Parenting by Gods Promises

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Discipline does more good if you've been affirming them for doing right. In critiquing what children say, don't make mountains out of molehills.

Say yes whenever possible, unless there's a solid reason to say no. Cultivate an attitude of affirmation. Don't be weary in well-doing Gal 6: Persevere in paths of righteousness, and trust God. With God, all things are possible Matthew Sep 16, Brent Rosendal rated it liked it. This was one of the best and one of the worst books I've ever read on parenting.

The first section of the book is entitled, 'Covenantal Foundations for Parenting'. I've never struggled to get through a section of a book like I struggled to get through this section. I'd read good reviews about this book and so I forced myself to get through it, even though it took me like 6 months to read about 60 pages. The author is from the reformed tradition and really pushed his infant baptism beliefs.

The m This was one of the best and one of the worst books I've ever read on parenting. The more he explained the more frustrated I became and the more I realized how unscriptural the belief is. Thankfully I got through that portion of the book because the following sections were pure gold. Some very insightful teachings and the author addressed subjects that I've never come upon in a parenting book before, things such as helping teenagers to discover God's will and how to teach them to resist peer pressure.

I am so glad that I perserved though the first section because I am sure I will return to the other sections of the book over and over again. Dec 20, Peter N. A wonderful book on parenting. Pastor Beeke does a great job of keeping the central aspects of parenting before the reader. Prayer, God's Word, forgiveness, love, consistency and worship dominate the various chapters of the book. He balances nicely the objective aspects of the covenant with the subjective work of the Spirit in the heart of the child. He covers a wide range of topics, which adds depth to the book and makes it useful for parents at almost any stage of life.

He talks about spanking A wonderful book on parenting. He talks about spanking, training a child to listen, teaching a child godliness, and sibling interaction. He closes with some chapters on teenagers, which were excellent. Throughout the book he is warm and pastoral without being so vague as to be ineffective. This is a book that I would recommend to any parent. Mar 22, Jerry rated it really liked it Shelves: This is an outstanding, approachable book.

I think he could have made a distinction between discipline and punishment, but well-rounded, sturdy and God-centered approach to parenting. May 23, Dan rated it it was amazing. Beeke, and published by Reformation Trust Publishing, is one of the few books on Christian parenting which, as the title suggests, focuses on raising a covenant child. As a minister to children, youth and families, there are a plethora of books I have seen that are written on Christian child-rearing. I have read many of them yet it is only once in a blue moon that I find a parenting book which I will fully openly recommend to the parents and guardians which I minister alongside of.

The sections are, Part One: Covenantal Foundations, Part Two: Practical Helps for Teenagers. Beeke wants a parent to be able to use this book to aid in their role as a parent no matter the age of their child, therefore while His magnificent insights and wonderful practical application make this book great, a parent might want to pair this book with others if they want more depth of analysis of child-rearing a child at a specific age. If you are a minister looking to read a book on how to minister to a family in your congregation from a covenantal perspective this is the book you have been looking for.

It is a book which you can easily adapt into ministry core values. Furthermore this book can also be used as a group study thanks to a helpful appendix which contains questions which aid continued reflection on the topics presented. This book was provided to me free of charge from Reformation Trust Publishing in exchange for an unbiased, honest review.

Reformation Trust Page Count: Jul 17, Taylor Rollo rated it really liked it Shelves: Over all this was a very good and helpful book on parently. Beeke covers a wide range of subjects with practical, biblical advice, and he starts it out right by talking about parenting within a covenantal framework, as Christian parents are covenant parents. There were some minor issues I had with some of his opinions that he put out there without really attempting to justify them.

For example, he took for granted that Christian schools were the way that parents should educate their children as Over all this was a very good and helpful book on parently. For example, he took for granted that Christian schools were the way that parents should educate their children as if there was obviously no justification for public schooling or home schooling though he did not actually mention anything about home schooling at all, so he might be fine with that.

