Episode 411: Parenting Trends 2021, Part 1

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But we don't have to be forced to glorify God despite our futile attempts to the contrary.

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We can willfully choose to cooperate with God and live a life pleasing to Him, so that when we see

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Him face to face, He will be glorified by our good and faithful service. Welcome to Truth.

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Love. Parents. Where we use God's Word to become intentional, premeditated parents.

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Here's your host, A .M. Brewster. It's 2021. You're still here. And, if we're going to believe what we hear online, because it's 2021, all of the problems from 2020 have magically disappeared.

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Well, we'll see about that. My name is Aaron Michael Brewster. I'm the president of Evermind Ministries, which includes

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Truth. Love. Parent, The Celebration of God, the TLP Biblical Counseling Center, and a bunch of new projects in the works.

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I love families. I love the whole idea of what God created for the family.

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I love how He created it to work. I love helping families to reach their God -given potential. And I've been serving families full -time since 2007.

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My experience with parents and their kids has kind of made me a, I don't know, like a jack of all trades. I've been a biblical counselor,

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Christian school teacher and associate administrator, martial arts instructor, author, camp director, boarding home director, preacher, podcaster, discipler, conference speaker, and trainer.

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I love what I do, and I'm honored that you have allowed me to influence you and your families in this small way, and I hope to interact with you more in 2021.

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Now the vast majority of TLP's over 400 podcast episodes are evergreen. That means that they will remain relevant and practical until the

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Lord returns. Many people who start listening to this podcast love to just go back to the beginning and start there.

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And because they're rooted in the Bible, those episodes will never go out of style, regardless of what the world says. However, a few years ago,

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I started doing these New Year Parenting Trends episodes, and they've been a big hit. So after listening to today's show, you can head over to TruthLoveParent .com

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to access the transcript of the show, as well as any other resources that complement our discussion today.

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You can also check out our blog for a list of 2020's top 10 podcast episodes. Now let's talk about parenting in 2021.

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I wish I could say there are a lot of good changes on the horizon. And to be fair, anytime

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God is factored into the equation, which he should always be, everything that comes from it is good. But more often than not,

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God glorifies himself despite us. That means that even though the nations rage and try to break his bonds,

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God will still receive the honor and preeminence that he deserves. However, the nations raging and trying to break his bonds is going to create a lot of trouble here on earth.

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Like Satan trying to slaughter the Messiah was used by the Father to purchase mankind's redemption, the foolish choices and failure philosophies of 2021 will be used in the exact same way.

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But we don't have to be forced to glorify God despite our futile attempts to the contrary.

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We can all willfully choose to cooperate with God and live a life pleasing to him so that when we see him face to face, he will be glorified by our good and faithful service.

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And that's what these episodes are all about. We want to acknowledge the good and the bad that's coming at us in the new year so that we can intentionally and premeditatedly be disciple -making ambassador parents all to the glory of God.

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So here are our predictions for family life in 2021. Number one, we can expect even more family time.

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Now I have been very careful not to speak directly to the insanity of 2020. That was the coronavirus and the lockdowns.

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I honestly feel dirty even saying the words on this show. I want this content to remain evergreen, so I've avoided saying much about it because God's truth stands regardless of these tiny ripples in time.

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As long as we know, understand, and live God's word, no virus or governmental mandates are going to stump us.

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But this is a very event -specific show, and I want to take a moment to thank God that he has used our government's ill -advised measures to force families to spend more time together.

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And I think that's wonderful. It's a beautiful example of God redeeming man's foolish attempts to control his destiny.

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Instead of accomplishing what they hoped to accomplish, God reminded billions of people how much they've missed.

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Some of these reminders were sweet. Parents and kids reuniting and finding that they really enjoy each other's company. Same thing for moms and dads.

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And some of the reminders, though, have been painful. Necessary, but painful. As parents took a real solid look at their kids and their parenting and have finally come to the conclusion that something is desperately wrong.

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This whole time, they thought their kids' teachers were over -exaggerating the problem and now they're seeing it firsthand. And the insightful ones are realizing that something is missing.

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The same is true for those who have spent more time with their spouse during the lockdowns and are realizing that there's a massive problem they didn't know was there.

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How should we approach this potential increase in family time? Well, embrace it. Use this time to know your kids better and your spouse better.

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Use this time to understand God's Word better and then apply what you're learning to being the best parent you can be.

