10 Practical Qualities I Desire for My Children (from a Christian Father)

Posted on June 2, 2018 by Kerrigan Skelly

Maker:0x4c,Date:2017-12-8,Ver:4,Lens:Kan03,Act:Lar01,E-Y

As a father of 8 children, ranging from 15 years old down to 3 years old, my children are constantly on my mind. I pray for them often, disciple them constantly and spend a lot of time with them (corporately and individually). With all of this in mind, their future is on my mind quite a bit. They are growing up so quickly and I must be mindful of their future and not get “stuck in the moment.”

Of course, my greatest joy would be that they all walk in the truth of God’s Word. I preach the gospel to them consistently and my hope is that they all will become born again at some point in time and walk with God the rest of their lives. Three are currently saved. I appreciate your prayers for them all.

YET, there are practical things that I want for each of them as well. They’re growing up before my eyes and will be adults who are out on their own, quicker than I’d like to imagine. Since I’ve been thinking about this, I thought that I would share this with others. It might help someone else out there! Below is a list of 10 Practical Qualities that I want all of my children to learn from me. Of course, as I said above, first and foremost, I want them all to be successful Christians (in God’s eyes). Yet, I believe that all of these things are important as well.

They’re not in any particular order of importance. They’re all important if you ask me. I’ve been around for over 40 years now and have been a Christian for about 21 of those years. I pray that this list helps you to be a better parent in preparing your children to live in this world! Remember, parents, we aren’t always going to be around. We are raising future adults, not perpetual children!

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Divorce, Remarriage and Adultery, According to the Bible – Is Matthew 19 Talking About Marriage or Betrothal? – Kerrigan Skelly

Posted on January 5, 2016 by Kerrigan Skelly

Divorce and remarriage is a very sensitive subject, for many different reasons. It effects adults, it effects children, it could effect where you will spend eternity, it could effect what Church you are able to be a part of and it could effect friendships you have. When it comes to different viewpoints on this subject from the Bible, there is one that seems to be “on the rise.”

The view that I am referring to, is the one that states the following: If you have been divorced from your first spouse, you cannot remarry at all unless the first spouse has died. And if you have already remarried someone else (with your first spouse still alive), then you must now divorce them or you are in perpetual adultery and on your way to Hell. It doesn’t matter how long you were married to the first spouse or what reasons you had for divorcing him/her. It doesn’t matter how many children you have or how long you have been married to the current spouse. It doesn’t matter if your first spouse has remarried someone else or not.

It also doesn’t matter, according to this view, if you were a non-believer when you got divorced and have since become a believer who is now married to another believer. It doesn’t even matter if your first spouse is still a non-Christian, according to this view. You should still seek to be reconciled to them or remain single (after you get divorced from current spouse).

This view basically says that any other marriages while the first spouse is still alive are not legitimate marriages in God’s eyes. This view has been responsible for breaking up lots of Godly marriages through false doctrine and false guilt. Many people are now single and either waiting to be rejoined to their first spouse or waiting for that spouse to die. Some of them are lonely and burning, but are told they would be in sin if the were to marry someone else.

Is this really the way God planned things to be? Is this position really the Biblical position on divorce and remarriage? I came really close to believing in it and close to “putting my stake down” on the position. Fortunately, I continued to study things out and came to different conclusions. Here’s the first video, where I was basically teaching the view that I have been describing above:

And here’s the second video, where I had changed my mind after studying it out much more thoroughly:

If you want to know what I believe and how it is backed up with Scriptures, the second video is the one you should watch. My intention in writing this blog post is not to bring up all of the Scriptures in that video and try to prove my current position. Such is already done in the second video from above. The point of this blog post is to address one of the many objections I have received, from the “no remarriage allowed unless the first spouse has died” group.

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10 Reasons Christians Should Homeschool Their Children

Posted on February 16, 2015 by Kerrigan Skelly

My wife and I have been homeschooling our children, since our oldest child was 5 years old (about 7 years, at this point). We think that homeschooling is a necessity for Christian families, not optional. Below are 10 of the most important reasons (in my eyes) for Christians to homeschool their children. These aren’t necessarily in any kind of order.

1) The Bible puts a child’s learning at the responsibility of the parents, not someone else (whether private or public schools) – Deuteronomy 6:4-6 says, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one!You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.”

Regardless of your “qualifications”, YOU are responsible for the education of your children. I understand that homeschooling seems intimidating to some people. It really isn’t that hard! It is a lot of fun and there are plenty of people, programs, groups and curriculum out there, to help you homeschool your children. You may have to learn some things all over again, but that’s a good thing! Besides, if you start early, you will only be teaching them things like ABC’s, 123’s, shapes, colors, etc.

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