Helping Kids Process Evil
Email 1
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Subject line: Teaching children about evil in our world
Parents,
Do you remember the first time you realized that there were REAL bad people in the world and not just in books or movies? That realization probably came during your elementary school years. It is during this stage that children begin to understand that bad things happen in our world. When our children are faced with this reality, it begs us, the parent, to ask, how do I talk to my child about evil; that evil is real, that it exits?
We want to help you navigate how to talk candidly with your child about evil, while at the same time protecting them from the fear and anxiety that can develop when people think about evil in our world. Check out this month’s video on How to Teach Our Children About Evil in the World.
https://vimeo.com/parentministry/review/115113145/ab72f63a63
Later in the month I’ll be in touch with some practical steps for talking with your children about evil in the world.
Partnering with you,
Children’s Pastor
Email 2
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When our children were little they worried about monsters under their bed. Through their elementary years their worries will reflect the real world. They’ll begin to worry about terrorism, floods, kidnapping, etc. All of these new worries come about because evil exists in our world. But, how in the world do we talk with our children about evil?
The bottom line is we need to talk with our children about evil, so they will KNOW about it. We don’t want our children to EXPERIENCE it. To talk about evil with our children means we talk with them about the fact that we have an enemy, and his name is Satan. In Matthew 4 we see Jesus knew His enemy and when it came to combating evil, Jesus spoke words of TRUTH.
When we talk with our children about evil in the world we need to speak TRUTH, not our opinion, but the TRUTH of God’s word. I’m reminded of John 10:10, “The thief comes only to steal, kill, and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly”. Our children can know there is an enemy who means harm, but we’re promised that Jesus has something totally different in mind.
This promise from Jesus is for eternity, which is why in our temporal world evil exists and will continue to exist. Our children can conquer evil by doing good. Jesus is the solution to evil, and He allows us to be part of the solution as well as we help our children to conquer evil by doing good (Romans 12:21).
Partnering with you,
Children’s Pastor
Video Script
In this online parenting class we want to help you as a parent now how to help your child deal with evil in world. Think about the first time you faced evil. For many of you 9-11 was a moment where you watched evil play out before your eyes. Every year at some point your kids hear about 9-11 as we remember and once again you are pushed to relive the memories. On a daily basis our kids hear about evil in the world through conversations at school or through watching the news or by reading a news article on our iPad. How do we have conversations about evil with our kids?
By 8 years old, children know the difference between fantasy and reality, so they are more likely to be frightened by televised new coverage of events such as kidnappings, murders, and terrorism. Kids figure out quickly that bad things happen and evil is real. As parents we struggle to know how to respond to our kids when they learn that reality. What I have learned as a parent is that I can’t explain everything to my 3rd grader but I can be a voice of clarity to her when it comes to evil in the world. As parents we shape the response of our children toward evil and this month we are going to give you some simple tips when it comes to talking with your child about the issue.
Here is the tension…although it’s important to protect our children’s innocence and give them only information their developing minds can handle, we’re reminded nearly every day that this planet can be a horrible place. How we as parents respond to evil shapes how our kids respond. God responded and is still responding to evil through Jesus. God is not passive when it comes to evil. God is not surprised by evil. The Bible says that God is confronting evil through people who follow Him and through the power of Jesus. Listen to what the Bible says about evil in one simple verse…
Romans 12:21 (NLT) 21 Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.
We help our kids understand evil so that they will not be overcome by it. We step into the conversations about evil with our kids so they will have confidence to conquer it through good. They can stand against it and we will stand with them. Kids need to know that no matter what happens in the world we will walk with them. Kids gain their confidence through us so be willing to help the discover it through your presence.
Here are a few tips to help you begin to deal with this issue in your home…
When you talk about evil make sure kids know good wins because God will make things right. //
We know there is evil in the world but our kids need to know that God is pushing back evil through the good we choose every day. Good wins because God wins. Evil flows from people choosing to evils actions. We push against evil with the good that we choose. Your confidence in God helps your child have confidence in God.
Let your kids ask you questions. //
silence is a bad choice for parents to choose when it comes to evil. When your child faces evil they need you to help them process not shut down. They need to know they can come to you when they don’t understand and when you allow that to happen as kids you set yourself up for more conversations as they grow up. Kids need a safe place to process the reality of evil.
Limit social media and TV access for kids. //
Your child need to hear you explain horrible situations and not their friends on social media or on the anchor on the news. To have a shot at being able to help your kids face evil and protect them from evil then guard them from overexposure to news and social media. Honestly your child does not need to be on any social media platform until they are 12 or older.
We know this is a heavy issue and a real issue every parent faces. Be looking for part 2 of this online parenting class coming from your children’s ministry in the coming weeks! Praying that God will give you wisdom as you help your child deal with the issue of evil.
Weekly tweets from you to parents:
TIP: Choose a hashtag for your tweets and use it consistently. That will tell twitter to store a list of your tweets in one place for later reference.
TWEET #1-By age 8 children can distinguish reality and fantasy, so become frightened by the realities they see in the news. #urchurchparentministry
TWEET #2-Edmund Burke “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothng.#urchurchparentministry
TWEET #3-Parents can’t explain everything when it comes to evil but they can be a voice of clarity. #urchurchparentministry
TWEET #4-Don’t give too much info when talking about evil. Clarify 1st what your child wants to know. #urchurchparentministry
TWEET #5- Romans 12:21-Evil is conquered by doing good, so DO GOOD. #urchurchparentministry
TWEET #6-The clearest point when teaching children about evil, in the end, GOD wins over evil! #urchurchparentministry
TWEET #7-Your confidence in God will guide your children to develop confidence in God. #urchurchparentministry
TWEET #8-Not talking about evil in our world only adds to a child’s anxiety. SPEAK TRUTH to them. #urchurchparentministry
TWEET #9-Protect your children from evil by limiting exposure to news and social media. #urchurchparentministry
TWEET #10-Evil exists because of an initial choice by Adam and Eve to choose their desires over God’s. #urchurchparentministry