It is relatively minor, though, for I can let something like that roll off and move on. Hopefully, other readers can as well. I also appreciated his well-versed and helpful relaying of Puritan parenting philosophies and advice. I learned a lot from those sections, and they were mostly passing on what he had learned from the many Puritan writings on this subject. All in all, I would definitely recommend this book, and I will likely read it again some time.

Perhaps in a few years when my children are a little older. Sep 16, Forbes rated it it was amazing. This book should be put into the hands of every expecting couple, as a comprehensive parenting guide with regards to raising our children for Christ. Rarely do I find myself in full agreement with an author, especially on parenting - but Joel Beeke had me nodding my head not only in agreement, but conviction, the whole way through, with maybe one or two very minor sentences to which I would object.

There is not much more I can say that others have not said in their reviews, but I would urge anyo This book should be put into the hands of every expecting couple, as a comprehensive parenting guide with regards to raising our children for Christ. There is not much more I can say that others have not said in their reviews, but I would urge anyone not yet convinced, to go ahead and give this book a read. I hope to re-read, at least in portions, regularly, because I need to be reminded and encouraged.

What you didn't hear from your own father, you will find here in abundance. Here's a run down: Jul 21, Chris rated it really liked it Shelves: This is a well-written, insightful, though somewhat lengthy book on parenting. Thankfully, it avoids the typical cliches of Christian parenting books, and does an excellent job focusing on both the duties required of parents, as well as the grace of God that enables us and motivates us to parent.

In my sincere opinion, this book is much-needed. I only limit this rating to four stars because there is a good bit of "filler" explanation that could be cut out or skipped. Aside from this, I found the This is a well-written, insightful, though somewhat lengthy book on parenting. Aside from this, I found the book delightful.

Dec 11, Bambi Moore rated it it was amazing Shelves: I think this is the best parenting book I have ever read. Every page is full of my highlights and notes. Jan 17, mpsiple rated it liked it. Good, but dry and wooden. Oct 04, Kyle Grindberg rated it really liked it.

Aug 07, Seth rated it it was amazing. Started with a Scriptural foundation and many good practical ideas. Apr 08, Kim rated it really liked it. I've read a lot of Christian parenting books. Some I thought were ok, others not great at all, and others very good.

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Lately, I've found a great stream of absolute "must-read, where have you been all these years" books. First Ginger Plowman's, and now Beeke's. Combined together, these make up the ultimate required reading set of books. Beeke sets up the case for covenant parenting beautifully. He goes into such depth but not overly technically theological that the average parent would get I've read a lot of Christian parenting books.

He goes into such depth but not overly technically theological that the average parent would get lost in Scripture and Biblical examples some I've never even thought about such as Moses' parents and instills an urgency as to why a parent should want to seek to change their parenting thought process and seek a Christ centered covenantal approach. In the next section he lays out so eloquently how we are to parent as a prophet, a priest, and a king using Christ and other Biblical examples.

The next section gets into great application and problem areas, areas that are so real life it's convicting how far short we fall in these areas and he gives hope to how we can change. The last two sections I admit I skipped because we are still far off from the teenage, adult child, and grandparent stages. The appendixes on Cotton mother and children in the church were good to skim through if you're already familiar with these thought patterns, but if they are new to a reader they would be beneficial to mull over in more detail.

I absolutely loved his imagery of the prophetic, priestly, and kingly parenting and really enjoyed his breakdown of teaching children piety, how to listen, how to tame the tongue, and handling sibling relationships. Such godly pastoral teaching without being "preachy". And convicting of the parents' own learning and struggles in these areas too. Usually I approach theology and counseling books with a very critical eye pitting what's written against Scripture at every turn.

But quickly into this book I knew I was in for some really solid meaty teaching and was so humbled and encouraged all at the same time. The minor criticism I had was that I was confused by his emphasizing the Puritan family dynamics in a few areas. These didn't seem to really fit anywhere, and seemed to be reiterations of what he already covered in other areas. I wasn't sure what he was really trying to get at or why he included them.

