Training Your Child the Spartan Way

I know you must be thinking I’m crazy to train my child like the hard non-emotional Spartan mothers did back in Ancient Greece. Hear me out. I know most of you remember reading in school about the strict training that the Spartan boys received and how “horrible” it must have been to live back then. They were trained and prepared from infancy to fight. They were not swaddled so that their limbs could grow nice and strong. Not only were they trained physically. Mentally they were trained to believe they were indestructible and that their sole purpose in life was to fight for Sparta. The daughters were also trained but in a different way. They were trained physically to be strong so that they would birth strong sons. The Spartans were so strong and fierce that other city-states were too scared to attack even though the army was around 8000 men. They protected their beliefs by simply banning all foreign trade and travel. They were completely self sufficient. Now fast forward to today. Think about what we can learn from them. Instead of training our children to fight other people, why not train them to fight for truth. “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” Ephesians 6:12

Do you see where I am getting at? Do you train from infancy? I believe that if we trained our children to fight for truth with the same passion of the Spartans, we would raise up an army for Christ that would knock the socks off of the enemy! So let’s do a rundown of what we can learn from them.

-Train from infancy

-Mentally instill that we are put on this earth to glorify God and edify the body of Christ. We are but his servants and should be prepared to fight against the powers if darkness.

-Protect our beliefs by guarding who we or your children hang out with.

-Rely on God for he will supply all our needs. Teach your children that they don’t “need” the luxuries of this world (best clothes, entertainment 24/7, etc…) *I am not suggesting that you shouldn’t have luxuries, only stating that you don’t NEEED them. When you do get them, recognize that it is by God’s grace that he has given us what we have.

I know that for me, I need training myself! How many of us really fight against the rulers of the darkness of this world? Do you fight or do you just “surrender” because it seems like his army is too big. If God is with us, who can be against us? He CANNOT defeat God! Isn’t that an awesome thing to realize? You can’t lose if you’re on his side. Let’s train our children to stick to God’s army so that they will always triumph through him who strengthens!