The Christian Parenting Book…

“Disciple Like Jesus”

 People say….

“they’re just teenagers”

“you know how college kids are”                                           

“he’s reached the terrible two’s”

“all teenage daughters dislike their mothers”

“she’s just strong willed”

“you know how teenagers are”

“I’m glad the kids are back in school”

“all parent teen relationships are tough”

 

Are these statements true?

 When it comes to our kids, parents want to know we’re doing the right thing. But how can we be sure . . . really sure? Who should we take advice from? Who should we read on the subject? Where can we get the truth about raising our children in today’s culture?

Imagine if you could get the information and training you really need to nurture, lead, guide, and train your children whether they’re two, ten, twelve or sixteen . . .  to be sure you’re on the right track. There is this notion in the culture today that kids just do what they do and parents don’t really have any influence, so we just hope they turn out ok.

 

Are you just hoping your kids turn out ok?

You don’t have to be trapped by this kind of thinking. You can clearly understand your responsibility and discover your ability to train your children! YOU CAN ENJOY YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR CHILDREN!

It’s easy to get opinions, but not always so easy to get the facts. You must be wondering how to implement training practically. You must be wondering what specifics you need to focus on. This book will walk you through step-by-step how to disciple your children. The method for training your children is to disciple them…..disciple them like Jesus did. Jesus is our trusted source for the information we need. All wisdom and knowledge is found in Him. His method is THE method we must use to teach and train our children….no matter what age.

 

 

“Your primary focus is not behavior modification but heart transformation.”

 

 

What’s at Risk?

Kids are turning away from the church, about 90% of them by college age. That’s a big number. Our children are constantly being bombarded by the culture we live in. Madison Avenue marketing, for example says you can look better, feel better, be liked more, be rich, have everything you want, run faster, jump higher and stop quicker…well, you get the point. Culture teaches them (and us) it’s all about ME. What can I GET from this life. What’s going to make me FEEL good. After all, if I FEEL good it must be good, right? This is a Secular Worldview and it’s mostly a lie. But, this is what the world we live in teaches our children. We must engage the culture by giving our children a Biblical Worldview….teaching them to think properly…..to have the right perspective on the world. Without the proper training delivered by the proper method we’ll loose them to a cultural secular way of thinking.

 

What “Discipling Like Jesus” Doesn’t Do

In this book you’ll learn the “How To’s” for teaching and training. However, you might be thinking, if I get all religious on my teenager, he’ll just tune me out. Discipling Like Jesus does not tell you to line your kids up on the fire place and preach a sermon to them every evening at seven o’clock. Discipling Like Jesus shows you what Jesus did……loving His disciples, getting to know them, helping them, teaching and training them.…day-by-day as they lived out their lives. Jesus’ method produced Godly living and Godly relationships they all enjoyed!

 

In their new book, Alan Melton and Dr. Paul Dean examine the Biblical truth on parenting and discipling like Jesus did. The Bible says Jesus is our example and that all wisdom and knowledge is found in Him! This new book illuminates His truth in parenting.

Discover the blessings found in parenting and raising your children and learn Biblical principals in teaching and training your children in the way they should go.

 

 

 

“If we are to see young men and women who look like Christ, then we must disciple as Christ did”

 

 

This book explores four components to the personal discipleship of Jesus

 #1) Jesus told His disciples to follow Him; not other Teachers of questionable beliefs.

Today’s Teachers include school teachers, coaches, curriculum’s, music, television, movies, peers, Internet, games, books, etc. These people and media teach and/or influence your child. According to Jesus, a student will become like their teacher. Matthew 10:24 A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. 25 It is enough for a disciple that he be like his teacher, and a servant like his master. Knowing that your children will become like their teachers, determine what teachers you will allow them to have.

#2) Jesus was with His disciples for the majority of most days, perhaps 80 to 100 hours per week.

Jesus was not merely with His disciples in His spare time. Mark 3:14 says “Then He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach,…….” The idea of “Quality Time” is one of the great lies of our times; our “microwave” approach to discipleship is not working.

