Raising Kids to Follow Christ with Guest Lee Ann Mancini

Friends, you don't want to miss this important episode. Lee Ann is a wealth of help for parents who long to guide their child to follow Jesus. She is the host of the popular podcast: Raising Christian Kids. And the author of her #1 New Release:
Raising Kids to Follow Christ.

And a super fun fact about LeeAnn is that she is also the wonderful author of the children's book and tv series: Sea Kids.

Find all of LeeAnn's Resources and her full bio Here

An added bonus: Lee Ann Mancini, Dr. Michelle Watson and Rhonda Stoppe appear together on the Digging Deeper Episodes of Raising Christian Kids.
Catch our latest episode HERE

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"This podcast is for the purpose of mentoring only and is not a replacement for therapy. We suggest you seek out the help of a trained biblical counselor for help with your specific situation.”

Transcript

Rhonda Stoppe [00:00:02]:
Good morning. Welcome to this episode of Old Ladies Know Stuff, and I don't do interviews very often. I think I've only interviewed 2 other people but today I am super excited that I am going to be interviewing my friend Lee Ann Mancini because she has an amazing book out called Raising Kids to Follow Christ and, the instilling a lifelong trust in God. So we're gonna be talking about her book today and all of the wonderful ministries that she has. So, Lee Ann, I'm gonna read your bio, and then I'm just gonna jp right in because I don't wanna waste a minute. Lee Ann Mancini house the award winning podcast Raising Christian Kids available on all major platforms and streaming on KHCB Radio's uplifted station. She shares expert godly advice, biblically based wisdom, which is what I love about you, Lee Ann, and insightful tools for parenting children to bring them closer to Jesus. Also, she's an award winning children's author, which this is just todays, executive producer of the animated ladies, See Kids, which can be, viewed on Answers TV, Pureflix, Right Know Media, and See Kids TV.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:01:14]:
This series is based on her children's book about cute oh, such cute colorful creatures. I have 15 grandkids. How learn about God's morals and values and how to live those daily. I love this too. Lee Ann is an adjunct professor at South Florida Bible College and Theological Seminary. So you're getting the weight of what we're on learn here today, friends, as well as a sought after speaker on topics such as Christian growth, biblical understanding, and children's spirituality. She received her BA in religious studies from Regent University, master's degree in Christian and classical studies and biblical theology studies from Knox Theological Seminary and a master's in Christian studies from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. Lee Ann and her husband, Guy, have 2 adult children, and they make their home in South Florida.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:02:03]:
I couldn't not read the whole thing because I want them to get the weight of what we're going to be gaining from my dear Rhonda, Lee Ann. No, Lee Ann, welcome so much. And, I am just gonna ask you guest of all, what has been your favorite thing about launching this book?

Lee Ann Mancini [00:02:20]:
Oh, wow. My favorite thing. Well, first of all, thank you for having me. You know how much I love and adore you. And guest, old ladies know stuff. So I'm glad to be an old lady and sharing stuff. Geez, what is best about the book? I don't, I don't even no, you know, the fact that people are just gravitating towards it and telling me that they are just so thankful that it is full of wise information, which is researched from the brightest minds on children's spirituality. I'm, I'm so thankful God put me on this path to do this research and to write, have the podcast to write the book.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:02:57]:
And, no, yeah, just that it's, it's helping family. And I I'm thanking the Lord for it.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:03:03]:
Praise the Lord. I have been so blessed to be able to read the entire book and I just want to have as much as we can get from you into the minds of My audience is right in the thick of it Today are raising their kids and they are longing for them to follow Christ. So you are speaking our language. So we on glean glean from all of your old ladies no stuff wisdom. So I the first question I wanna ask you is why is your book Raising Kids to Follow Christ an urgent read? Let me repeat the, an urgent read for Christian parents that are raising children today. Well, let me just back up for

