Why Do My Boys Love Weapons?
A guest blog post by Laurie Christine. Any of you raising boys know that boys are different from girls. Boys, in general, are more active and less social than girls. They communicate with their fists more than their words, need to be active in order to learn, and are drawn to anything that has to do with weapons and battles and danger.
Some parents, moms especially, feel like this natural tendency of boys to turn every stick into a sword is bad. While it’s essential to teach our boys kindness and compassion towards others, I think we have a unique opportunity to help our boys channel their desire for battle, into a passion to fight in God’s army.
God Is a Warrior God.
The Bible is clear that God is a warrior God. Throughout the Old Testament, we see God leading his people into battle against their enemies.
- Exodus 15:3 says “The Lord is a warrior. Yahweh is his name!”
- Isaiah 42:13 says, “The Lord will march forth like a mighty hero; he will come out like a warrior.”
The Bible refers to God as the “Lord of Hosts”— Yahweh Sabaoth—over 300 times! The New Living Translation translates the term “Lord of Hosts” as “God of Angel Armies.”
In the New Testament, several passages use the metaphor of warfare and battles.
The well known passage in Ephesians 6 says that our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against spiritual forces of evil. The passage then instructs us to put on the armor of God so that we will be able to stand firm against the attacks of the evil one.
Boys Have a Natural Desire to Fight Battles.
I think God was intentional about giving our boys a natural desire to wield weapons and fight battles because every boy wants to know if he’s got what it takes to be a man. He longs to be part of something bigger, something worth fighting for. He wants to prove he is a courageous warrior.
But since our battle is not against flesh and blood, we need to teach our boys that other people are not the enemy. Jesus commands us to love our enemies and do good to those who want to harm us.
So the question for us as parents is this: how do we train our boys to use weapons of warfare to fight our spiritual enemy? How do we channel our boys’ god-given energy and desire for adventure into fighting for the kingdom of God?
Sometimes our boys get bored with reading the Bible. But I think if they truly understood God’s character, that he is a warrior God, they would be excited about joining the army of the King of Kings.
There’s a battle raging in our world for the hearts and minds of our boys. The enemy is working harder than ever to deceive our sons and distract them from the truth of the Gospel. As parents, we need to equip our boys for battle.
A New Devotional Book for Boys (ages 8-12)
I have written a new devotional book for preteen boys that will help them learn to put on spiritual weapons of warfare and defend themselves against the attacks of the enemy.
Rise of the Enemy, Book One of the Dragon Slayer Bible Series, will inspire boys to join the armies of the Dragon Slayer in the epic battle of good vs evil. Through action-packed stories, inspiring scripture, and challenging devotional readings, boys will be trained to stand firm against the invisible enemy, and to use weapons of warfare to deflect the lies of the Evil One.
This book will help your sons:
- Get excited about reading the Bible.
- Learn about spiritual warfare.
- Defend against the lies of the enemy.
- Recognize the attacks of the evil one.
- Put on the full armor of God.
- Trust more fully in the God of Angel Armies.
This book includes:
- An adventure-packed retelling of a Bible story
- Devotional readings
- Bible study and application
- Journal entries
- Illustrations
There are three sections of the book:
THE MESSAGE
This part contains an adventure-packed retelling of a Bible story. My desire is for boys to experience the thoughts and emotions of the main biblical characters in the story while gaining a clearer picture of our glorious God.
In Rise of the Enemy, Michael never expected his comrade, Lucifer, to rebel against the King of Heaven, let alone turn into a dragon. But Lucifer will stop at nothing in an attempt to overpower the throne.
Can Michael and his army of angels defeat the enemy, or will Lucifer’s evil plan succeed?
THE MISSION
This part is a call to action that reads like a devotional. The archangel Michael, captain of the angel armies, invites boys to join the armies of the Dragon Slayer. He explains The Message part of the book and encourages boys to fight courageously in the battle against the evil dragon.
THE MARCHING ORDERS
Lastly, this section contains five daily devotional readings for you to complete one day at a time:
- Basic Training provides Bible passages for you to read.
- Directives dives into the Scripture passage and challenges you to understand and live out the Word of God.
- Critical Communications is a prayer to the God of Angel Armies.
- Battle Plan provides you with space to think and reflect on the challenge for the day.
- Have You Joined the Army? explains God’s plan of salvation.
Let’s channel our boys’ God-given passion into a cause worth fighting for and train them to be strong, courageous warriors for the Kingdom of Heaven. You can learn more about the book at www.DragonSlayerBible.com or go straight to Amazon.
About Laurie Christine:
- Laurie Christine is an author, podcast host, certified Biblical Parenting Coach, Bible teacher, wife, and mom of four wild, loud, adventurous boys.
- Her podcast, Redeeming the Chaos, invites moms of boys to join her in the wild, wonderful adventure of raising courageous boys and connecting them with Christ.
- In addition to hosting a podcast, Laurie writes devotional Bible stories for families. As a mom of four young boys, she understands how important it is for parents to connect with their children, while communicating the truth of God’s Word to them in a way they can understand.
- With degrees in Creative Writing, Biblical Studies and Education, Laurie has more than fifteen years of experience in teaching the Bible to young children, as well as writing Sunday School curriculum for her local church.
