The sky is falling! The world is coming to an end! War is imminent! Doom and gloom fill the news. There is always some new danger or threat. We need to help our children understand all the alarm and bad news they hear on a daily basis. Here are a few strategies to help your family process and understand the news they are hearing:
• Assure them that God is in control, and nothing is going to happen that is beyond His ability to work through and accomplish His purpose.
• Help them understand that bad things do happen because the world is a sinful place, but God will take care of His children and be with them even when bad things happen.
• Even though sin has messed up God’s world, Jesus came to fix it. As a follower of Jesus, we can avoid many of the problems in our world by being obedient to God’s Word. But even when we face problems, we can show others how to follow Jesus.
• While people can make parts of the world polluted and dirty, God has reserved the destruction of the earth to His timing and judgment. Humans cannot destroy the world. God has assured us that “While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease” (Genesis 8:22).
• Help them understand that many of the people who raise these alarms do not know that God is in control and that He will take care of us.
• Teach them appropriate care and stewardship of the earth, but not to worship it as many people mistakenly do.
• When they hear these alarms and doomsday warnings, ask them what they think. Talk with them about what is going on and help alleviate any fears they may express. Our world is broken but Jesus will fix it. One day, He will make all things new. We don’t have to worry about what will happen because He will always be with us and when He is ready for us to leave this world, we will be with Him in a perfect world.
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