#3) Jesus frequently taught his disciples scripture throughout each day and showed them how to minister to others.

For some parents this may be the most difficult aspect to making disciples like Jesus made disciples. How does an untrained person make disciples? The answer is found in Acts 4:13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled. And they realized that they had been with Jesus. Being uneducated and untrained is OK. But parents need to be with Jesus! If you will spend time with Jesus, and then begin reading Gods word daily to your family, the Holy Spirit will take care of the rest.

#4) Jesus sent His adult disciples out in twos rather than alone, to protect them from wolves.

When Jesus sent His disciples out, He did not send them out alone, and they were grown men! He sent them out with trusted adults because there were “wolves” in the world. Here is a partial list of today’s wolves: Bullies, Peer Pressure, Child Abductions, Sexual Predators, Teen Rebellion, Drugs, Hookups, Partying, Homosexual Agenda, STDs, Teen Pregnancy, School Violence, Shootings, Pornography, Gangs, Rapes, Satanic Rituals and Worship, Suicide, 1 Peter 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour Make yourself aware of the “wolves” that threaten your children and take measures to protect them. When you send your children out, send them out with a trusted adult.

 

 

Here’s a sample of what you’ll get, an excerpt from the book…..

“Therefore Go and Make Disciples of All Your Children”

Parents Obeying the Great Commission

Jesus’ command to “make disciples” is far more critical for parents when it comes to the issue of raising children than most imagine or understand. The Great Commission does not merely refer to going to foreign lands to preach Christ. In fact, the command is not even “Go” as most people suppose. The word that we translate “Go” in English is a participle in Greek (the original language in which the New Testament was written). A better translation would be “as you go.” So, as you are going about your business, your daily routine, the life that God has given you in the context He has placed you, He has commanded you to do something: make disciples!

Now, each of us certainly has a responsibility to evangelize others as we go and we certainly have a responsibility to be involved some way in taking the gospel to the nations. But, parents, as you go throughout life, you are to make disciples. That life includes your home and the primary disciple-making responsibility you have been given by God is your children. To put it simply, you are to develop a lifestyle of discipleship when it comes to your children.

Discipling Like Jesus Deals with the Main Issue: Sin

Why must we make such an emphasis on discipling our children in the sense of teaching them to obey every command of Christ? Remember that Satan is out to destroy your children; not people in general, but your children. Now, he uses a very powerful weapon against them: their own sinful nature along with its sinful desires and tendencies. Too many Christian parents fail to recognize that their young children are indeed enemies of God if they don’t know Christ regardless of how well behaved they are. Your children are not spiritually neutral when they come into this world. Your children have the potential of committing any sin known to man. Of course, God’s restraining grace is at work so that no one sins as much as he could. But, you must be aware of the force that drives your child before he comes to know Christ: it is sin and has affected every aspect of his being. Don’t let that cherub-like appearance fool you.

 

Self-esteem is not the Problem

Or, maybe you’ve bought into the notion constantly foisted upon us by the world that the most important thing you can do for your children is to enhance their self-esteem. A recent story was posted by an ABC news affiliate out of Birmingham, AL entitled “Increasing Self-Esteem, Decreasing Violence.” From the story:

More people have been killed this year than at the same time last year. And for community leaders, the numbers are alarming… A group called Cover to Cover believes the answer lies in self-esteem. So, they are reaching out to four Birmingham neighborhoods where violence often occurs. A team of adults did a few simple deeds by giving haircuts to boys and makeovers to girls while repeating three simple words. “We love you,” said George W. Stewart, coordinator of Cover to Cover. The event called I am your brothers- sisters keeper, touched nearly 100 kids and teenagers ranging in age from 5 to 18 years old. “They care and they want to give us a chance,” said Shelby Wilson, an eighth grader. Wilson got the chance to be pampered and respected for a day.

Is the reason we have violence really due to a lack of self-esteem? Is the answer giving kids haircuts? It all seems so simple. But, our problem, as noted, is much deeper than that. Our problem is in our nature: we are sinful to the point of violence when we are focused on self. So are your children. Focusing on self is like throwing gasoline on a fire. Such a dynamic will only serve to increase violence.

