Helping Children When Something Scary Happens By Darby Strickland
Three of the key factors that emerging research points to as helping children have better outcomes are protection , support , and overcoming powerlessness by helping them find solutions . The good news is that you can offer all three of those things to a child through connecting them to Jesus — the one who gave his life , so they could be sure that they are loved by God and that he is always with them . Remember as you seek to help your child that they will always need us to go beyond teaching about Jesus ’ s love . They need to experience God ’ s love , so we need to model it .
You can share with your child about the Good Shepherd . He is a real person whose name is Jesus , and he is the powerful , loving , and always-present God of the universe . Jesus tells us plainly that he is the Good Shepherd in John 10:11 , saying “ I am the good shepherd . The good shepherd sacrifices his life for the sheep .” Jesus is the source of the protection and help that your child needs . A wonderful way of sharing this with your child would be to go through Psalm 23 and even memorize it together .
Psalm 23 is familiar , simple , and yet rich . It speaks to the Lord ’ s care , our need for protection and help in the dark valley , and it promises that we will be guided by God himself . As you read and memorize Psalm 23 , also read John 10:1 – 17 with your child . In John 10 your child will learn that Jesus knows them , calls them by name , and lays down his life so they will have a rich and wonderful life together – forever .
Excerpted adapted from Something Scary Happened © 2023 by Darby A . Strickland . Used with permission of New Growth Press . May not be reproduced without prior written permission . To purchase this and other helpful resources , please visit newgrowthpress . com .
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