Bieber Fever: 21st Century Idolatry? Helping Our Kids Love GOD Above All Else

They waited all night in the cold, wind and rain, thousands of fans stood outside for a chance to get an up close view of their teen idol, Justin Bieber, performing in Rockefeller Plaza last month. The Today Show said this Bieber appearance garnered the largest crowd ever for one of its concert series. Wrapped in winter gear, fans screamed, sung and flung tears as Bieber sang his latest hits. One fan stared in the distance as she, with bated breath, told of her good fortune of receiving one of Bieber’s hand towels from a backstage worker. These fans were pumped and came to give total praise to the one they adored. Some shake their heads in disbelief, and maybe you do so with your children, wondering how they could give that type of time and attention to anyone.

I understand their mania because their devotion reminds me of my idol worship days.

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Helpful Strategies for Impatient Mothers: Teaching Patience by Example

“Better to be patient than powerful; better to have self-control than to conquer a city” (Proverbs 16:32—NLT).

We want it quick and easy. No waiting in line or in that traffic jam, for the snail mail, on the stove, or for that child to just do what he's told without teaching him how. We lack patience and this shows on our faces, in sounds and words from our mouths, and in the way we tap a foot and pace around. We lack patience and teach our children the same; at least I know I do.

Once someone was driving about 20 miles per hour in a 35 mph zone and decided to get in front of me. On this day I decided to see if I could maneuver around her but felt myself getting to my tipping point and before I could say or do anything, my nine year old shouts, "Come on people! What are you doing?" The sheer enormity of anger in his voice let me know that I had gotten highly worked up too many times in his presence. I couldn't just reprimand him for being impatient. I had to talk to him about working up anger, shouting at an old lady and huffing about someone not driving to his liking, all things I had done before. I had to apologize for setting that example and tell him why having patience, as we are told to seek in 1 Peter 1:6,  is a better way.

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How to Teach Children Self-Control: Methods for Developing Healthy Habits

A bi-weekly parenting column by Rhonda J. Smith

Chaos is all around us: scandals in the pulpit and throughout the pews, political unrest around the world stews, educational systems failing and folks bailing from the faith. But we don’t have to look to systems to see this; chaos meets us on our own streets with gang-banging activity (even in the suburbs), rampant drug use, bucked rolling eyes and children who otherwise despise and disrespect their parents. Yes, these unruly children may even belong to us. We can help our children abandon the chaos and prevent others from creating it when we emphasize their need for self control.

I’m not advocating hollering “Boy, you better control yo’self” while jerking the child to you or slapping an older child who you find too big to physically rule. I’m talking about systematically instituting external measures that will help shift their internal system for change that lasts well beyond the days of correcting a single offense. Getting a real handle on the self can revolutionize lives.

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