Pray for the Holy FatherCourageous Parenting is about meeting needs instead of treating behavior. The first need we must understand is that children need to know, love and serve God with their whole heart, mind, body and soul. Parental involvement with teens leads to positive relationships in adulthood. Click here for news article.
Help for Parents: The Commission for Doctrine of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) released a Pastoral Letter to Young People on Chastity. The letter emphasizes that “”Living a life of chastity is an ongoing journey which requires both guidance and encouragement.” There are sections on chastity for singles, married couples, consecrated religious and priests. Click here to read the letter on the CCCB website. You can also see the Youtube video about the letter by clicking here.
What could be more important today than raising our children to become outstanding adults? Teaching them to love and respect God and neighbor, to love their Faith and to be able to explain and defend it before detractors? Today’s children are not only the world’s future, but the future of the Catholic Church, and we must make the most of the time we’ve been given to raise them.
A recent study found that 52% of young adult Catholics left the faith because they did not see the quest for truth and happiness being found in the faith of their upbringing.
Does your child display virtuous behavior on the internet? Do you? Click here for Virtuous Social Networking.
Our Courageous Parenting Tips for the next two months will focus on the development of virtues using David Isaacs’ book titled Character Building. Virtue this week is: Orderliness
Orderliness is a virtue that helps us live with a sense of harmony. Orderliness is using our time wisely, solving problems step by step, taking care of our things by putting then back in their proper place and using them properly. One is more likely to have peace within when there is order outside.
Help your child establish a routine after school, where to always hang up their coat, back pack, shoes, homework… and to say their bedtime prayers each night. It helps to have a proper place for items and for the children to put those items back where they found them.
Invite your children to help you with a task that involves orderliness, to help develop a sense of order.
Listed below are other tips that you will find very useful. This list is updated frequently. Scroll to the bottom for the latest tip.
1. Pray with your children and pray as a family. As a family practice the LAST four things you do before going to bed.
Love-tell Jesus you love Him. (Jesus, I love you)
Ask-teach children to ask Jesus for help. (Jesus, please help me with …)
Sorry-provide them an opportunity to experience God’s mercy. (Jesus, I’m sorry for…)
Thanksgiving –thank our Lord for daily gifts. (Jesus, thank you for…)
2. Create New Family Traditions! Have a night of the week where the ENTIRE family fasts from electronics. Be consistent! No TV, video games, cell phone, MP3, radio or computers. Instead encourage family board game night, longer discussion around the dinner table of the days events, read scripture as a family, pray a decade of the rosary and have each member of the family give a special intention….slow it down and enjoy one another. Many families report this as their favorite night of the week. Create lasting memories with your children while building strong character. (Basic idea used with permission from Kirk Martin. Please visit his website at www.CelebrateCalm.com for more ideas).
3. Teach children the virtue of perseverance by telling them that you are praying for them. Teach children to start their day by asking God, “How might I serve you today, O Lord, help me to serve you today.” We need to live like everything depends on God, because it does! Starting each day with this prayer will ground us in God’s constant presence in our life.
4. Report Card Night! Start your own record of positive attributes demonstrated by your child. Keep a file on the computer or notebook and write down a few characteristics/strengths or actions important in your home. Keep track only of the times when they demonstrated compassion, sharing, taking initiative, prayer, and serving others. Have a special dinner on report card night, go over the school report card as well as the home report card. The building up these attributes requires encouragement from parents and a focus on when they demonstrate such behavior. (Basic idea used with permission from Kirk Martin. Please visit his website at www.CelebrateCalm.com for more ideas).
5. Meaningful Mealtime When sitting around the dinner table have everyone share what was their least favorite and the best thing that happened to them that day. Encourage everyone to share. You will be amazed at what you find out is truly important to our child. Encourage interaction by asking your children questions they cannot answer with a simple “yes” or “no.”
6. Visit familycatechism.com. This totally free website is OUTSTANDING, packed with video, Sacred Scripture, church documents, quotes from the saints, and more!!! It’s an interactive family catechism in English and Spanish that will help you and your family discover the richness of our Catholic Faith through a multime. dia experience. Fr. Ted has declared it’s the ―Year of the Catechism‖, let’s make it a goal for the entire family to grow in the faith.
7. Talk to children about where true happiness is found. That they are made by God and for God.
8. Teach by example. Children need to see that the answer to our search for Truth and Happiness is found ultimately in God, His Truth and in Holy Mother Church.
9. Create found childhood memories of love and happiness by participating in faith-filled family activities such as the 1st Friday Family Holy Hour, taking up the gifts as a family during Mass, praying together as a family, reading about the lives of the saints together…
10. Smile as much as you can today and all week long! Think of reasons your children make you smile and tell them why they make you smile. Leave them a note in their lunch box, in their dresser drawer, bathroom mirror…etc. Each time they are in the car with you this week tell them a reason they make you smile.
11. Looking for a way to teach your child about money and being a good steward of the gifts God has bestowed on us?
Try using the three jar system where your child will divide their earnings into three separate jars: one for the Church and charitable giving, one for saving, and one for spending. Open up a discussion about what it means to tithe and explain to them that giving back to God comes first. Next, explain the importance of saving and “paying yourself”. It’s never to early for children to learn the value of planning and being prepared. Finally, allow them to put a portion of their money in the spend jar, where they work on making wise choices with the money they have set aside.
11. Talk to children about ways they can give their heart to Jesus. Make a heart shaped Valentine card, help them list ways they can give their heart to Jesus. You can place the heart some where special in your home or even at the foot of the altar in the Adoration Chapel.
12. Teach them to pray “Come into my heart, Lord Jesus”. This is a beautiful prayer to say during Mass at the Consecration. Each Mass we can remember how we give our hearts to Jesus.
13. Tune into EWTN Kids Thursdays at 5PM ET for Truth in the Heart. The Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist, teach children grades 1 to 5, about the basic tenets of our faith, preparing them to receive the sacraments using the catechism of the Catholic Church.
14. Talk to children about ways you can give to others while expecting nothing in return. Relate generosity to love. Doing things out of love, love for God and love for others.
15. Have your child decide one way they will practice the virtue of generosity this week. Example: The neighbor boys that live by Nancy and Bill Jones shoveled their driveway a few weeks ago. Bill and Nancy tried to give the boys gift cards as a thank you. The boys explained that they shoveled the drive because they wanted to and not for a reward.