I was telling a friend about my latest project the other night and he said, “the song that comes to mind immediately is Slow Fade by Casting Crowns.” I agree. He’s right. Our kids are slowly fading, allowing themselves to become entrapped by Satan’s lies and involved in worldly activities that slowly are pulling them away.

My favorite part of this song is the old childhood song I used to sing,

O be careful little eyes what you see
O be careful little eyes what you see
There’s a Father up above
And He’s looking down in love
So, be careful little eyes what you see

O be careful little ears what you hear
O be careful little ears what you hear
There’s a Father up above
And He’s looking down in love
So, be careful little ears what you hear

O be careful little hands what you do
O be careful little hands what you do
There’s a Father up above
And He’s looking down in love
So, be careful little hands what you do

O be careful little feet where you go
O be careful little feet where you go
There’s a Father up above
And He’s looking down in love
So, be careful little feet where you go

O be careful little mouth what you say
O be careful little mouth what you say
There’s a Father up above
And He’s looking down in love
So, be careful little mouth what you say

Our kids are in danger of slow fading, crumbling, our society has such influence and technology is just a tool that the devil can use to lead them astray. I love technology as much as anybody, but I believe that we must PROTECT our kids. We must be PROACTIVE about their security.

We must teach them to “Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.” 2 Timothy 2:22 (NIV)

If you want to join me in being PROACTIVE about your kid’s security visit my new site http://Pro-TechtheKids.com and sign up for more info. This Workshop will be LIVE in Winona, Mississippi in December, but will later be available online via video. You can benefit either way.

For today’s show I interviewed a young lady in ministry, Michelle Myers, who several years ago struggled with a big temptation and sin in her life. Her sin was unlike some that teens struggle with, but all the same it was the area where Satan attacked her life.

She shares her story of dealing with anorexia, bringing her close to death, but ultimately closer to Christ. She now shares her story as a way to share Christ with others. It is an awesome testimony all young girls need to hear.

I want to thank Michelle for being on the show and tell you that you must keep an eye out, as Michelle is writing a book that is a must have. She’ll be back on the show once it is available and we’ll be sure to help you know where to get your copy. Thanks Michelle! Visit Michelle on her blog here.

At the end of today’s show I made a big announcement about my latest project. God has lead me out of my comfort zone, to speak to parents. You all know I am passionate about tweens and teens and I love to stand in front of them and speak, sit with them and chat, or just hang out with them, but it isn’t as natural for me to speak to their parents. However, God is leading me to do so and I am being obedient.

The result is the workshop I will be doing LIVE in my hometown, Pro-Tech the Kids Workshop, on Thursday, Dec. 3, 2009 at 7 pm at North Winona Baptist Church in Winona, Mississippi. Find out more info on the website. This event will be available online via video recording after the event.

The following is a guest post from a friend of mine, Dr. Daisy Sutherland:

If you are unaware of what 3 R’s I am referring to they are : Respect, Responsibility and Renewal.

We can even add a 4th R to the mix, Retro.

Now you may be wondering how all these R’s apply to our lives, well, let me explain.

We as parents have roles to follow…we are to nurture, guide and love our children but most importantly prepare them for the ‘real world’.

That is where the R’s come into play. By adapting a Retro way of teaching..we can go back to the time when our parents and our parents were raising their children.

Today’s society is a bit scary for adults, you can only imagine how scary it is for our children. But if we teach them the 3R’s and how to apply them to their lives, they can survive.

Respect – this is a very important word with a strong meaning. Not only should children be taught to respect their elder, their bodies, their property..they should also be taught how Respect will work in the real world. When you show respect to others, it is shown to you. When you respect your occupation and all it entails, your life is easier. People will see that you not only respect others, but that you respect your life and all it involves. This is a very important lesson to teach our children.

Responsibility – it is extremely important to teach our children the meaning of responsibility. We must all be responsible for our actions, our thoughts and beliefs. It is not enough to say, that something is not our fault. It may very well not be our fault, but it is still our responsibility, especially if it involves us, our property or our life in general. Responsibility is something that should be taught early on in life and continue to practice it. It is not enough to teach and not practice what you preach. This lesson will teach them the meaning when they grow up to be adults and are faced with decisions that must be made.

Renewal - this is a powerful word with an even more powerful meaning. Many believe that when they make a choice or decision that they must live with their decisions forever. This is not always true. As creatures creator by our Heavenly Father, we are not perfect. We are to make mistakes and most importantly learn from our mistakes. For instance, if a teen makes a decision that was not necessarily the right one at the time, and they realize this later..there is a time for renewal. You do not need continue that same path. It works the same for adults. If they make a decision for their family or their job and it doesn’t work out, do they give up or continue on? Renewal means that you can have a fresh start and make your life a better one. There is only one judge and He loves us and knows when we are going to make the decision that may not be the right one for us. He gives us the freedom of choice, but we do not have to live with it, if it turns out to be a wrong choice. Renewal is something that is should be taught from an early age and continue throughout our lives.

I go into much more detail about the 3R’s and applying them to our parenting in my Reserved Only program. A program not only for parents of teens, but for all parents. The lessons contained are those that can be taught from an early age and applied throughout.

As a Retro Parenting Coach, I am here to help you with the daily struggles we all lead, especially in today’s society. Together we work to help you gain clarity and the confidence to parent your children to the best of your ability. And that’s all that matters, isn’t it?

Dr. Daisy Sutherland is the Founder and CEO of Dr. Mommy, LLC.  The mission of Dr. Mommy is to help you to help your family.  Dr. Daisy Sutherland has 18+ years of experience as a devoted wife, mother, writer, speaker and more years as a Doctor and Total Wellness Expert  She has learned that good parenting is a balance between healthy living – mind, body and spirit.  Dr. Mommy’s dedication to helping parents and families is evident from her work online and offline and more importantly it is evident from the high energy she exudes when talking about her true passion – helping you to help your family, in health and in life in general.

