{"id":301903,"date":"2009-10-16T11:00:00","date_gmt":"2009-10-16T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/%series%\/raising-a-modern-day-joseph\/"},"modified":"2009-10-16T11:00:00","modified_gmt":"2009-10-16T15:00:00","slug":"raising-a-modern-day-joseph","status":"publish","type":"podcast","link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/raising-a-modern-day-joseph\/","title":{"rendered":"Raising a Modern Day Joseph"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What are you doing to grow spiritually strong kids?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":91,"featured_media":294104,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","inline_featured_image":false,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"https:\/\/web.familylifetoday.com\/fl2009-10-16.mp3","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"00:","filesize":"11.39M","filesize_raw":"11944849","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":""},"categories":[2850,2837,2835],"tags":[4876,5072,4421],"podcast_series":[],"cwp_profile":[3088],"series":[2101],"class_list":["post-301903","podcast","type-podcast","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-character-development","category-fathers","category-raising-boys","tag-girls","tag-parenting-girls","tag-raising-girls","cwp_profile-larry-fowler","series-familylife-today"],"acf":[],"episode_featured_image":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1001\/2024\/09\/FLT-Podcast-Cover-2-508x508-3.jpg?w=508","episode_player_image":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1001\/2023\/02\/image-scaled.jpg","download_link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast-download\/301903\/raising-a-modern-day-joseph","player_link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast-player\/301903\/raising-a-modern-day-joseph","audio_player":null,"episode_data":{"playerMode":"light","subscribeUrls":{"apple_podcasts":{"key":"apple_podcasts","url":"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/familylife-today\/id212174303?mt=2&app=podcast","label":"Apple Podcasts","class":"apple_podcasts","icon":"apple-podcasts.png"},"google_podcasts":{"key":"google_podcasts","url":"","label":"Google Podcasts","class":"google_podcasts","icon":"google-podcasts.png"},"spotify":{"key":"spotify","url":"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/0j5UaKdQOHQCuo1bt0ebEm","label":"Spotify","class":"spotify","icon":"spotify.png"},"youtube":{"key":"youtube","url":"","label":"YouTube","class":"youtube","icon":"youtube.png"}},"rssFeedUrl":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/feed\/podcast\/familylife-today","embedCode":"<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"Db9BeDUmuO\"><a href=\"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/raising-a-modern-day-joseph\/\">Raising a Modern Day Joseph<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/raising-a-modern-day-joseph\/embed\/#?secret=Db9BeDUmuO\" width=\"500\" height=\"350\" title=\"&#8220;Raising a Modern Day Joseph&#8221; &#8212; FamilyLife\u00ae - A Cru Ministry\" data-secret=\"Db9BeDUmuO\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\"><\/iframe><script>\n\/*! This file is auto-generated *\/\n!function(d,l){\"use strict\";l.querySelector&&d.addEventListener&&\"undefined\"!=typeof URL&&(d.wp=d.wp||{},d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage||(d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if((t||t.secret||t.message||t.value)&&!\/[^a-zA-Z0-9]\/.test(t.secret)){for(var s,r,n,a=l.querySelectorAll('iframe[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),o=l.querySelectorAll('blockquote[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),c=new RegExp(\"^https?:$\",\"i\"),i=0;i<o.length;i++)o[i].style.display=\"none\";for(i=0;i<a.length;i++)s=a[i],e.source===s.contentWindow&&(s.removeAttribute(\"style\"),\"height\"===t.message?(1e3<(r=parseInt(t.value,10))?r=1e3:~~r<200&&(r=200),s.height=r):\"link\"===t.message&&(r=new URL(s.getAttribute(\"src\")),n=new URL(t.value),c.test(n.protocol))&&n.host===r.host&&l.activeElement===s&&(d.top.location.href=t.value))}},d.addEventListener(\"message\",d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage,!1),l.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\",function(){for(var 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kids?","meta_box":{"show_notes":"","transcript_url":"https:\/\/transcript.familylifetoday.com\/fl2009-10-16.pdf","transcript_content":"<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong>\u00a0 I was on a plane from Chicago and I was sitting beside this young guy and I struck up a conversation with him.\u00a0 I found out that he was a long range planner in his work.\u00a0 He told me how much he loved strategy and planning and thinking ahead and implementing and all that stuff.\u00a0 So I asked him do you have kids?\u00a0 Yes, I have a one year old and a four year old.\u00a0 So what do you want to be able to say about your kids when they are 30?\u00a0 This guy that was a long range planner and strategic planner at work said wow, I\u2019ve never thought about that.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 This is <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> for Friday, October 16<sup>th<\/sup>.\u00a0 Our host is the President of FamilyLife, Dennis Rainey, and I am Bob Lepine.\u00a0 Have you done any spiritual strategic planning for your family?\u00a0 We\u2019re going to talk about that today.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAnd welcome to <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>!\u00a0 Thanks for joining us.\u00a0 You look around at what\u2019s going on in the culture and as a parent it can be kind of scary and intimidating to think I\u2019m supposed to raise kids to love God and follow Christ in this culture.