I believe in risk. It's an essential part of good parenting. I don't fully understand why, but this lesson is lost on most Christian parents I've known.

They just don't get it. They coddle their children, protecting them from the raw realities that make a boy a man, or make a young lady a woman of God.

Throw them into the deep end, I say. I hope you can see by the way we've thrown the World Racers out across the globe that I believe in risk taking.

Granted, you have an obligation to support them and to ensure that they're not going to drown in that deep end. But too many parents fail their children by not letting them test their faith, never forcing them to rely on Jesus because there's no one else to rely on.

Train ‘em well, then turn ‘em loose, I say.

When they were 17-years-old, we sent Emily and Estie, to South Africa and to Kenya for the better part of a year to minister in the slums. You can't get much more low down and nasty than that. They came back full of faith, having come of age.

Kids need to make their faith their own and inadvertently, parents too often stand in the way. I've watched parents do it poorly for 20 years now. 90% of them mess this one up.

If you're a parent, you owe it to your children to ask, "Am I raising a nice, well-bred child, or am I giving my child a chance to forge his or her faith for themselves?"

Check out my other blog on Over-protective Parents...