Thinking back to my own years in grade school I attempt to recall how I felt.  I know I was painfully shy and attempted to just “blend” in and not be noticed.  Though I don’t recall it at this time, I’m sure there were incidences of “mean girls” even in my day, but fortunately for me, I don’t remember it so much.  Unfortunately, for most girls today “mean girls” and their viciousness is quite rampant in today’s society.

How do you teach your daughter to deal with the “mean girls” no matter what her age?  They seem to be starting this syndrome earlier and earlier.  So, we must equip our daughter(s) to deal with it.  How, you ask? I believe many of the principles that we should teach our daughter(s), no matter if they are dealing with mean girls or not are the same principles that will equip her to deal with them.

The Golden Rule. Matthew 7:12 says, “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.” (NIV)  So many times girls are hurt, and rightly so but they begin to focus inward, on their own thoughts and feelings and they never give a thought to the other person.  Many times girls are “mean” and vicious because of a lack of something, whether it be love, attention, or something else.  Encourage your daughter to treat the “mean girl” as she wants to be treated, not how they treat her.

Empower her. Help your daughter to focus on her own positive traits and abilities.  So many times “mean girls” target those girls who seem to have no self-esteem or a low self-esteem.  In many ways they are making it easier on themselves.  It is easier to put down a person who is already low to begin with, but if your daughter is thinking “positively” and using her own good qualities to bring up her self-esteem and empower herself she is less likely to be a victim of the “mean girls”.

Build her relationships. Again, many times girls are picked on by the “mean girls” because they are easily centered out from the others.  Have your daughter to focus on building relationships so that she is never caught alone and so she isn’t easily pegged.  A lack of good, healthy relationships in a girl’s life is one of the reasons that “mean girls’ exist in the first place.  Finding like-minded individuals in which she has things in common can help her to build good, positive relationships, which she will carry throughout life and which will be an encouragement to her.

Unfortunately, the mean girls likely won’t go away, however your daughter’s tendency to be picked on by them can change with the right focus in your daughter’s life.  Be an agent of positive change in your daughter’s life to help her to deal with and combat the role of the “mean girls” in her life.

Girls,  How many times has your momma said this, “Because I said so.” When my momma said it, she backed it with a promise.  She meant business.  I knew  my mom meant business, but she also modeled obedience for me.  She expected me to obey, but she also obeyed God.  She modeled this for me.

She made time for me.  She made his teachings a part of our daily life.  God’s commandments in my home were rules to live by, not just because my mom said so, but because God said so.  God says the same thing.  He expects us to do things because He says so.

The Bible says in Ephesians 6:

“Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.  Honor your father and mother which is the first commandment with a promise – that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.”

Ephesians 6:1-3

You see, God tells us to do something and He backs it up with a promise. And you know what?  God keeps His promises. How many times have you promised someone something and NOT kept your promise?  Or maybe someone promised you something and they didn’t keep their promise.  But with God, He ALWAYS keeps His promises.

He tells us to obey our parents, and our parents must obey God.  He also gives them a command, it is found in Deuteronomy 6

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.  These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts.  Impress them on your children.  Talk about them  when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.  Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.  Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.”  Deuteronomy 6:5-9

We as parents are to teach our children to love God,  as a result of this love our children will learn to honor and obey God,  this will cause them to learn to be obedient.  Honor comes through obedience.

When we learn to obey and honor our parents we are being obedient to God and we will therefore receive His promises.

Parents will often make promises to us as well.  As parents we must follow through with our promises in order to help our children to learn obedience.  My parents were ones to keep their promises whether it was a promise of punishment if I disobeyed or a promise of something I wanted or was wishing for.

I had to first learn to be obedient.  Even when my momma said, “Because I said so.”

There are many commandments that we are given as children of God. The Bible lays these out for us in the Ten Commandments and other Scriptures. Some are easy to follow, while others we struggle with.  Honoring our father and mother is one that during our teen years we often struggle to keep.  The simple commandment,

“Honor your father and your mother,” Exodus 20:12 (NIV),

becomes so complex as get to this age.  For some strange reason as we hit around the age of thirteen our parents become dumber and we become smarter.
This was my personal experience.  I can remember thinking that they were so wrong, while I was so right.  Many an argument was fought because of this.  Whether it be a disagreement over whether I could go somewhere with my friends, how messy my room was, or how I chose to wear my hair, I thought they were wrong and I was right.

Sure, my friends often had crazy ideas my parents were right about not letting me participate in, my room did often resembled a pig sty, and my hair  needed washing more than once per week, but I sure did not think so in my naive little thirteen year old brain.

So, as moms and dads, how do we get our children, especially those of the teenage variety to clue into the fact that we are “smart”?  The truth is, as a former teen myself, I believe it is a phase we all have to go through.  Quite honestly as time went by, my parents got smarter and smarter.  I began to clue in to the fact that some of the things they were telling me really were for my own good and slowly I came back onto their side of many an issue.

By the age of eighteen I had come to realize that I needed them, they had good advice, and I could count on them more than my friends.  So, do not loose hope, your child will come around again.  So, be patient, and wait for them to realize the error of their ways, receive their newfound belief in you with love, and be grateful for their new found belief in what you have to say.

The Bible’s words are true that if you,

“Train a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not turn from it.”  Proverbs 22:6 (NIV)

Let that verse be the hope that you cling to as you continue to train your child, no matter how dumb they attempt to make you feel, because Mom and Dad, your honor will soon be restored to its rightful  place.