“For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” (Matthew 12:34; Luke 6:45)
Scripture reminds us that our words reveal what fills our hearts. What we treasure shapes our heart, our hearts shape our words, and our words shape our children.
Every day, children listen not only to what we say, but how we say it — what excites, worries, or frustrates us. Over time, these everyday conversations shape their values, identity, and worldview.
Parenting is therefore not just about managing behaviour, but forming the heart — beginning with our own.
This four-part workshop series by the Parenting Ministry equips parents to engage in intentional, age-appropriate, heart-to-heart conversations with their children that nurture faith, character, and wisdom, and build meaningful dialogue into everyday family life.
*Childcare and light refreshments will be provided.
Before we guide our children’s hearts, we must examine our own This is not about guilt, but about clarity.
What do we truly treasure?
What quietly drives our tone — fear, reputation, comfort, control, or trust in God?
Are our spoken priorities aligned with our faith?
Parents will be introduced to the Crucial Conversations Framework, built around five developmental pillars that guide conversation from early childhood into adulthood:
These pillars are not lectures to deliver, but themes to revisit repeatedly as children grow. Interwoven throughout these pillars, we will also explore cross-cutting themes such as trust, resilience, self-control, perseverance, kindness, and humility.
Parents will receive the Crucial Conversations Toolkit — practical guides and reflection prompts to help assess how these conversations are happening over time.
If the heart is the control centre of life, then understanding the child’s heart is essential.
Children are not simply smaller adults. Their fears, motivations, cognitive abilities, and emotional awareness develop gradually. A two-year-old’s heart struggles are different from a teenager’s, and very different from a young adult’s.
Parents will practise listening, asking, and engaging — not merely instructing. Through guided discussions and role-play, parents will begin to experience what it means to connect to the heart beneath the behaviour.
We continue with the remaining pillars, going deeper into how to engage the child’s heart intentionally over time.
Parents will reflect on their experiences using the Toolkit and share both successes and challenges. Community learning becomes part of the formation process.
Parents will:
The aim is not perfection, but increasing sensitivity:
We move from reacting to behaviour to intentionally shaping the heart.
Understanding the heart of the child is primary, but not enough; parents must act with intention.
To “write it on their hearts” (Hebrews 8:10) means repeated, embodied conversation — in daily routines, car rides, mealtimes, ordinary moments. It reflects the biblical call to impress God’s truth on our children in daily life (Deuteronomy 6:7). It means consistency over years, not occasional serious talks. Parenting is not a sprint but a lifelong journey of influence.
In this final workshop, we will gather insights from parents’ experiences and explore how to sustain intentional conversations over the years. Parents will have the opportunity to reflect on:
Parents will be invited — entirely voluntarily — to continue in a mentorship or accountability pairing, perhaps meeting monthly to encourage one another in steady, faithful parenting.
The goal is not to produce perfect children, but to faithfully cultivate hearts anchored in faith, wisdom, and love.