Humans need to be challenged. To set faint goals before our children is to convince them of their mediocrity. To call the mundane and common a challenge is an affront to truth. Your children will never rise to their potential if all accomplishments are presented as equal.

Children need challenge. If you do not provide it in noble realms, their peers will tempt it in moral decay. If "the village" of your child's surroundings are the source of his or her challenge, then your child will never rise above the decaying culture of the street.

You, mom, and you, dad, must become both the source of noble challenge and the fountain of blessing when the challenge leads to success. You must both inspire dreams and give the tools to accomplish them.

Be careful. The plan is not build self-reliance without God but to inspire the soul to walk with Him to a higher place in both spirit and practicality. No man ever accomplishes his best without God. Even when a man realizes some modicum of excellence, if he does not credit his maker, arrogance and conceit are the inevitable result. The record of Acts 12:20-24 (Herod's death) is evidence of that reality. The greatness of the speech is lost in the self-centeredness of the response. He did not give glory to God for the ability given him by God.

We must challenge our kids to excellence. Few will attain greatness. Greatness is often not under our control. But excellence is.

We live in a world which seeks mediocrity under the guise of political correctness. Many loathe the pursuit of excellence for fear of offending the average. Your child's Godly confidence may be mistaken for arrogance and his or her pursuit of wisdom may be misjudged as conceit.

But challenging kids is a challenge to parents. Kids are savvy. Kids are brutal. They will call your bluff. If you are not living life in pursuit of excellence your kids will hear the challenge but are unlikely to respond.

Challenge your children. Yes, but how? Some basic suggestions:

1. Compliment accomplishment at every turn, but reserve the deepest praise for the greatest effort. Waste not true accolades on weak workmanship.
2. Learn to recognize the particular talents and abilities of each child. What challenges one may be mundane to another.
3. Tailor the accolades to the accomplishment. Without interesting, applicable rewards challenges will be seen as manipulation. Just as our heavenly Father blesses us with joy for a job well done and heaven for life of truth,we must bless our children for exemplary work.
4. Reward self-motivation. Jesus left the twelve with a daunting challenge... "go into all the world and make disciples of all the nations...." He did not micro-manage each day. Self-motivation was a vital part of the equation.
5. Show the children exactly how rising to a specific challenge will be a provide personal rewards and create self-satisfaction in addition to the outward reward you provide. Peter and John were challenge to "obey God rather than men" (Acts 5:29). They rose to that challenge. When their success in God's eyes lead to the lash from man's hand their response was personal joy inner satisfaction at their own faithfulness to the task.

   Two results:
   a. Rejoicing, "So they went on their way from the presence of the Council,rejoicing that they had been considered worthy to suffer shame for His name," (Acts 5:41, NASB).
   b. Further faithfulness, "And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they kept right on teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ,"(Acts 5:42, NASB).

6. Allow them the freedom to decline the challenge. Be careful that you, as the parent do not confuse commands with challenges. A direct order to clean a room is not negotiable. But a challenge to live a disciplined life,evidenced by tidy surroundings might be issued as a challenge that takes mom or dad out of the micro-management business. Some things are simply necessary (baths, homework, meals, etc.). Do not use those things as challenges which might be declined. But projects, character traits above the average, visits to the elderly (without you if they are older teens), long-term accomplishments such as rebuilding or prepping and painting an old car,these can be issued as challenges that have their own rewards, or can be declined. The child must see the joy of the reward and frustration if the challenge is declined. The choice must be the child's.
7. Live a life of visible challenge yourself. Allow the child the opportunity to see you work hard and enjoy the rewards of a self-imposed challenge. Take care not to be arrogant, but rather seek challenges with a touch of wonder and jo yin the pursuit. Be cautious not to parade about with a "be just like me" attitude, but be interested and interesting as you issue fun or rewarding challenges that stretch the child's abilities but do not supersede them. 8. Take every opportunity to show parallels challenges between challenges in the physical realm and challenges in the spiritual. Teach them that times of great difficulty call for excellence not retreat.

Inspire your children, challenge them, support them and model to them what you want them to be. Let your light so shine that they may see you rise to meet difficult but rewarding challenges. "The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy." -Martin Luther King, Jr.

God issued a challenge through Paul's pen which challenges all, "Imitate me as I imitate Christ.," (I Corinthians 11:1 NASB). To do that we must have the courage to rise to meet challenge. Invite them to join you in the daily pursuit of excellence. Invite them to be like Jesus.

Ray Wallace
1100 Dahlia
Denver, CO 80220
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