Is My Child Limited By Me?

By Laura Krokos Nov 7, 2014

Did you know the verses about training a child in the way they should go is actually talking about career training. Training a child to use their abilities, talents and resources to make Jesus known is a big stewardship.

I am just about to finish Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell (which is absolutely fascinating!) and he has gathered a ton of research and basically come to the conclusion that people are good at things because of the time put into it. It’s not about how gifted someone is, rather it’s about the amount of time they had to devote. He shows example after example of how the opportunities each person was given gave them the gift of time to devote to something that then led to success. So devoted practice time equals success. But of course, we see that all over Proverbs. Seeking, or putting in effort leads to success.

So if we want our kids to succeed at things, they just need time devoted to it. So our kids can do anything. That’s a scary, weighty and inspiring thought. So how do we decide? Is it what we want them to do or what we think they would like to do? Or is it what fits in the schedule or what we can afford?

My husband and I have been wrestling through this question and as a result started a Kids Development Journal.

Our kids exist to glorify God, which basically means to make Him known. In the journal I have made a section for each of our kids and written down their strengths and weaknesses spiritually, physically, socially and psychologically (emotionally and mentally). Then with the end goal in mind of them knowing God and making Him known with their life figuring out which areas we need to focus on. Then with those main ones we can figure out which activities are a best fit for the end goal of our little one’s development of being about the global mission of God of making disciples of all nations.

We are still young in the process but I am grateful to have a grid to help us navigate what activities to put our time, energy and money toward since there are so many good things. But I believe keeping the end goal in mind will help us not forfeit the best because of the good. Because really our kids development is not about us but about being good stewards of the little souls the Lord entrusted to us.

Here’s a free printable to help you work through the same things we are with our kiddos. To download just enter your email and click the image of page one below.

As we are navigating through the season of busy, we are asking those who have gone before what they have learned so we can stand on their shoulders. One place you can learn from those who are wanting to raise kids who live intentional making Jesus known lives is through books.

Laura Krokos, the creator and host of Missional Women is married and has four kids, two of whom are adopted. Laura and her husband have been missionaries to college students for 11 years serving with Master Plan Ministries. Laura is the Women’s Development Coordinator and has discipled over 150 girls, led over 30 Bible studies and speaks to college and women’s groups. Laura has authored 5 books, including an award winning 12 week Bible Study on First Samuel, Beholding Him, Becoming Missional, Reach; How to Use Your Social Media Influence for the Glory of God, and A Devotional Journey through Judges, a devotional to accompany the free online Bible study at TheBookofJudges.com. You can find her on facebook,twitter, pinterest, youtube, instagram and her author site.