For this week’s Announcements please visit: (waterschurch.org/events):

Abundant Hope Baby Clothes Collection:  Collection for Abundant Hope Pregnancy Resources Center: We’re partnering with Abundant Hope Pregnancy Resource Center to collect toddler clothing sizes 12m to 3T. They provide critical support for local families, from unplanned pregnancy counseling to parenting aid, all free of charge. Due to an unprecedented demand, the Center is in emergent need for new baby and toddler clothing. Let’s show our community the love of Christ. Please drop your new clothes donations in the giving boxes at all New England locations beginning this Sunday.

REGISTRATIONS ARE AVAILABLE FOR THE FOLLOWING EVENTS:

(CLICK HERE: WATERS CHURCH EVENTS)

June 1 All Around the World Scavenger Hunt 2024 9-12 (All ages)  – New England Locations Only

Scavenger Hunt

June 1 Women’s Breakfast 10-12 – Apollo Beach Only (16 +)

July 13 Women’s Breakfast 10-12 – New England Only (16+)

Women’s Breakfast

NEW BOOK BY PASTOR TIM: “ENDING EMPTINESS” now available in our Lobbies, Kindle, and Nook endingemptiness.com

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Reminders:

✳ Please regularly check your Planning Center profiles for requests to join your life groups, remove members from the list that no longer attend, or add members not listed. Please ensure that you have added no-reply@churchcenter.com to your email contacts so that you do not miss an email from Planning Center and encourage your members to do so as well.  This will ensure you do not miss a member request or any emails that come from the Planning Center site. Thank you!

Waters Class Schedule:

• 1st Sunday: Discover Waters – after 1st service
• 2nd Sunday: NO CLASSES
• 3rd Sunday: Connect Class – after 1st service
• 4th Sunday: Baptism Class – after 1st service

Waters Help: Need marriage and family care  or have a group member in need of marriage and family care?   Click here:  help resources page  or visit waterschurch.org/help

Location Text Alerts:

FIRST TUESDAY IS JUNE 4TH – NO GUIDE THAT WEEK

Key Verse: Ephesians 6

Ice breaker

Q. What movie or book does everyone love that you don’t like at all?

Four Problems Facing Parents:

1. TECHNOLOGY

Kids know more than their parents.  They can pick up technology faster than parents.  Parents need to put guardrails up for their children.  Set up firewalls on their devices. 

Children under fifteen do not need smartphones and no child should have unfettered access to the internet.

2. EDUCATION

Formerly an ally of parents, education is now an arch enemy.  There is nothing about the public school system that we can trust anymore.  Chaos has taken control of the education system in this country.

Book recommendation: Bad Therapy: Why Kids Aren’t Growing Up – Abigail Shrier

Parents need to guard the gate.

3. GOVERNMENT

Wherever the government gives money for free, families break down.  The government has to play dad.

Men, do your job, raise your children, love your wife or the government will take over.

Single parents, we can offer support for you.  Visit waterschurch.org/help

4. The SELF-ESTEEM movement

This is the constant wondering about ‘how I feel.’  The number one way to get depressed is to think about how you feel.  Be careful about focusing on your feelings. 

The second greatest commandment is to love your neighbor as you love yourself.  We are made to bless others not focus on ourselves.

Children must be reproved, corrected, discipled, trained, and disciplined.

Romans 5:12 (ESV)

Sin is in all.  We are all born sinful. 

Q.  How have you effectively navigated or are you currently navigating the abovementioned obstacles?

Scripture gives parents PERMISSION to be PARENTS.

Deuteronomy 5:16 (ESV);

If children don’t have honor and respect at home they will not have honor and respect for their neighbors.

Ephesians 6:1–3 (ESV)

You were never their age because the world has changed since you were their age.

The 5 Stages of Parenting:

Stage 1: DEDICATION.

When your children are born, give them to the Lord because they are His.

1 Samuel 1:27–28 (ESV)

Guard your home and be careful who you allow into your home.  You are giving authority, to the people who you allow to enter your home, to speak to your children.  Your children are the Lord’s children, not the pagan’s children.

Psalm 127:3 (ESV)

The word for reward in Hebrew means inheritance. 

Q. “How can parents ensure that their home environment reflects their dedication to raising their children under God’s guidance, particularly in terms of the influences and individuals they allow into their home?”

Stage 2: DISCIPLINE.

As soon as your children start walking, start correcting their behavior.

Ephesians 6:4 (ESV)

Over-disciplining, being apathetic about discipline, or not disciplining can provoke a child to anger. 

Fathers should instruct and discipline their children.  Separating a child from his father will provoke anger in the child.  Discipline starts with the father.

Proverbs 13:24 (ESV); Proverbs 22:15 (ESV); Proverbs 23:13–14 (ESV); Proverbs 19:18 (ESV)

Q. “Considering the balance between under-disciplining and over-disciplining, how can parents effectively use discipline to guide their children’s behavior without provoking anger, according to the principles outlined in Ephesians 6:4 and the Proverbs?”

Stage 3: DIRECTION.

When you correct you have to give directions. Giving Direction is giving instructions on how to live. Not only correcting their behavior but also correcting their belief.

Deuteronomy 6:4–9 (ESV); Judges 2:10 (ESV)

Without correction and instruction, Israel stopped serving the Lord.

Judges 2:11 (ESV); Judges 17:6 (ESV)

Stage 4: DISCERNMENT.

Learn to discern.  Kids get crafty, undermining, and sneaky in their teens.

Hebrews 5:12–14 (ESV)

Parents need to be teachers of the word of God.  Deepen yourself in the word of the Lord.  Parents need to be superheroes in the home. Your superpower is discernment.

Q. How can parents develop and apply discernment in guiding their teenagers, especially as they become more independent and challenging?

Stage 5: DETACHMENT.

You should be preparing for detachment the moment they are born. 

If all goes well, you will die before them and they will have to learn to live without you.

Let them go, let them fall, let them make mistakes, and learn from their mistakes.

You empower your children to grow and be strong in the mighty name of Jesus!

Q. How can parents effectively prepare themselves and their children for the stage of detachment, ensuring that they empower their children to grow, make decisions, and learn from their mistakes within a framework of faith?

Sermon Summary:

In Christ, I have a DIVINE ASSIGNMENT to raise God’s CHILDREN for HIS GLORY through HIS WORD.

Challenge: This week, choose an area where you struggle with raising your children and pray for the Holy Spirit to guide you and give you discernment in that area.   Reprove, correct, disciple, train, and discipline.