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And if you think the job is really just so big you can't handle it on your own, please reach out to counselor at truthloveparent .com.

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We would love to help. And that leads to number two. We can expect the number of families embracing virtual learning and homeschooling to increase.

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This too, I believe, really is wonderful. I strongly encourage you to listen to episode 70, What's the

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Parent's Role in Their Children's Education. You should also check out TLP 82, Should You Consider Homeschooling This Fall, an interview with Scott and Becky Anuel.

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And there are some very important discussion points concerning education in my most recent interview with Ken Ham in episode 410,

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Will Your Children Stand? You can listen to any episode I talk about today by following the links in the description, or you can specifically check out that Ken Ham episode by going to truthloveparent .com

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forward slash Ken dash Ham, and you can also watch the video. I love this because even if you choose to delegate elements of your children's academics to other people,

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God is going to hold parents ultimately responsible for their children's education. First and foremost, parents will be held responsible for their kids' spiritual training, but they also will be accountable for who they allow to proselytize their kids.

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Christian parents who allow their children to be brainwashed by the secular humanists of this age will stand before God one day and give an account.

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So playing your children's education as close to the chest as possible is, Lord willing, going to be a vital part of your family's maturity.

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What should you do about this potential increase in at -home learning? Well, embrace it as much as you can.

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I understand that there are many factors that would prevent people from being able to educate their kids at home or even simply facilitate that education at home via virtual online learning, but I believe there is great benefit from God's people exploring how this change can benefit their families.

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Still, it won't be just education that's going to continue to be virtual. Let's talk about health and wellness for a moment.

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Number three, we can expect forever increasing changes to our philosophy of health. I don't know that the established medical community will ever return to a sense of normalcy in my lifetime.

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I'll keep praying that it will, but I don't know what the Lord is going to allow. There are a lot of amazing medical professionals out there who are upholding their

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Hippocratic oaths and practicing medicine to the best of their ability for the best health of their patients.

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But like too many industries, the decision makers aren't always the frontline professionals.

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I used to work in food service. I did it for over a decade, and I was always amazed that people who rarely, if ever, worked in the actual restaurant were in charge of deciding how food was to be prepared in the real world.

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There we were in our aprons with our knives and ingredients and experience trying to make sense of the way the quote -unquote suits wanted us to construct this food in the middle of a busy lunch rush.

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Well, that's too often how it works, especially in first world countries. So now many of our country's medical decisions are being made by doctors who are also trying to play politics.

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Science and reasoning are being thrown out in favor of fear and social justice. So not only can we expect that much of our mainstream healthcare this year will be as virtual as possible, we can also plan that the dictates that are passed down the line are going to continue to try to redefine health as we've known it.

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And one of the most discouraging philosophies that has gained traction over the past year is that sanitary equals healthy.

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Now don't get me wrong, though I don't have my doctorate, I have studied viruses and bacteria for many years.

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I won't go into all the reasons right now for said study. But let's just say that I've done my homework. And I'm thankful that surgical rooms and implements are sanitary.

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I really am. But a lack of personal study, a loss of very important scientific principles, and the substitution of the fact that God created our bodies to work correctly for the belief that we're evolving and therefore better off today than we used to be, those three things has led to one major misconception among the masses.

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And that misconception is that we will somehow be healthier if we interact with fewer and fewer viruses and bacteria.

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Now don't you dare take anything I'm saying today, make some ridiculous uninformed decision, and then try to blame me for it, all right?

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Allow me to use a common example to illustrate my point. We're going to talk about chickenpox.

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It used to be that parents let their kids play in the mud, roll through grass, and swim in the creek out back without any fear or concern.

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They would eat real food grown outdoors without washing it and various chemicals. They'd set their frozen chicken out on the driveway to thaw.

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And when a parent heard that a child on the block had contracted chickenpox, they would take their own child over to their house for a play date.

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They wanted their child to contract chickenpox. Why? Well, to make a long story short,

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God designed our bodies to fight off chickenpox and, in the process, become stronger because of it.

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I'm talking about our immune systems. So strong, in fact, that if the child were to ever come in contact with chickenpox in the future, their body would have no problem fighting it off.

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However, an adult who never came in contact with chickenpox at a young age who then contracts chickenpox when they're older will get far sicker than they would have as a child, and they could even die in some cases.

