We’re Not Raising Rule-Followers

We're raising disciples. And there’s a big difference.

There’s this pressure that creeps in when you're raising kids in the church—this unspoken competition to have the most well-behaved, best-dressed, most “Christian-looking” family. And it’s exhausting.
Because while the world chases highlight reels and polished exteriors, somehow it hits harder when it comes from within the church.

We weren’t called to raise trophy children—we were called to raise disciples.

Jesus didn’t die to make us look good on Sunday. He came to set us free. To transform our hearts.
To bring our kids into a relationship with Him that is real, raw, and powerful—not performative.

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Our goal isn’t to raise compliant rule-followers.

Walking with God as parents is more than just laying down rules and checking off religious boxes. It's about surrendering ourselves to the transformative power of the Holy Spirit.

It's opening the windows of our hearts and letting God’s presence flood in—shaping every aspect of our lives. Our thoughts, our decisions, our parenting, our posture. All of it.

Imagine our homes becoming sanctuaries—places where the Spirit of God moves freely. Where worship isn't just a playlist on Sunday morning, but the atmosphere that carries us through the week. Where our kids grow up knowing what it feels like to encounter God in the everyday moments… not just the church ones.

We're not just teaching our children about God—we’re inviting them into a living, breathing relationship with Him.

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We’re showing them what it looks like to surrender our own will and desires to God’s perfect plan.
To let go of control.
To lay down our pride.
To let the Holy Spirit lead, even when it feels inconvenient or uncomfortable.

We want our kids to see that walking with God isn’t about checking the boxes.
It’s not about “looking the part.”
It’s about being transformed. From the inside out.

And that starts with us.

As parents, we’ve been given this incredible, sacred assignment—to guide our children through their own journey of surrender and transformation.
And we don’t do it by pushing harder.
We do it by showing them the way.

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We’re not just imparting knowledge.
We are modeling a life that is fully surrendered to God.

We’re demonstrating what it means to die to self and allow the Spirit to live and move through us. Not perfectly—but faithfully. And that kind of faith? It’s contagious.

Yes, it’s important for our kids to respect our authority and follow our guidance. But what truly matters is that they learn to listen to the Holy Spirit within them.
That they learn to hear His voice in the noise.
That they have the courage to obey—even when it costs them something.

That kind of obedience doesn’t come from rule-following.
It comes from presence.

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Our goal isn’t to raise compliant rule-followers.

Our goal is to raise passionate disciples of Christ—
Young men and women who are so filled with the Spirit of God that His love, His grace, and His power overflow from their lives onto the world around them.

We want to see our children walking in step with the Spirit—bearing fruit that reflects the character of Christ.
Fruit that doesn’t come from performance, but from proximity.

So let’s create homes where God’s presence is welcomed and honored above all else.

Let’s make space.
Let’s turn down the noise.
Let’s open the door wide for the Holy Spirit to move.

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It’s going to take surrender.
Not just from our kids, but from us too.
We have to let go of our own agendas and preferences and pride and allow God to work in and through us as we parent.

Let’s be parents who lead from a place of presence.
Who prioritize the posture of the heart over the polish of appearances.

Let’s raise kids who know God. Not just know about Him.

Let’s raise rebels—Spirit-led, truth-tethered, world-shaking disciples of Jesus.
Because this isn’t about behavior.
It’s about transformation.

And it starts with us.