Modeling Redemption in the Home

Have your children ever played the "blame game" when confronted with some kind of wrong attitude? Have they ever tried to deny the obvious, even when caught in the act? Have they ever come up with some "whopper stories" to explain away why they didn't do what you told them to do? Did they learn any of those creative evasion tactics from us? Here are some good thoughts from Paul Tripp about the importance of creating a "redemptive community" in the home,

When God reveals sin, there are only two responses for the Christian. One is to generate some system of self-justification to make wrong desires and behavior acceptable to your own conscience. The other is to admit your sin, confess it to God and man, and place yourself once again under the justifying mercy of Christ. Parents who do the former will not have a home that functions as a redemptive community. They will unwittingly teach their children to hide their sin, to explain it away, to deny its existence, or to blame others. Parents who do the latter will teach their children to rely on Christ, to confess their sin, and to believe that where sin abounds, grace abounds even more. They will teach their children to grow up to be people of hope who have seen and believe that there is no pit so deep that Jesus isn't deeper.

(Age of Opportunity: A Biblical Guide to Parenting Teens. copyright©2001, page 66) (Image courtesy of David Castillo Dominici at FreeDigitalPhotos.net)