Articles
The DIFFERENCE Family Makes
Proverbs 3:1-2
1 My son, do not forget my law, But let your heart keep my commands;
2 For length of days and long life And peace they will add to you.
An article in the Journal of the American Medical Association revealed the result of an enormous research project (90,000 participants) about high-risk behavior by teens. The study concluded that the most effective way to protect young people from unhealthy or dangerous behaviors is for parents to be involved in their lives.
Dr. Robert W. Blum, a coauthor of the report, says, “It is a very clear message that you as parents have to stay involved. You can’t buy into the myth that you are no longer relevant in your children’s lives.”
“Kids repeatedly told us that small messages are important”, he says. “The messages are given by a note on the refrigerator that says, ‘Good luck on your test today’. The messages are given by a hug. The messages are given by saying ‘How was your date last night?’ The message is parents showing concern, showing that what goes on in the child’s life matters.”
Dr. Blum says these daily connections are as effective in single-parent families as they are in two-parent families. In focus groups, many of the teens told researchers that these little messages often meant more than family activities such as going out together. (author unknown)
Deuteronomy 6:6-7
6 "And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart.
7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.
Ephesians 6:4
4 And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord.