\u00a0 It is becoming increasingly counter cultural for us to try and do our job.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 It is.\u00a0 You have friends like Josh McDowall who are sharing with the Christian community that less that 15 percent of all young people are graduating with a Christian world view.\u00a0 Then George Barna comes along and he drops it even lower to less than 10 percent have a Christian world view and then you read statistics that one out of every two children are abandoning their faith during college.\u00a0\u00a0 It\u2019s easy to think that out of the houseful of kids I have here how many of them are going to be walking with Christ by the time they graduate from college?\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 Who is going to shipwreck and who is going to be stable?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Right.\u00a0 We have a guest with us today Larry Fowler who joins us on <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>.\u00a0 Larry welcome back.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong><strong>\u00a0 <\/strong>Thank you.\u00a0 It\u2019s wonderful to be back.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Larry works in a ministry that is all about equipping young people with the gospel and then discipling them with the Scripture.\u00a0 It\u2019s called AWANA.\u00a0 He is the Executive Director of global training and he and his wife have two children and three grandchildren and live near Chicago.\u00a0 He\u2019s written a book called <em>Raising a Modern Day Joseph:<\/em><em>\u00a0 <\/em><em>A Timeless Strategy for Growing Great Kids<\/em>.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWhen you wrote this book, Larry, were you thinking about the parents that Bob is talking about here.\u00a0 The ones that are frightened by what they see on the landscape?\u00a0 Were you thinking about bringing them courage to raise kids who embrace their faith?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong>\u00a0 Yes, but also the parents that maybe are asleep and not so alert to what may be facing them in the future.\u00a0 It\u2019s easy for parents when their kids are small to think everything is going okay but there are some critical things that have to happen in the young years of a family in order for the maximum impact to take place in the lives of the kids.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 You watched your next door neighbor\u2019s daughter follow a trajectory that was troubling, right?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong>\u00a0 Yes.\u00a0 Growing up she was saying the right things, doing all the right things, looking very much like a Christian girl and the parents had no clue of what would take place later in life.\u00a0 When she got to college it wasn\u2019t just a year or so until she abandoned her faith and left it behind.\u00a0 She was sleeping regularly with a number of different guys and certainly in her words still professed to believe in God but everything about her behavior was something really different from that.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Larry, you\u2019ve been working with youth for nearly three decades now?\u00a0\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong>\u00a0 Closer to four actually.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Closer to four decades.\u00a0 What do you think is going on here?\u00a0 Why are we losing at this point in time the young people who have been taught how to follow Christ?\u00a0 Why are we losing them to the culture?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong>\u00a0 I think because we as parents and grandparents now because I am one of those have really been blinded to how we are not following God\u2019s commands in Scripture.\u00a0 Ephesians chapter 6 verse 4 is the most succinct of this when it says \u201cFathers bring your children up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 My kids wanted to make sure that you reminded me do not exasperate your children is in there, too.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t(laughter)\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry Fowler:<\/strong>\u00a0 It\u2019s in there, too, yes.\u00a0 The implication is that not training them is exasperating.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob<\/strong>:\u00a0 That\u2019s right.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong>\u00a0 But that is an active command.\u00a0 Fathers are to do it.\u00a0 Across America Christian fathers and Christian parents, moms are not exempt from this, have delegated it rather than doing it.\u00a0 They have delegated it to the church or to the Christian school.\u00a0 What happens when you delegate it is you kind of relax and think okay it is getting done.\u00a0 It\u2019s like if you delegate your child learning a musical instrument to a teacher and as long as they go and do their lessons you think they are doing fine.\u00a0 Scripture is clear that parents are to do it not to delegate it.\u00a0\u00a0 The reason why is because this is a heart issue.\u00a0 It\u2019s not about what the child knows.\u00a0 It\u2019s about what is in their heart and the heart is formed in the home.\u00a0 A heart really can\u2019t be formed in an hour a week in Sunday school or anywhere else.\u00a0 It is formed in the home. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Ultimately the hearts of the parents are the burden bearers of passing on the truth of Scripture and the truth about God to their children.\u00a0 If they don\u2019t possess that burden personally no matter how effective the Christian school may be or the Christian youth group the family still is the most powerful unit on the planet for passing on spiritual truth.