This is almost an unbelievable tragedy and yet the bigger question, as we look down through man's past, is why does not happen more? That it does not happen more in our safe, little American towns makes it all the more tragic when it does. And so, we search for answers. Our secular media interviews myriads of psychologists, psychiatrists, and mental health workers in an effort to help their viewing American public come to terms. Yet, there are no answers without Christ. It seemed appropriate for one news channel to report that Newtown folks would be gathering at the local church for prayer and comfort but returned to the secular purveyors of mental health for the "how's and why's." Indeed, an increased use of the adjective evil has been heard repeatedly on the news channels. But I think the term is unjustified, for at its root it must be defined in Biblical terms, without properly defining and employing its opposite defined in the same manner. Douglas Wilson nails it

It is not possible to build a culture around a denial of God-given standards, and then arbitrarily reintroduce those standards at your convenience, whenever you need a word like evil to describe what has just happened. Those words cannot just be whistled up. If we have banished them, and their definitions, and every possible support for them, we need to reckon with the fact that they are now gone. Cultural unbelief, which leads inexorably to cultural nihilism and despair, is utterly incapable of responding appropriately to things like this, while remaining fully capable of creating them. In the prophetic words of C.S. Lewis, “In a sort of ghastly simplicity we remove the organ and demand the function. We make men without chests and expect of them virtue and enterprise. We laugh at honour and are shocked to find traitors in our midst. We castrate and bid the geldings be fruitful.”

Doug Wilson

So this is a good time to reflect but not just on the tragedy but on the Maker and Creator of the universe. The One who will bring justice for the sufferers of this situation. The One who will make all things right at the end of time. And the One who comforts the broken and hurting now.

So we must confess that while the spirit of Christ is alive in the world, the spirit of Herod is not yet gone. And the only way to expel that kind of darkness is to boldly proclaim that Jesus came into this world precisely to destroy this kind of darkness through His death and resurrection. He was born in Bethlehem from Mary, and He was born again in Jerusalem, the first born from the dead. His grave, just like Mary, was full of grace. - Doug Wilson

Our Kids in the Digital Realm

Outstanding video from David Murray on training our kids to properly use Facebook.


Facebook Training for Kids from Puritan Reformed on Vimeo.