Equipping Your Children for Spiritual Warfare
Most parents would throw themselves in front of a speeding locomotive, face down a charging bear, or rip apart a pack of dogs to protect the lives of their children. They would bristle at the thought of allowing any harm to come to them, especially at their own hands. Most parents, unless they are mentally unstable, would never cause needless trauma, toxicity, or grief for their little loved ones. Parents dream of the day they will have a family, and when that family arrives they pray earnestly for their children. They seek the Lord’s wisdom in their parenting. They want nothing less than the very best for their children.
But all too many Christian parents haven’t reckoned with one simple fact of spiritual warfare: The enemy of our souls roams around like a roaring lion “seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8). Satan wreaks havoc if left unchallenged. To apply the biblical metaphor—just as a physical boundary is needed to ward off an actual lion, we need appropriate spiritual boundaries to protect our children from the devil. Even when parents proactively use biblical knowledge to raise spiritually equipped children, that doesn’t mean the war for the hearts and minds of their offspring will automatically be won. The sincerity of a parent’s intentions won’t necessarily produce strong, overcoming faith in the lives of their children.While there is no such thing as perfect parenting, understanding spiritual warfare and applying its principles can give moms and dads a much better chance to create a truly healthy home and family. People perish “for lack of knowledge” (Hosea 4:6). This truth applies especially to parents, and knowledge of spiritual warfare is often what they lack most.
Mothers and fathers can effectively parent by using the principles of spiritual warfare to protect their children from demonic attacks. Here are some ways to equip your children for spiritual warfare:
Break generational curses. There is more than one reason to research your family tree. We have found many instances in our own family histories where the enemy could have had an open door to attack our present lives. In response, we broke all curses, both from the past and any potential curses. You can do this too. Break the curses, and it is a done deal. Shut the door to the devil. How simple and how freeing is that?
Parent with a purpose in mind. Identify a purpose and plan for your child’s life. Parents need to plan how they are going to raise their children before they are born. You need unity between both parents in advance, so that you will not make decisions on the fly. You must also decide what kind of spiritual training you’ll give to your children, and how they will be disciplined. Parents need to encourage their children’s gifts and to acknowledge that God has a plan for each of their lives. We are not just passing time here on earth; each of us has a unique destiny to fulfill. How will you help your child find his or her purpose in life? Will you show them how to seek God’s will so that they will clearly understand on their own how to hear from Him?
Teach a spiritual warfare perspective. Parents can help thwart the enemy’s plan for their children by giving them a solid foundation in spiritual warfare, equipping them with the tools to survive in our ever-dangerous world. They need to understand the confusion in today’s culture between what is good and pleasing in God’s sight and what is spiritually hazardous.If parents are hazy about what is of God and what is truly of the devil, how is a child going to have a firm foundation for strategic spiritual warfare? If a child is allowed to compromise early, it is tough to get them back on track. Spiritual warfare skills are as necessary as the three “R’s” of education. Children must be shown by a godly example that you take evil seriously. Live in opposition to pagan culture. Establish godly standards with boundaries in entertainment and “screen time.”
Speak blessings over your children. Speak blessing over your children’s lives with words that edify. It is so much easier to tell them how they have failed, but parents need to learn how to communicate blessings to their children instead. Learn how to give your children the gift of God’s assurance and purpose of salvation and faith even before they are old enough to understand it. Early on, tell them who they are in the Lord and all about God’s promises. Develop in them a winning attitude toward themselves and their future. Let them know that they are not losers in the Lord, but victors through Jesus. Praying spiritual warfare prayers over children, even before they comprehend the significance, is a key to successful parenting.
Practice positive parenting. Stay current on parenting strategies. Know how to deal with the high-tech world and get expert advice. Abandon outdated, stereotypical Christian parenting, which can be described as strict, legalistic, and stifling. Protecting and equipping is completely different from being protective. Children need to have the tools to navigate in the world, and yet not be part of it.
Be a godly example to your children. Every Christian parent needs to be a great example to their children, demonstrating consistency with Christian beliefs. There is nothing more corrosive to your parental authority than to say one thing and then do another. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree and you don’t want yours tinged with hypocrisy. There is no substitute for being actively involved in your children’s lives. If both parents are forced to work, make sure that the children are accountable to an approved authority figure. Children must be prohibited from forming soul ties with bad people. Sow good quality time with the Lord by leading studies that everyone participates in. Pray together and give God the glory for what he is doing in your lives.
Properly prepare your children for life. Equip your children with knowledge regarding what they believe and why. Guide them in developing healthy boundaries. If you had an unhappy childhood and experienced toxic parenting, actively work to change the effect of your personal history by putting forth the effort to make things different for your children. Enlist a mentor to hold you accountable. Seek professional spiritual counsel and possibly inner healing and deliverance. Research and study to devise a plan for how you would like to raise your children. It may not feel comfortable at first, but with hard work and diligence you will be able to pass along a different parenting pattern to your children.By learning to parent intentionally and purposely, you can learn to be a purposeful parent who understands how to right the wrongs of the past and to carry out the good spiritual journey that starts the day that each family member embraces faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