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong>\u00a0 And Bob you were talking about parents who are fearful and there are parents that don\u2019t know what to do.\u00a0 They don\u2019t know what it looks like but my concern in my book is not so much the lack of tools but it is actually lack of direction and lack of a target.\u00a0 I see a lot of parents who are aware of tools and still don\u2019t do it.\u00a0 Why don\u2019t they do it?\u00a0 When the results are as bleak as they are?\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 So what is the answer to that question?\u00a0 Why don\u2019t they do it?\u00a0 I\u2019m looking at Christian parents who love their kids and they would die for their kids but why are they neglecting the spiritual training?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry: <\/strong>\u00a0Before I answer that I\u2019m going to ask another question.\u00a0 Why would they make sure that their child brushes their teeth every single day?\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 Because they want their kids to not have cavities.\u00a0\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong>\u00a0 Or why would they make sure that they do their homework every single night?\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 You want them to get good grades and get a good education.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong>\u00a0 But then when it comes to the spiritual training that is something that kind of fits in.\u00a0 I was asked on another radio program recently so what do you say to parents who say I don\u2019t know how we are going to do this when school starts and life gets so crazy.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThe answer to that is the very question says something about the value system.\u00a0 What it says is that school is the important thing and spiritual training is the less important thing that you fit in if there is time.\u00a0\u00a0 Until we have a clearer sense that this is the thing that really makes a difference in life and this is the thing that is going to either cause you to rejoice as a parent later in life or cause you to grieve then we probably are not going to follow through on a daily basis and do what we need to do.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0 So the question you are asking is do we really fundamentally as parents believe that spiritual training is not just valuable but essential.\u00a0 If we do then we will live that way, right?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry Fowler:<\/strong>\u00a0 Exactly, yes.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 That is really what Deuteronomy chapter 6 verse 4 is all about.\u00a0 It says, \u201cHear oh Israel the Lord our God, the Lord is one.\u00a0 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.\u00a0 These words that I command you today shall be on your hearts.\u00a0 You shall teach of them to your children.\u201d\u00a0 It goes on to talk about and the point is it begins with it being a burden on the parent\u2019s hearts where it is more important than their athletic success or their academic excellence.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tBarbara and I could accomplish any number of things with our lives but if our kids aren\u2019t doing well I\u2019m telling you everything about our lives centers around cheering them on because they are the next generation.\u00a0 They are the messages we are passing on to another generation that needs to hear about Christ.\u00a0 If they don\u2019t get it and they are not practicing it then in some ways it feels like we\u2019ve failed in our responsibility as parents to really make a good spiritual hand off.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 You see the key to all of this being what you call a master life thread that parents need to zero in on, right?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong>\u00a0 Let me back up a little bit further.\u00a0 I see the key to all of this being a target.\u00a0 Then I think there are five master life threads that lead toward the target.\u00a0 Let me talk about the target first.\u00a0 I want to tell a story.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI was on a plane from San Jose to Chicago and I was sitting beside this young guy and I struck up a conversation with him.\u00a0 I found out that he was a long range planner in his work.\u00a0 He told me how much he loved strategy and planning and thinking ahead and implementing and all that stuff.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tSo I asked him, do you have kids?\u00a0 Yes, I have a one year old and a four year old.\u00a0 So what do you want to be able to say about your kids when they are 30?\u00a0 This guy that was a long range planner and strategic planner at work said, wow, I\u2019ve never thought about that.\u00a0 There was this pregnant pause and he said, \u201cwell, to finish college, have a good career, be happily married\u201d and he started down a laundry list like that.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tHe wasn\u2019t going where I wanted him to go so I asked him the second question.\u00a0 So what would really cause you to grieve if you had to say it about your kids when they are 30? His answer to me was, \u201coh, if they were lost.\u201d\u00a0 His answer was the first indication that I was talking to a Christian dad.\u00a0 But when only asked the first question he didn\u2019t think of anything spiritual.\u00a0 Everything that he thought about was temporal and the spiritual thing didn\u2019t come to his mind until I asked the second question.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThen I asked him which is the most important question?