Your Life Focused on Christ

Think about your need to provide that protective environment. We’ll talk about the friends your children hang out with, the school they attend, and the various influences on their lives that need to be carefully monitored. At the same time, you must consider your own influence and its potentially negative impact upon your children if you are not focused on Christ and His command to disciple them. You must also consider their sinfulness in that context.

For example, a recent survey indicated that most adults believe that the commercialization of childhood is damaging to young people and that children feel pressured to own the latest designer clothes and computer games, among other material goods. From where does that pressure come? In a general sense that pressure comes from the materialistic philosophy they are being taught by the culture, but, by their own parents as well! Parents, you must be constant and diligent in the training of your children. You must also be mindful that your pursuits will become their pursuits and that your everyday talk about money and material things will over shadow Bible study with your children if there is a contradiction. Your lifestyle in any area will overshadow your teaching if they contradict one another. Your children will get the message of how to apply the teaching of Scripture in a sinful way or they will see the message as unimportant as they look at your self-centered lives. Satan, the world, and the flesh all conspire against your children to take their hearts away from Christ. You must not give ammunition to the enemy.

We’ve engaged in laying a foundation to this point. We’ve even done some generalizing and hit some major points with a broad brush stroke. You must be wondering how to implement some of these things practically. You must be wondering what specifics you need to focus on in discipling your children like Jesus. Well, to those specifics we now turn……….

  

 

About The Authors

Alan Melton is the founder of “Disciple Like Jesus,” a ministry dedicated to helping sincere, committed Christian parents make disciples of their children. By way of vocation, he is the president of Empire Business Brokers, LLC and Small Business Coach & Associates. He is a nationally known writer, speaker and business leader. Alan was recognized by the President of the United States as the SBA’s Small Business Person of the Year for the state of Florida, and by the Florida Governor as the recipient of the Sterling Award for organizational performance excellence. Alan resides in Landrum, South Carolina with his wife and two children.

 

 If you ask your children what they love most in the world, what would they say?

Surveys show that 90% leave the church by college age and less than 1% of 18 to 23 year olds have a Biblical Worldview.

 

 

You will benefit by discipling the way Jesus did….

 

it’s obedience to the Great Commission.

makes you and your children more like Jesus.

grows you in the faith more than anything you have ever done.

does something for your children that will otherwise never happen in their lives.

leaves you with no regrets, because you will have spent much time with your children.

creates deep, lifetime relationships with your children.

enables parents to guide their children in Gods call on their lives.

unites your family.

brings scripture to life in your family.

equips you and your children to live for Christ.

brings Godly fruit early in life for your children.

teaches you and your children to glorify the Lord, and prepare you to do this in heaven.

leads your family into the abundant life that Jesus promised.

helps you avoid the wolves that threaten your family; virtually all threats will be reduced…..or eliminated.

makes the teen years of your children more blessed for you and for them.

prepares your childs heart in a way that you will be an influence in their life in the future.

produces an eternal impact for the Kingdom of God.

 

Here’s what others are saying

Dr. Kenny Rhodes, President of Scofield Seminary and Pastor of Mable Ave Church and Ministries, Modesto, CA.

“The present atmosphere in the United States and around the world demands that parents take up the call to actually engage in proactive parenting. Disciple Like Jesus has the compass pointed in the right direction. If you are convinced of the need to disciple your own child instead of hoping someone else will, Disciple Like Jesus offers much needed help.”

 

 Dr. Christopher Cone, President, Tyndale Theological Seminary

Disciple Like Jesus has gotten it right. If we are to see young men and women who look like Christ, then we must disciple as Christ did. In Disciple Like Jesus for Parents, you’ll be challenged to realize the death of “because I said so.” Our children are reading our actions because they have been engineered by God to do so. Will they see Jesus or a detached set of beliefs you once held? Discipling our children is the longest running gig we’ll have, we’ve got to get it right!”

