Near the top of my list of Christian parenting tips is: Teach your child good work habits.
In fact, a virtue that is critical to every child’s future success in life is that of developing good work habits. If they learn this virtue early, it will stick with them throughout life and pay rich dividends.
A Principle to Remember: God rewards hard work.
Biblical Basis:
• “Each will be rewarded according to his own labor” (1 Corinthians 3:8).
• “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men” (Colossians 3:23).
God says that whatever kind of work we are involved in, we should do it with all our heart. He rewards hard work!
~ Shortcut to Understanding ~
A great way to illustrate the importance of learning work is to use the old classic story of the little red hen:
Feel free to share this story with your child:
Once upon a time there was a little red hen, a fox, a dog, and a pig. They decided they’d like to have some nice homemade bread.
The little red hen said, “First we must grow some wheat.” She said, “Who will help me plant this wheat?”
“Not I,” said the dog. “Not I,” said the fox. “Not I,” said the pig.
So the little red hen said, “Then I’ll do it myself.” And she did.
When it came time to harvest the wheat, the little red hen said, “Who will help me harvest this wheat?”
“Not I,” said the dog. “Not I,” said the fox. “Not I,” said the pig.
So the little red hen said, “Then I’ll do it myself.” And she did.
Then the little red hen said, “Who will help me pound this wheat into flower?”
“Not I,” said the dog. “Not I,” said the fox. “Not I,” said the pig.
So the little red hen said, “Then I’ll do it myself.” And she did.
Then the little red hen said, “Who will help me bake this bread?”
“Not I,” said the dog. “Not I,” said the fox. “Not I,” said the pig.
So the little red hen said, “Then I’ll do it myself.” And she did.
The smell of the homemade bread wafted outside to the attention of the dog, the fox, and the pig. Then the little red hen said, “Who will help me eat this bread?”
The dog, the fox, and the pig came running. “I will,” said the dog. “I will,” said the fox. “I will,” said the pig.
“Oh no you won’t,” the little red hen said. “I asked you to help me plant the wheat. I had to do it myself.”
“I asked you to help me harvest the wheat. I had to do it myself.”
“I asked you to help me pound the wheat into flower. I had to do it myself.”
“I asked you to help me bake this bread. I had to do it myself.”
“Now it is time to eat this bread, and I’m going to eat it myself.”
The fox, the dog, and the pig didn’t want to work. And because they didn’t do any work, they were sorry later. They didn’t get any bread. There are rewards for hard work — and the little red hen got her reward.
God wants us to learn how to work. Then we won’t have to be sad later like the dog, the fox, and the pig.
— Dr. Ron Rhodes
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