\u00a0 He responded, \u201coh, the second one.\u201d\u00a0 I kind of had him so I decided to go for the jugular so I asked him, \u201cyou mean to tell me that you are a long range planner at work but you have never made any plans for the spiritual training of your kids at home?\u00a0 And he goes, \u201coh, you\u2019re right.\u00a0 I need to get home and talk to my wife.\u201d\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI hope God really used that in his life but he is just so typical of all of us.\u00a0 And I say us because I\u2019ve certainly been that way, too.\u00a0 As I get older I\u2019m getting much more intentional about what I do.\u00a0 That is true of us as Christian parents in America.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 So what you are saying is we have to keep the right target or bulls eye out in front of us as raise our kids and be intentional about aiming every day, right?\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong>\u00a0 Yes because we have this fuzzy picture of what we want our kids to turn out when it comes to spiritual things but the picture is usually very clear educationally.\u00a0 It\u2019s graduate from college at a minimum.\u00a0 Because the target is clear parents translate that into what happens on Monday night and Tuesday night and Wednesday night.\u00a0 They get the connection between daily practice and the end goal.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWhen we have a fuzzy end goal in terms of the spiritual training of our kids Monday night can go by and we do nothing and we think we really haven\u2019t lost anything.\u00a0 The same for Tuesday night or Wednesday night.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0 I\u2019ll tell you though you think about the assignment of raising kids and it\u2019s a whole lot easier to measure your success as a parent when you have grade cards.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry Fowler:<\/strong>\u00a0 Absolutely.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 You get the A, B, and C. You know whether the kid is passing or failing.\u00a0 But in matters of life there are no grade cards.\u00a0 There are tests and all these things that the kids are experiencing every day but parents don\u2019t get the affirmation of yes, you are doing a good job directing that child to make good moral choices.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tOr you are helping your daughter really become a woman of God who knows where she is headed as a woman.\u00a0 I think it all goes back to the imagery of scripture in Psalm 127 where it talks about children being like arrows in the hand of a warrior.\u00a0 They were meant to be launched toward a target.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 But you have to know what the target is, right?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Yes.\u00a0 You have to aim toward the target and your story about the young man is a great story for every listener to contemplate.\u00a0 In fact for the parents who are listening to me right now even those who are perhaps newly married and don\u2019t have children this would make a great point of discussion tonight over dinner.\u00a0 Sit down and talk about what the target is and what do we want to accomplish?\u00a0 What is the bull\u2019s eye?\u00a0 How can we be intentional on a daily basis about doing that?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 So if we have a sense of what the bull\u2019s eye is then these five master life threads that is where they come in?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong>\u00a0 They can help because then they help us on a regular basis. It\u2019s not only difficult to measure but also there is no guarantee of the outcome.\u00a0 You men know that even in the most godly of Christian homes there are still young people who make the decision to walk away.\u00a0 There are no guarantees.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Early when I said it if you don\u2019t accomplish your children walking in the truth there is a tendency to feel like a failure.\u00a0 We don\u2019t determine the flight of the arrow perfectly. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 But we also don\u2019t have nothing to do with it, right?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 That\u2019s exactly right.\u00a0 We do aim them and then we have to let go.\u00a0 What are those five master threads?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong>\u00a0 The master life threads are from the Old Testament story of Joseph.\u00a0 I took the narrative of Joseph in the book of Genesis and I looked at the times where he talked about God.\u00a0 In his conversations he mentions God six times.\u00a0 There are five different principles in the six times.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThe first one I see is respect for God\u2019s authority.\u00a0 We see that in the life of Joseph because Mrs. Potiphar is trying to get him in bed and he is turning her down.\u00a0 He ends by saying how could I do this wicked thing and sin against God?\u00a0 It is interesting that he doesn\u2019t say he is going to sin against Potiphar.\u00a0 He saw playing with Mrs. Potiphar as a sin against God and that tells me he had this huge respect for God\u2019s authority in his life. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tNow what does Proverbs and Psalms tell us is the beginning of wisdom?\u00a0 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.\u00a0 It is the same thing\u2014respect and regard.\u00a0 If a young parent will think about what to focus on first.\u00a0 How do I really have something to go for here?\u00a0 Start by talking about the things that are going to develop the respect for God\u2019s authority in your toddler.