3 Things Every Parent Should Tell Their Child
Relational
And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.” (Mark 1:11)
Affirming our kids remains one of our most important responsibilities as parents. Positive affirmation guides and directs us in the direction we are designed to go.
Scientific studies confirm that when you hear positive affirmations spoken over your life, it sends a very clear message to your brain that this is important to you. You begin to think this is who you are and you begin to behave consistent with the words that were affirmed.
It’s important to understand this works whether the words are positive or negative. You can eventually become that which is dominantly affirmed in your life. You will become who you believe you are.
This is why it is so important to guard our children's hearts. We have to be careful who we allow to speak into their lives.
In Mark 1:11, we learn three ways God expressed affirmation to Jesus. With each expression, I will give you a phrase you can use to express affirmation to your kids. I encourage you to use using these phrases every day.
3 Ways God Expressed Affirmation
1. God expressed validity - “You are my Son”
Affirmation is not based on the person’s behavior. It’s solely based on who they are. God affirmed Jesus before He did anything. He didn’t wait until after Jesus had done great miracles and made great sacrifices. Even if they aren't making the best decisions in an area, they are indeed good at something.
Make a habit of telling your son or daughter what they are good at. Your validity phrase is “You are good at __________________________.
2. God expressed love - “[You are the one] whom I love”
We can’t tell our kids we love them too much. Love can be shown in other ways but they also need to hear it.
Even God affirmed Jesus through an audible voice. God wanted those around Jesus to hear how He felt about Jesus as well. It’s not enough to just think it in our heads. Our loved ones need to hear us say how we feel.
Your love phrase is simply “I love you.”
3. God expressed pride - “with you I am well pleased”
Our kids are never too old to hear we are proud of them. Jesus was 30 years old when God affirmed Him. We don’t outgrow needing affirmation.
As you share these affirmations with your children, remember that God loves you so very much. He created you to do great things, and He is so proud that YOU are His child.
