Kids Do Not Know Best
"Why Good Parents Realize Their Kids Are The Best Parenting
Experts" is the title of an article in an online magazine which attempts to help parents make better parenting choices. It is also
part of the larger "Child-Led-Parenting" movement. I read most of the
article, and surprisingly, I agreed with some parts of it. However,
this notion that kids know what is best for them is absurd.
Most parents, even within the movement, would agree that children should not be allowed to eat junk food for every meal or play in the road. We all understand that kids need some limits. Children do not inherently understand how to stay safe, be healthy, or control their behavior. Most of us understand that we actually have to teach our kids to look both ways before crossing the street, eat their vegetables, and restrain from hitting kids they don't like. However, the rules suddenly change when it comes to morality. Have you heard these statements before?
"I'm going to let my kids decide what is true for them."
"I'm not going to force religion down their throats."
"It is up to my child to decide whether or not they are a boy or a girl."
The child-led parenting movement does not endorse the idea that children should make all the decisions in their lives, just the moral ones. How do these proponents justify their beliefs? If children are not able to understand for themselves that playing in the road is dangerous, eating too much junk food hurts their bodies, and hitting other people is wrong, why would we expect them to arrive at moral truth of their own volition?
The truth is, children from 0-18 are selfish people with an egocentric world view. They will try to get what they want when they want it without regard for others. And contrary to the title of the article, kids are not parenting experts. Children, especially teens, need moral instruction. There is such a thing as moral absolute truth. The Bible does not have different sets of truth for different sets of people. Furthermore, God commands us to teach moral biblical truth to our children.
Deuteronomy 6:5-7 reads, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up."
It is not the school's job to raise our kids. It is not the church's job to teach them the Bible. It is not the child's job to tell you how to parent. If child-led parenting was really a great idea, teen parents would be the cream of the crop.
Parents in the church - let's wake up. Let's do the hard work to teach our children persistently and intentionally about God. Despite the propaganda that society peddles, your children are your responsibility, not the village's. It isn't enough to keep them busy and healthy. Do not neglect your duties to teach them the truth.
"I'm going to let my kids decide what is true for them."
"I'm not going to force religion down their throats."
"It is up to my child to decide whether or not they are a boy or a girl."
The child-led parenting movement does not endorse the idea that children should make all the decisions in their lives, just the moral ones. How do these proponents justify their beliefs? If children are not able to understand for themselves that playing in the road is dangerous, eating too much junk food hurts their bodies, and hitting other people is wrong, why would we expect them to arrive at moral truth of their own volition?
The truth is, children from 0-18 are selfish people with an egocentric world view. They will try to get what they want when they want it without regard for others. And contrary to the title of the article, kids are not parenting experts. Children, especially teens, need moral instruction. There is such a thing as moral absolute truth. The Bible does not have different sets of truth for different sets of people. Furthermore, God commands us to teach moral biblical truth to our children.
Deuteronomy 6:5-7 reads, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up."
It is not the school's job to raise our kids. It is not the church's job to teach them the Bible. It is not the child's job to tell you how to parent. If child-led parenting was really a great idea, teen parents would be the cream of the crop.
Parents in the church - let's wake up. Let's do the hard work to teach our children persistently and intentionally about God. Despite the propaganda that society peddles, your children are your responsibility, not the village's. It isn't enough to keep them busy and healthy. Do not neglect your duties to teach them the truth.
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