Gospel Centered Family: Becoming the parents God wants you to be
Numerous books set out to help Christian parents in the challenging mission of raising their children well—so what's different about this one? Well, the answer's in the title! It's not about how the gospel fits into Christian family life, but how family life should fit into the gospel—God's greatest purpose for this universe, achieved in Christ.Many books aim to raise up competent, balanced parents and well-trained, well-rounded children. But Tim Chester and Ed Moll focus on families growing God-knowing, Christ-confessing, grace-receiving, servant-hearted, mission-minded believers—adults and children together.Christian families should be about... - not just making good citizens but also church planters, missionaries, reformers, servants and evangelists; - not just learning about God but also showing him to others; - not just controlling behavior but also changing the heart; - not just parents and children, but being an integral part of the wider church family.In twelve concise chapters, Gospel-Centered Family takes us through the major Bible principles for family life, challenging us to give up our 'respectable' middle-class idols, and to become the distinctively different people that God, through his gospel, calls us to be.
IntroductionPart One: A Gospel-Centered Family1. Gospel-centered familiesYour family can show how great it is to live under God's reign of love.2. Gospel-centered hopesKnowing God is far more important than getting on in life.Part Two: A Grace-Centered Family3. Disciplining a parent's heartThe biggest obstacle to good discipline is our own selfish hearts.4. Grace for a parent's heartTrying to be a good parent will crush you if you don't embrace grace.5. Disciplining a child's heartChanging hearts matters more than controlling behavior.6. Grace for a child's heartDon't train your child to be a legalist.7. Children as a giftMake sure you enjoy your children!Part Three: A Word-Centered Family8. Living the wordTeach your children about God in the context of everyday life.9. The word and other voicesShape what younger children watch and how older children watch.10. Praying the wordTeach children to pray by praying with them.Part Four: A Mission-Centered Family11. A bigger familyWe belong to two families.12. A Serving FamilyChildren are not the center of the world.
Tim Chester understands what it means to live the Gospel of Jesus Christ in your daily life. So, in this very practical book about family life, he shows what it means to rest in grace as parents, to respond with grace to our children and to teach them to hope in grace themselves. This book is a must read for parents. It brims with encouraging grace and practical direction on every page.
I could not extol it more. I have yet to see a resource that is more concise, yet holistic on the issue of parenting. If you want to give the families of your church comprehensive vision for their homes that is centered on the good news of Jesus Christ rather than their immediate relations, get them to study Gospel-Gentred Family.
This little gem should be compulsory reading for all Christian parents. Its emphasis upon applying gospel truths into every area of family life, acknowledging the sin of self-focused hearts and growing together as a family under God’s grace and rule is challenging, refreshing and liberating. Above all it’s about modelling the grace that begins with the heart, moves into the home and then reaches out to the far corners of the earth. Parenting is, after all, about God’s grace!
Product Details
- Title : Gospel Centered Family: Becoming the Parents God Wants You to Be
- Authors:
- Chester, Tim
- Moll, Ed
- Publisher: The Good Book Company
- Publication Date: 2010
- ISBN: 9781908317643