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But what did our society do with this information? Well, they developed a shot that would supposedly protect our kids from chickenpox.

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Of course, they need to get that shot more than once, and there's no guarantee they will not have adverse side effects from the shot, and there's also no guarantee they won't ever contract chickenpox after having gotten the shot.

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And the more time that goes by, the higher risk there is. So with that kind of thinking, the only answer is to put us in bubbles that will prevent our bodies from ever coming in contact with the varicella zoster virus.

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But when we do that, we're actually undermining the body's ability to protect itself, not just from VCV, but also from other viruses we'll encounter in life.

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Now, I'm not expounding some new information, nor am I suggesting you kiss every person on the sidewalk to come in contact with as many illnesses and diseases and bacteria as possible because you think you're going to become

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Superman. There are so many factors involved in this, from diet and exercise to personal constitution to what health methods are employed to help the body defend itself.

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My point is that even though there were a multiplicity of studies and statistics that showed us that God's plan for our bodies is generally working the way he planned, we're entering 2021 believing that we need masks and social distancing and vaccines and drugs and hand sanitizer and germ -free bubbles to stay healthy.

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And that kind of thinking is going to have a major impact on your family, the community in which you live, and your nation.

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Well, now we need to ask the exact same question that we asked previously. What should you and your family do about this continuing change in how we view our bodies, sickness, health, immune systems, and medical treatment?

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Well, I've probably already gotten myself into enough trouble as it is, so I'm just going to invite you to do your research.

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Do not simply accept what you're hearing on Facebook. In fact, there's great importance in actually taking the time to genuinely research the other side of the argument.

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This is not biblical doctrines that we're talking about here, okay? Ask questions, dig deeper, study, research, and allow yourself to doubt the talking heads that can't seem to agree with each other and who frequently contradict what they themselves said earlier.

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Also, find the people who are healthy and well in your life and find out what they're doing. It may surprise you.

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After doing some research, you're going to have to ask yourself, why would America, a hyper -power that spends billions of dollars every year on health and wellness, be one of the sickest countries in the world?

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Is it possible that our established medical authorities are missing something? Well, for the sake of your family, do find out.

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My kids and I will be swimming in the creek behind our house. Now, I have one more point to discuss today, but we're only halfway done, so be sure to join us for part two next

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Tuesday. But allow me to end today's show on a lighter note. Number four, we might be able to expect an increase in magical children's names this year.

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Today .com has a bunch of lists of trending baby names. They describe their very first list like this, quote, the defining names of 2021 have an element of magic to them.

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They're the names of superheroes and super antiheroes, names that carry an incantatory power to protect and strengthen our children in these difficult times.

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Perhaps the most startling names in this group are those of mythic and outsized figures, both good and evil.

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For every Adonis, there's a Kali. For every Titan, there's a Persephone. For every

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Messiah, there's a Lucifer. The mythological and biblical names that have been the dominant trend in recent years now include names whose power may have been considered too dark for a baby before this year when the world was fighting for its life, end quote.

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And in addition to the names already listed, and yes, Messiah and Lucifer are both on the list, here are some others you'll find.

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Here there's Brave, Cyrus, Delilah, that's always a good one. Jupiter, Kylo, Loki, Noble, Oz, Pandora, hmm, hope she doesn't have a box, and Titan.

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But then there are other categories of names that sound almost as magical and whimsical. There are Kajkor names like Bear, Clover, Fae, Opal, River, and Wilder.

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Japanese names are making a comeback. Of course, I won't be surprised if our cancel culture cries foul at a non -Japanese child being named

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Yuki. They will probably call it cultural approbation or something, but, you know, they're coming back. And then there are

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Ever names like Ever, Everett, Everly, Evers, and Eversim. And where would we be without the incoming flock of 2021 avian middle names including

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Birdie, Dove, Falcon, Nightingale, Phoenix, Sparrow, Swan, and Wren.

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Now we have a bunch more 2021 parenting trends coming at you in our next show, but more importantly than that, on our next episode, we're going to reflect even more on scripture and how we need to approach all of the experiences we're going to encounter this year.

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Please share this episode on your favorite social media outlets and join us next time as we open God's Word to discover how to parent our children for life and godliness.

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Truth. Love. Parents is part of the Evermind Ministries family and is dedicated to helping you become an intentional premeditated parent.

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Join us next time as we search God's Word for the truth your family needs today.