Letting children decide for themselves

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JJ50

JJ50

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Jan 4, 2015
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As my husband, and I had the 'born again' dogma unpleasantly drummed into us from birth, until we gave our 'hearts to Jesus' (I managed to hold out until I was eleven!) we decided to let our own children decide for themselves about religion.

By the time we married when I was 19 and my husband 22, we had lost our faith, no longer believing it to have any credibility. However, we felt it wrong to influence our children in this matter. Our three daughters are Christians, the eldest an Anglican Priest, they are not Biblical literalists though, thank goodness.

Do others let their children decide for themselves?
 
Well, at the end of the day they do decide for themselves if they want to walk with God or not but as a christian, my wife and I dedicated our boy to God when he was younger, making a public declaration that we will do all our best in the strength of the Holy Spirit to teach and pass to him the inheritance given to us, the rest is up to him - and we will do this for our next bundle of joy we are expecting in June :D

Though it is hard for some to understand this when they have no revelation of God.

Proverbs 22:6
Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.
 
breno785au said:
Well, at the end of the day they do decide for themselves if they want to walk with God or not but as a christian, my wife and I dedicated our boy to God when he was younger, making a public declaration that we will do all our best in the strength of the Holy Spirit to teach and pass to him the inheritance given to us, the rest is up to him - and we will do this for our next bundle of joy we are expecting in June :D

Though it is hard for some to understand this when they have no revelation of God.

Proverbs 22:6
Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.
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Why I was a kid I had a worrying problem which kept me awake at night for a couple of years. I couldn't share it with my parents, so as I was then a Christian I decided to share it with Jesus instead. I never had the slightest indication he was listening, so I came to the conclusion in the end that either he didn't care, or more likely died 2000 years ago, and the resurrection story was a total myth!
 
You have to equip your children with the truth because there are so many false doctrines in the world today that they could be misled so easily. You can never successfully force your children into religion but you can always try to guide them in a Godley manner and by setting the example from an early age.
 
Gandalf said:
You have to equip your children with the truth because there are so many false doctrines in the world today that they could be misled so easily. You can never successfully force your children into religion but you can always try to guide them in a Godley manner and by setting the example from an early age.
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There is no evidence Christianity is anymore 'true' than any other religion on this planet, they are all very human creations, imo!
 
JJ50 said:
There is no evidence Christianity is anymore 'true' than any other religion on this planet, they are all very human creations, imo!
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well, if you do not believe in God, or Christ that is a you problem.
 
This is one decision everyone will make - child or adult. Accept Jesus sacrifice and grace or reject. There are only two choices.
 
JJ50 said:
There is no evidence Christianity is anymore 'true' than any other religion on this planet, they are all very human creations, imo!
Click to expand...


I think that there are circumstances that have caused you to feel this way.Do you mind if I ask what you were praying for that you felt was not answered by God? It seems there is a deeper question you have then what you are asking.Just wondering...
 
JJ50 said:
There is no evidence Christianity is anymore 'true' than any other religion on this planet, they are all very human creations, imo!
Click to expand...

Yes there is, if you look at the original Hebrew text it is easy to see that it was Godley inspired text
 
JJ50 said:
There is no evidence Christianity is anymore 'true' than any other religion on this planet, they are all very human creations, imo!
Click to expand...

People who say this kind of thing have not properly looked for evidence or are just ignoring the evidence they have found.
 
Tintin said:
People who say this kind of thing have not properly looked for evidence or are just ignoring the evidence they have found.
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There is NO verifiable evidence whenever a Biblical literalist Christian is ask to provide any they can't, they just point to the Bible, which certainly isn't any kind of evidence.
 
JJ50 said:
There is NO verifiable evidence whenever a Biblical literalist Christian is ask to provide any they can't, they just point to the Bible, which certainly isn't any kind of evidence.
Click to expand...

So which point are you trying to make here? Children should decide religion for themselves are Christianity is a made up fairy tale in your opinion? Not sure which you are going for.What proof are you looking for?
 
Gandalf said:
Yes there is, if you look at the original Hebrew text it is easy to see that it was Godley inspired text
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In your opinion NOT in mine. The Biblical deity, if the deeds attributed to it had any truth in them, is not a role model which humans should follow as its deeds are far from good!
 