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I heard that this book came from a culmination of some conferences and teaching he has given, so perhaps this was a unit from his conference that made sense in that context, but not so much in this book format. Using this book as a guide along with Plowman's which has very helpful guidance on use of Scripture and everyday scenarios with sample real life conversations is extremely helpful and I think even dare I say it?

Feb 11, Laura Langley rated it really liked it. Written by Joel R. How to Raise Children in the Covenant of Grace offers a reformed, covenantal perspective on parenting.

Parenting by God's Promises: How to Raise Children in the Covenant of Grace by Joel R. Beeke

Parents from a Reformed tradition will find the book upholds their long-held beliefs, while parents from non-Reformed traditions may find parts of the book differ from their interpretations of some Scriptures. In fact, I would caution non-Reformed readers to be aware that their own traditional interpretations are criticized in the book. Still, I think there is enough practical parenting advice that may benefit readers from both traditions if one is patient enough to sift through the whole book to find those nuggets.

Parenting by God's Promises is divided into four parts. Part One outlines covenantal foundations for parenting while Part Two focuses on parent's roles as prophets, priests and kings. In Part Three, the author highlights practical steps for child-rearing while Part Four specifically deals with parenting teenagers. While I struggled through the covenantal implications on parenting, I appreciated the author's list of duties of Christian parents, with which I think parents of any Christian tradition can agree and should strive to achieve: The author did emphasize the necessity of dependence upon God, upon the centrality of His word, and upon prayer.

He also addressed the value of learning to exercise sympathy without excusing sin. One of my favorite chapters was chapter eight where Beeke outlines ten things we should teach our children pages You can't get much more practical that that.

I also found the chapters on piety godliness , listening, anger, controlling the tongue, helping teens discern God's will, and dealing with teen anger to be very practical and helpful. For those who want to use the book for a small group study or book club, there are study questions in the back of the book. The publishers have also included a helpful subject index as well as a Scripture index.

I would probably give the book 4 stars out of 5. While I don't necessarily hold to the same theological convictions as the author when it comes to covenantal theology, parts three and four of the book were both biblical and practical, offering even me, a Baptist, some parental encouragement and teaching. I received a copy of this Parenting by God's Promises as compensation for this book review.

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However, the opinions expressed in the review are my own. Feb 24, Michele Daniels rated it it was amazing. This book was wonderfully written from a different perspective than most parenting books. Instead of focusing on how you parent or what you can do it directs parents to look at what God can do and to trsut in him. May 06, Brock rated it really liked it Shelves: Originally appeared in my blog www. How to Raise Children in the Covenant of Grace. The book is separated into four sections: The book his written from a decidedly Reformed view of the scriptures and it oozes out in every paragraph he writes.

Beeke doesn't rely on other parenting resources to write the book, rather, he uses his knowledge of the Scriptures and his experience as a father and pastoral counselor. I was immediately encouraged in reading this book by being reminded that "God teaches us that the success of happy, well-adjusted, spiritually minded, Christ-honoring, God-glorifying, Scripture-grounded children growing into adulthood is never because of us.

Beeke encouraged me by pointing out that it is only by the amazing grace of God and not by my works good or bad that my children will turn out right. At the same time, I was reminded of my solemn responsibility as a father to treat my children as God would treat them and to "engage in the thoughtful teaching and spiritual training" on a daily basis "so they do not get the impression that true religion is something taught or practiced only at church for a few hours each week. The book is worthy of your consideration! I received a free copy of the book as compensation for my review.

Feb 18, Joel Gass rated it really liked it. This book was very helpful. Kind and gentle, Beeke guides parents in the Way of the Master. Jun 25, Sarah rated it liked it Shelves: I give the first part of this book four or five stars for the reminders of how God is true to his promises, and He has made a covenant with us and our children. It reminds us of the amazing God we worship and who calls us His own. The remainder of this book has helpful practical advice on parenting mainly from a Puritan perspective.

