When I was raising my own kids, any mention of having the hard conversations with your children usually meant you were telling them about the birds and the bees, or you were warning them on the dangers of drugs and alcohol. And for the record, I giggled when I typed that nature line. I doubt people even use that expression about the birds and the bees anymore when speaking of sex and reproduction, right? Humor me. I’m a product of my times. I’ll always favor discretion over TMI. I even remember the lyrics to the song.

Let me tell ya ’bout the birds and the bees
and the flowers and the trees
and the moon up above
and a thing called “Love”.

These days it seems like there are more hard conversations to be had with our kids than ever before. Even in the most protective of our environments our littles are exposed to more adult subjects at an earlier age than you or I could have imagined, which often necessitates conversations we might otherwise delay. Here are a few general rules that can guide our response.

~Keep in mind that the questions our kids are asking don’t always require chapter and verse on the subject.  We can give a full and truthful response that is also sensitive to their age and level of maturity.

~Be prepared for the hard topics.  It can be difficult to think on our feet when nailed with a tough question. Thinking about how we want to address these hard or controversial subjects helps us be prepared for the questions when they come.    

~We can proactively develop a base for communication by setting up patterns of conversations with our kids and grandkids that go beyond the typical non-starters like, “How was your day?”

Granted, I find this easier with my grand girls than my grand boys, but I refuse to allow it to be a reason to cop out and you shouldn’t either. Communication might require a little more creativity but it’s worth the effort! Our goal is to create the habit of conversation and habits are built by repetition. Let’s be intentional about it.

~Finally, and most importantly, it’s never too soon to begin talking about our faith. It’s the most important conversation we’ll ever have with our littles and it can help us with all the other ones!  Creating faith centered conversations with our littles are crucial to the spiritual decisions they will each have to make. We can help by making Jesus a part of our getting up, lying down lives to let them see that He isn’t Someone reserved for holidays or church gatherings. He is our life.

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way, and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea. (Psalm 46:1, 2)