\u00a0 Respect for God\u2019s authority really comes as they respect your authority but you can\u2019t stop there.\u00a0 You have to also as you are becoming someone that they respect and you are consistent in your discipline and all of those things.\u00a0 You also need to talk about this is the way God is.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 And they have to see modeling it in your own life.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong>\u00a0 They have to see you model it or else it isn\u2019t going to work.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 So respect for God\u2019s authority is the starting spot.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong>\u00a0 The second one is wisdom.\u00a0 That is early elementary.\u00a0 The third one is grace and the middle elementary ages where you hear things like \u201cthat\u2019s not fair.\u201d\u00a0 It\u2019s true throughout life because we still want life to be fair but that is really when it becomes an issue.\u00a0 So grace is a big thrust or life thread during the middle elementary ages.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tJunior high is destiny.\u00a0 Destiny found in the will of God.\u00a0 Kids are starting to think abstractly so they can start thinking of their future and parents ought to start talking to them about their future not in terms of career choices but in terms of God\u2019s will and doing His will for their lives. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThe last one for high school, the big life thread, is perspective.\u00a0 That is perspective that God is sovereign in everything.\u00a0 Those are in the story of Joseph but they also guide a parent as to major themes in the different ages of a child.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 You know what he has just done.\u00a0 Teachers have what they call a scope and sequence.\u00a0 You\u2019ve heard that phrase. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong>\u00a0 Yes.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Right.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 You have just given parents a scope and sequence for raising their kids.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 I like it because of where you begin.\u00a0 You talk about who God is and our relationship to Him and our attitude toward Him.\u00a0 If you miss that no matter what is in number 2-5 you\u2019ve missed life.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong>\u00a0 Yes, is it Tozer who said the most important thing about a person is what he thinks about God.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 I think what we have to do with our children is teach them to think rightly about who God is and how they relate to Him.\u00a0 If they can begin to learn that when they are young and see that modeled by their parents as they grow older they have a much greater opportunity of walking with God and being obedient with God and following through on what they have been taught than those who aren\u2019t introduced to God and don\u2019t understand what He expects of them.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong>\u00a0 I think there is a real contrast between Old Testament Joseph and the prodigal son in the New Testament in the parable that Jesus tells.\u00a0 Certainly there are always going to be our children\u2014children of Christian families\u2014who are prodigals.\u00a0 I think that maybe that\u2019s the only way that some kids can learn.\u00a0 There will always be prodigals.\u00a0 We can do a lot better than we are doing.\u00a0 We don\u2019t need to have to have a rate of 50 percent or more of our young people go through the prodigal experience before they come back to God.\u00a0 That is just unacceptable.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Larry you caught this picture initially from your dad and from your mom.\u00a0 You said your mom taught you all kinds of passages of scripture and scripture memory.\u00a0 Before we are done here on the broadcast I want to come back and\u2026\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 I know what is coming up here.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0 Your mom is 91 years old.\u00a0\u00a0 I want to give you a chance to give her an early birthday gift.\u00a0 So just stay with us for just a minute.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 Before you give her that gift let me tell listeners how they can get a copy of the book that you\u2019ve written called <em>Raising a Modern Day Joseph<\/em> which we have in our FamilyLife Today Resource Center.\u00a0 I also want to alert listeners to the fact that we have a new video series for parents.\u00a0 We will be talking about it next week but it is particularly for parents of preschoolers to talk about the whole issue of discipline and how we begin setting a foundation for discipline in the lives of our children at the very earliest ages.\u00a0\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThere is information on our web site FamilyLife Today.com.\u00a0 If you need some help doing some strategic planning for your family spiritually Larry\u2019s book is a great resource.\u00a0 Or call toll free 1-800-FL-TODAY.\u00a0\u00a0 That\u2019s 1-800-358-6329.\u00a0 That\u2019s 1-800-\u201cF\u201d as in Family \u201cL\u201d as in Life and then the word TODAY.\u00a0 Someone on our team can let you know how you can get a copy about any of the resources we\u2019ve talked about here today.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAs we wrap up this week I want to say thanks to those of you who help support the ministry of <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>.