Parenting by God's Promises

Unless you remind yourself of the points at the front of the book, it's easy to feel like the author sets some Puritan family practices as THE standard and best way I give the first part of this book four or five stars for the reminders of how God is true to his promises, and He has made a covenant with us and our children. Unless you remind yourself of the points at the front of the book, it's easy to feel like the author sets some Puritan family practices as THE standard and best way to raise covenant children, and it becomes easy to feel like a failure as a parent or to dismiss the author's ideas as impractical for our time.

I think I'll use the chapter discussion questions at the end of the book to spark more thought and discussion with my husband about how we are intentionally raising the living, breathing children we have under our physical roof. I am sure that we will refer to this book for years to come. I think the chapters on parenting teens seems especially helpful, and the advice given in the book affects parenting decisions we make NOW as our children are toddlers to help us set the stage for parenting our teenagers in the years to come.

Dec 11, Ike rated it it was amazing.

I wish this had been available to me 18 years ago. Beeke begins by reminding us that God is in control of our children and is using us to parent them. We cannot do the job of parenting our children well; we need to trust him to help us out. In the next section, he moves on to teaching parents how to be prophets, priests, and kings in their homes.

Our children need us to proclaim the Gospel, intercede in prayer, and lead them as kings. In the last portion, Beeke gives us some prac Excellent book. In the last portion, Beeke gives us some practical application for the teenagers in our midst. Beeke is humble and comforting in his approach, while holding the line on what he sees as our God given duty to parent our children with the 1, generations in view.

I really appreciated his reminders that the Puritans were not the stodgy, wet blankets that we have been led to believe. Much of the information that he presents was gleaned from his study of the Puritans for other projects. This is a great book and I highly recommend it. Jul 19, Leslie rated it it was amazing Shelves: We're quickly becoming fans of Joel R. He speaks with a pastoral and prophetic voice to parents, teaching them what it means to raise children in light of the covenant of grace described in the Scriptures.

He reminds Christian parents of the great hope we have in the covenant e. He gives practical ideas for discipline and training both younger children and teenagers. This is a go-to for all Christian parents, especially those sympathetic to the Reformed tradition. We'll read this again when our littles are biggers. Aug 12, Becky rated it really liked it. Our children are part of the covenant and so we are to raise them as such; teaching them about Christ and his love for us and about sin.

What I really liked about this book is that Beeke backs everything up with scripture; it is the foundation from which our parenting should flow. He also reminds parents that when we train our children, how we live matters. For example, if we want our children to be good listeners then we must also be good listeners and he gives specific ways in which we can do Our children are part of the covenant and so we are to raise them as such; teaching them about Christ and his love for us and about sin. For example, if we want our children to be good listeners then we must also be good listeners and he gives specific ways in which we can do this.

Raising children is about more than just surviving until they leave home; Beeke reminds us that Christian parents must view their roles in the broader context of God's redemptive work. Our goal must be raising children who, by God's grace, come to know and follow the Lord who has redeemed us and called us to Himself. This is a daunting task, and parents need all the help they can get. For those desperate to hear a clear thoughtful, biblical, theological, Reformed treatise on the subject, Parenting by God's Promises is a valuable read.

Pastor of preaching, Grace Family Baptist Church, Springs, TexasThe defection of young people from the church is creating great concern in our day. Oftentimes the solutions seem to exacerbate the problem. Joel Beeke's book, Parenting by God's Promises: The book blends a vibrant covenant theology with wise, practical instruction.

Moreover, it keeps a balance between family and church in the nurture of our children. This book is an important read for pastors, elders, parents, and grandparents. About Joel R Beeke Dr. He has written, coauthored, or edited some fifty books, including Living for God s Glory: Reformed and Puritan Perspectives on Prayer. He has contributed more than fifteen hundred articles to Reformed books, journals, periodicals, and encyclopedias.

He frequently lectures at Reformed seminaries and speaks at conferences around the world.

Parenting by God's Promises: How to Raise Children in the Covenant of Grace

Beeke and his wife, Mary, have three children: Calvin, Esther, and Lydia. They make their home in Grand Rapids. Book ratings by Goodreads. Goodreads is the world's largest site for readers with over 50 million reviews.

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