Have you ever encountered the parenting philosophy that says, "I'm not going to decide the faith issues for my children, I want them to discover what type of faith is best for them by themselves?" So the parent doesn't insist on their children coming to church with them or is reluctant to pray and talk with them about faith issues. All this in the name of giving their child a broad life experience so they can decide for themselves.

Any Christian parent who would take this approach obviously doesn't have a great deal of confidence in their own faith. If my beliefs are real then why would I keep them from my children in order for them to stumble around the world until they find Christ on their own? Thankfully, most evangelical parents see the fallacy of this style of parenting. They give great diligence to ensuring that in their homes and churches their children receive a strong Christian witness so that they may have every opportunity to come to Christ in their youth. In the words of one committed parent, "I am not raising my children for the devil's kingdom."

I am amazed that many Christian parents do not use the same logic when it comes to the critical areas of education and child care. Our children spend the best part of their day with teachers who are devoted to shaping the way they think. Yet many evangelical parents still send their children into a secular environment so that they may be mentored by teachers who have no faith or are limited in their ability to include their values in the classroom. In fact they are being directed through curriculum, the B.C. College of Teachers and our provincial educational programs to present a non-Christian world-view in nearly every subject that our children are taught. These viewpoints are not neutral to our Christian perspective, they are antagonistic to your family's beliefs.

There are a few common reasons that parents have chosen secular over Christian education and care. The first is cost. Yes, it costs money and time to place your child at a Christian school. In most cases the costs are not as prohibitive as you might think and many schools have tuition assistance policies. Can you afford not to give your child a godly environment to learn and study in?

Many parents argue that if we all leave the public system then there won't be a Christian witness there. Unfortunately the public system has left us. They have banned prayer in school. They have actively sought out non-christian values. They have discouraged our influence. Can we continue to be witnesses? Always! Yet do we do this at the risk and detriment of our own children's faith? Some have reasoned that they want to give their children a "real education." That, "a Christian education won't prepare them for the real world." Whose world are we preparing our children for? The scripture is clear, "The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God...."(Ps 14:1) and "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction." (Prov 1:7). In the name of evangelism are we leaving our children's education to fools who refuse to present the world in the way God created it? To leave God out of education means that the knowledge and wisdom that is passed on is anything but truth. Do you want your child to be suspicious of everything their mentors teach? Do want them to segment their life experience into the secular and religious? Some believe that the educational standards are lower than the public system. This simply is not true. Our Christian Schools under the funding of the provincial government such as Heritage Christian School and Kelowna Christian School are required to meet the same standards as the public system and in many programs exceed them. Their teachers are certified with the ministry and their programs are inspected more often than the public schools. They are limited to the amount of courses and electives only because their enrolments are less than most public schools. This would change if they were supported by more Christian families.

A Christian environment in the home, church and at school or day care will ensure that we are giving our children the absolute best chance at becoming true disciples of Christ.