JJ50 said:
In your opinion NOT in mine. The Biblical deity, if the deeds attributed to it had any truth in them, is not a role model which humans should follow as its deeds are far from good!
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Ok,i'll try once again.What deeds are far from good that you attribute to God?
 
kaylagrl said:
Ok,i'll try once again.What deeds are far from good that you attribute to God?
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If any of these are true, which I very much doubt, the flood was an act of pure evil, imo. Getting a young girl pregnant and then having her son killed in a ghastly manner are an example. If a deity exists I hope it is nothing like the one portrayed in the Bible, which appears to be more wicked than any human ever!
 
This is ONLY MY OPINION....no one else has to agree with me, but I will not reply to any kind of argumentative posts.

My husband and I are both believers. We also both dislike "organized religion" for personal reasons which don't matter to this thread. When we created our family, and the girls grew old enough to go to school, we decided we wouldn't stop them from attending churches if they chose, nor would we force them to attend a church. We taught them how we believe, and we answered questions as honestly as we could about other beliefs (Muslim, Judaism, Hinduism, denominations, etc.) I believe that church youth groups are a great way for young believers to find security in others with similar beliefs, so when they asked to go to churches with friends we allowed it, and it grew into them becoming part of a youth group weekly. We stood up for them when the leaders hurt them, and we punished/taught them how to behave in church when they misbehaved in the groups. We even had to go to the head pastor once about an issue, with another member who was also a friend of ours. The pastor handled this with grace and love on all parts. I was very impressed with this pastor, and we are still friends to this day, some 10 years later.
All 3 of our children are believers, and have given their hearts to Christ. We didn't force them, judge them nor did we prevent them.....we simply showed them Christ working in our lives and allowed them to choose when the right time was for them to accept. Train a child the way to go and he won't stray. To us, forcing them to believe exactly as we do would make them our slaves, and we didn't want slaves; we wanted a family to love. Peace!
 
Children are gonna decide for themselves no matter what you do but it will be out of the fear you pour into them or the love you pour into them AND a combination of the two.
 
JJ50 said:
As my husband, and I had the 'born again' dogma unpleasantly drummed into us from birth, until we gave our 'hearts to Jesus' (I managed to hold out until I was eleven!) we decided to let our own children decide for themselves about religion.

By the time we married when I was 19 and my husband 22, we had lost our faith, no longer believing it to have any credibility. However, we felt it wrong to influence our children in this matter. Our three daughters are Christians, the eldest an Anglican Priest, they are not Biblical literalists though, thank goodness.

Do others let their children decide for themselves?
Click to expand...
Yes,, it is just dogma until one is truly born again...
And no, it doesn't hinge on your will over theirs...

John 1:12-13
12 But to all who have received him – those who believe in his name – he has given the right to become God’s children
13 – children not born by human parents or by human desire or a husband’s decision, but by God.
 
"Evidence that Demands a Verdict" VOL I AND II

provides all the evidence anyone has ever asked for or many times more than is needed.

true, most people when asked do not have the 'evidence' that some other skeptiks SEEKETH.

so? the evidence is still there, has been all along. just have to keep seeking, or die.


JJ50 said:
There is NO verifiable evidence whenever a Biblical literalist Christian is ask to provide any they can't, they just point to the Bible, which certainly isn't any kind of evidence.
Click to expand...

Tintin said:
People who say this kind of thing have not properly looked for evidence or are just ignoring the evidence they have found.
Click to expand...
 
crossnote said:
Yes,, it is just dogma until one is truly born again...
And no, it doesn't hinge on your will over theirs...

John 1:12-13
12 But to all who have received him – those who believe in his name – he has given the right to become God’s children
13 – children not born by human parents or by human desire or a husband’s decision, but by God.
Click to expand...

There is nothing just about the idea someone as bad as Hitler, for instance, could make a deathbed conversion and go to heaven, whilst an atheist who has spent their life doing good goes to hell. That is a crazy dogma.

I know a lot of 'born again' Christians some are decent people, but some are holy on Sunday but you wouldn't trust them any further than you could throw them, if that far. I remember a church elder at the pentecostal (Elim) church I attended as a kid telling when I was a teenager exactly what he would like to do with my mother in his hay loft! The pastor of the church used to drive me back home from the weekly youth meetings; he would stoke my thigh as he drove along, telling me how beautiful my mother was! Believing in the 'once saved, always saved' nonsense is very convenient indeed!:mad:
 
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