\u00a0 Some of you are legacy partners who help us with monthly donations but many of you are folks who just from time to time will write or call or go online to make a donation to help support <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>.\u00a0 All of you who listen there are a handful of families in your community who make this daily radio program possible.\u00a0 We are hoping that you might consider joining with that group and helping to make sure that we are able to meet our financial needs and stay on the network of stations we are currently on.\u00a0 We are listener supported so your donations are what keep us on this station.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIf you are able to help with a donation this month we have a thank you gift we\u2019d like to send you.\u00a0 It\u2019s a two CD series that features a conversation we had not long ago with Dr. Tim Kimmel, a friend of ours who has written a book called <em>Grace Based Parenting<\/em><u>.<\/u>\u00a0 We spent a lot of time talking about how discipline and grace fit together in the same matrix and what it means to have the right goals as parents.\u00a0 It\u2019s a great conversation and the two CDs are our gift to you this month if you\u2019re able to help support the ministry of <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> with a donation of any amount.\u00a0 You can donate online at FamilyLifeToday.com and you would like to receive the CD\u2019s, type the word \u201cPARENT\u201d\u2019 in to the key code box that you see on the donation form.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tOr you can toll free 1-800-FL-TODAY make a donation by phone and just ask for the CD\u2019s on parenting.\u00a0\u00a0 That\u2019s 1-800-358-6329.\u00a0 We are happy to send them out to you.\u00a0\u00a0 I want to say a \u2018Thank You\u2019 to those of you who can help support this ministry.\u00a0 We are listener supported and your donations help make this daily program possible.\u00a0 We appreciate your partnership with us.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Larry Fowler has been our guest on today\u2019s program and we\u2019ve talked about how to raise a modern day Joseph.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 That\u2019s right.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 And I think he is one.\u00a0\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 You think Larry is one?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Yes, Larry is one.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 I\u2019ll go for that, yes.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong>\u00a0 That\u2019s because you guys don\u2019t know me completely.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t(laughter)\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dennis:<\/strong>\u00a0 Maybe but your mom, Margaret, had a powerful influence in your life.\u00a0 You grew up on a ranch and you learned scripture memory at her knee. You saw reading the Bible and reciting scripture.\u00a0 Here\u2019s what I\u2019d like you to do.\u00a0 I\u2019d like you to take the last few moments of this broadcast and give her a verbal tribute.\u00a0 What I would like to do is seat your mom across the table from you and have you address her as mom or whatever you call her and then give her a tribute from the heart of what her life and model and her nurture has done for you as a boy and what it means to you now as a man.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong>\u00a0 You\u2019re going to expect me to do this without getting choked up?\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 Choked up is okay.\u00a0 We\u2019ll allow for that.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong>\u00a0 I talk about my mom more than my dad but only because God took my dad home 30+ years ago.\u00a0 So during my childhood my dad was as influential as my mom and I\u2019m so thankful for both of them.\u00a0 My mom is the one that God has allowed to still be on this earth during my adult years to continue to influence.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong>\u00a0 If she was here what would you say to her?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Larry:<\/strong>\u00a0 I would say Mom you are well aware how dearly you are loved by all of your family.\u00a0 How highly you are regarded.\u00a0 Your legacy extends not just to your children but to your grandchildren and even to your great grandchildren.\u00a0 They have all seen on a daily basis your consistent Christian walk and your godly example.\u00a0 All together they desire to honor you and to carry on the legacy that you have left.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tMom your love of scripture has left a lasting impression on me that has guided my decision making throughout my life and has probably kept me from a number of bad decisions in life that I can\u2019t even begin to count.\u00a0 I am so thankful for your words but even more for your godly example that you have given to me and to my brother and sister and the rest of our extended family.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> is a production of FamilyLife of Little Rock, Arkansas.\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tHelp for today, hope for tomorrow.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWe are so happy to provide these transcripts for you. However, there is a cost to transcribe, create, and produce them for our website. If you've benefited from the broadcast transcripts, would you consider <a href=\"http:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/donate\">donating today<\/a> to help defray the costs?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tCopyright \u00a9 FamilyLife. 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