HIS: The Teen Years

Lesson 0: His Being (Heb 1:3)

Parenting with a better understanding of His being will always produce a greater paradigm shift in our parenting than any "How To" book alone. Join me in exploring how knowing God's nature better through the narrative of the ENTIRE bible can help us to be better parents to our teens in the midst of the day-to-day challenges.

Lesson 1: His Love (1John 4:16)

The most important thing to know about "Who God is" is that "He IS love" (1Jhn 4:16). In this lesson we'll walk through how love (as God defines it) has practical implications in shaping the foundation of our parenting philosophy and how we handle the challenging situations that arise every day with our teens.

Lesson 2: His Creation (Gen 1:27)

The challenging situations with our teens can shift us from faith to fear in a millisecond! Yet, recalling that they are His creation — created in His image (Gen 1:27) alters our perspective, leading us to relate to them with more faith, hope, and love. This lesson will explore how embracing this truth can profoundly change our interactions with them.

Lesson 3: His Works (for Us to Do) (Gen 2:15)

Our daily interactions with our teens are some of the most important of His works that has given us to do. From the beginning, we were called to be fruitful and multiply — to produce godly offspring. In this lesson, as a blueprint for ourselves as parents, we'll examine God's "parenting" of His people through the narrative of the scriptures.

Lesson 4: His Test (Our Free Will) (Gen 2:16-17)

As we strive to follow God's example and His direct commands in our parenting, our free will will be tested. Will we, trusting in God's love for us, do as He commands, or will we allow the tempter (John 8:44) to entice us to follow our own path? In this lesson, we'll look into this daily challenge we face in our parenting choices.

Lesson 5: His Offer (of Redemption) (Joel 2:28-32)

As Adam and Eve fell to the tempter, we too will falter in attempting to parent our teens as God commands us. And just as Adam's sin led to death, so does ours. However, in this lesson, we'll discuss how God offers us forgiveness for these and all other sins, and also refines us, guides and empowers us to get back on track to following Him in parenting our teens.

Lesson 6: His Sanctification (Rom 8:28-29)

Accepting God's offer of forgiveness (as a new believer or as a long-time Christian) is only the beginning of a new leg of our journey. Every moment of weakness, adversity, and failure we face in our parenting is another opportunity for us to be transformed into the man or woman God created us to be as parents. In this lesson, we'll explore the good God brings about for us and our teens through this sanctification process.

Lesson 7: His Glory (Eph 3:8-11)

As God transforms our relationship with our teens through the sanctification process, the way we respond to, correct, interact with, and think of them will bring glory to God in their eyes and to all who witness it. In this lesson, we'll discuss how seeking His glory can shape our goals for our parenting and our daily decisions.

Lesson 8: His Partnership (with Us) (1Cor 3:5-9)

As we aim to bring glory to God in our parenting, it becomes increasingly apparent that His partnership extends beyond "us" (1Cor 3:5-9) as parents, assisting our children in knowing Him and His ways. In this final lesson, we'll explore the breadth of God's partnership in parenting our teens and the ultimate outcome He calls us to achieve.