Parental Guidance Needed - KIDS IN CHURCH

Yesterday I responded to one of the reasons I have heard regarding not having children in church -  my child doesn't get anything from being in church.
If you didn't read that post, click HERE.

Today I wanted to take some time to respond to another reason.
The content is sometimes more mature than we would like our child to hear.

In my opinion, this is the most challenging of the three oppositions.  So I want to be careful in answering it.  

In a service that is not geared towards children there are words and ideas that come up that kids will have questions about and parents don't know how to answer.
There are the realities of sin in our world that need to be addressed in sermons:  pornography, homosexuality, same sex marriage, sex-trafficking and others.
There are God-given gifts that are not easy to talk about with young children:  sex in the context of marriage. 

First of all, when we have had messages that focus on topics like homosexuality, we have our regular children's church program through 3rd grade and we have added an optional class for 4th and 5th graders.  

Now here comes the challenging part.  Please read through to the end.

I have read in several places that the appropriate time for a parent to start talking with their child about sex is "younger than you think."  Our culture is becoming more and more sexualized.  Magazines in the supermarket.  Commercials at the most unexpected times.  Conversations with friends at school.  And in many cases these are not the messages we want our children to know.  
Would you rather have a conversation with your son or daughter about same sex marriage after the pastor at church mentions it during a Biblical sermon or after your son hear about on the playground or through a TV clip hears in passing?

Here is a section from Time for the Talk by Steve Zollos

Growing up has never been easy, not for boys. For many of you fathers reading this book, fistfights, police chases, and broken hearts seemed to be waiting around every corner during your teen years—but the world we see today isn’t the world you grew up in. Not even close. Back then there was at least some protection from the dirt of the world. Today, a boy steps off the school bus and into a place you and I never conceived of in our youth. Gangs, drugs, shootings, condoms, sex, pornography, and perversion are everywhere. Worst of all, it’s largely accepted, tolerated, or condoned by those in authority.  

Oh, so your son is in private school? Or he’s home-schooled? Do you really think that makes things different for him? Maybe a little bit, but don’t let that give you a false sense of security. That young man still lives in a world hugely more seductive and radically more damaging than the one you knew at his age. Have you listened to his music lately? Have you taken a walk around your neighborhood? Do you have any idea what a typical group of young people talks about in private? Have you heard the language, seen the actions, and understood the values being promoted on movie, television, videogames, computer, and cell phone screens? In the time that you’ve been on the internet, have you seen things that you would never want your son to see, even accidentally? How much more time does he spend online than you? With all of this talk about the trouble in this world, let's remember that our hope is in God.

He has given what we need to live for His glory.  Jesus.  The Holy Spirit.  The Word of God. The church.  Biblical sermons.

Let's help our kids find their hope in God.