 

 Meeke Golden Addison, American Family Association, and Mother of Two

“If there is any pressing need in the Church today it is to get back to the model of Biblical discipleship and education. As the Lord would have it, I just recently had a conversation with a parent (and grandparent) concerning their own responsibility to teach and disciple their children and that, that responsibility did not fall upon the local Church. I stated, that the local church and its ministries are only there to buttress that which should already be going on in the home. The training up of children and youth has always been the God given responsibility of the parents and not the Church or government. The Scripture, as well as history can testify to the strength and well-being of a generation that have been told of the works of the Lord by their parents. Because this is the stance and passion of Disciple Like Jesus I am pleased to endorse its ministry.”

 

Paperback: 224 pages

Publisher: Xulon Press

ISBN #978-1607916185

 

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Here’s a sample of what you’ll get in your FREE study guide…..this is Chapter Two

 

Chapter Two – Wall Street or Streets Paved with Gold? Investing in Your Children

Central Idea

We are arguing for a new kind of investment here. Invest time in the word and invest time in your children and you will be investing in the glory of Christ. The dividends are eternal: treasure in heaven. And, when you think along these lines, the glory of God and the joy of your children; the commitment to make disciples of your children in accordance with the Great Commission; and in seeking these things as the treasure they are, you will then be ready and willing to make the greatest investment for you and your family that you could ever make.

Talking Points

1) The Influence of the World on Your Children

a) Your children are constantly tempted to conform to the world

b) Religion and Christ are two different things

c) Conformity to the world can be overt or subtle

d) Your children are at war

     i) They battle Satan

     ii) They battle the flesh

     iii) They battle the world

e) Satan is out to deceive your children with his subtle attacks

f) Everything your children hear comes from one of two worldviews

     i) The problem with desensitization

     ii) The problem with constant bombardment from Satan

     iii) The problem with a minimal dose of God or God-talk

g) Two different kingdoms

h) A battle of loves

     i) Be not conformed but transformed through the renewal of your mind

2) First things first: the glory of God

a) Training your children in connection to the glory of God

b) The rich young ruler

c) Ultimate treasure

d) What Christ treasures: His glory and His people

3) Treasure, investment, and discipleship

 

Questions for Discussion

1) Think about your children and worldliness. The world constantly exerts varying pressures upon them to which they respond in such a way that they are constantly conformed to it. List some of those pressures to conform to the world.

2) In the face of that reality, what warning does the apostle John give in 1 John 2:15?

3) In what way is knowing Christ a very different thing than mere religion?

4) How can love for the world affect your children in connection to the above question?

5) What three things do your children battle?

6) What is Satan constantly doing with reference to your children? List ways he does so.

7) What does it mean to say that everything your children hear comes from one of two worldviews? What problems are associated with that?

Is a little bit of God-talk each week enough to countermand Satan’s activity? Why or why not?

9) In what way does the cosmic battle between God’s kingdom and Satan’s relate to you and your children?

10) What is a battle of loves and what are the implications for your children’s spiritual condition?

11) How can you help your children to stop being conformed to the world?

12) To what do the author’s refer with the phrase “first things first?”

13) How can you connect your responsibility to train your children to the glory of God?

14) Why would you do such a thing?

15) What is the primary point of Jesus’ encounter with the rich young ruler?

16) According to the Bible, what treasure is ultimate?

17) What two things does Christ treasure? Should you treasure those same things?

18) What is the greatest investment you could ever make in light of the foregoing?

Personal Application

How have you personally failed God in some of these areas?

What should you do to correct those things?

How will you become one who regularly adheres to the biblical principles discussed that you might live for God’s glory?

Offer a prayer of commitment to God and seek His help in the areas discussed in this lesson.

 

 

You get a Full 30 Day Money Back Guarantee. If you’re not satisfied for any reason, simply return it for a refund.

Safe and Secure Check Out

We accept Credit Cards, Debit Cards or Paypal

Just click the Buy Now Button and follow the instructions

$11.00

FREE “Disciple Like Jesus” study guide with your purchase!

Both for $11.00 plus $3.00 S&H

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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