Lee Ann Mancini [00:03:40]:
a second. 5 years ago the I started researching for this book, I was alarmed at the statistics that were showing 65% of our children from Christian families were walking from the, walking away from their faith in college. And so I said, we got to do something, Lord. There has to be something. So, you know, I like to research. So I started researching. And when I was getting all this information, that's when I started the podcast. And then I felt the Lord called me to put it into a book.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:04:08]:
Let's come up to today. Okay? Today, George Barna wrote a book called Raising Spiritual Champions. And his statistics from the, Arizona Christian University, I believe I'm correct with that, indicated that 70% of 13 to 14 year olds from Christian families, they don't believe Satan exists. Wow. That's crazy. 70%. 84%. The is even more shocking.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:04:38]:
84% don't believe we're born into sin and need a savior. Author. 13 to 14 year olds from Christian family. And 70% don't believe in absolute moral truth. And then you go to, the Christian the Christian pastors and, 50% actually believe that Jesus may have sinned on earth, you know, on his han han The is Christian Christian pastors. Christian pastors who are teaching our children I'm

Rhonda Stoppe [00:05:06]:
getting air quotes. Christian pastors.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:05:08]:
Yeah. Exactly. Real% believe in reincarnation as a possibility. On, my word. So this is why it's urgent and this is why we see our times, ourselves living in the times we're living in. We don't have strong Christians in the focus pillars of society, academia, the media, the church, and, government. Mhmm. Four pillars that run society.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:05:36]:
Yeah. So that's why it's urgent.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:05:38]:
Yes. It is urgent. And I I think parents sense the urgency. I mean, the the sky is falling. The world's falling affair. And I always say it's not falling apart. It's falling into place for the second coming of our savior, our King of kings, and Lord of lords, and God has chosen us in history to raise this generation to be ready for a world we really have no idea what they're going to have to be prepared to live out their faith and to follow Christ. So this is a great resource for that.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:06:05]:
So what's your advice to parents with children in public school systems that are struggling with what their kids are being taught or exposed to during the day? Yeah. That's a good question.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:06:15]:
Yeah. Well, you know, 80% of our children go to a public school because there's a lot of Christian families that can't afford a private school and and cannot homeschool. So we have 80 80 percent of our children go to a public school. We don't have to go into the details of how horrible public schools are, and they're indoctrinating them in worldview, man's worldview. And so what we have to do as a Christian family is we have to double down on the things we do at home. Ken Hann says we can no longer raise our children to have what he calls a, Sunday school faith. Where they go to Sunday school, we Real, Bible stories to them And, you know, just it's a Sunday school faith. It worked back in the fifties sixties, you know, but it doesn't work anymore.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:07:02]:
Rhonda and if I could, I'd like to read one little quote from Josh Mulvihill. Yeah. I I think guest the key just hit it right on the head. He says, could it be that one reason children I'm sorry. Could it be that one reason young people are doctrinally ignorant, spiritually confused, and living with a syncristic faith system is that we have reduced our teachings to a couple dozen moralistic stories found in most children's Bibles. Our children need the soul gripping, life altering, meat based, Jesus centered teachings of God's word. No we have to really, what I call like rosy riveter on World War to, the parents rolled up their sleeves and got to work to fight the

Rhonda Stoppe [00:07:49]:
war. We need

Lee Ann Mancini [00:07:50]:
to roll up our sleeves. We need to, be prepared, prepare ourselves as parents, to know God's word, to live God's word, and to teach God's word. According according to Deuteronomy 6:4-9, that

Rhonda Stoppe [00:08:04]:
that is our our marriage call and our directives from the Lord. Right. And it's a ministry that God's called us to, and I think that's what I loved about your book and about your admonition to your readers and even on your guestcast. And, you know, we get to do a Digging Deeper episodes, you and I and, Michelle, Doctor. Michelle Watson. Does she go by Canton too? Yeah.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:08:27]:
Doctor Michelle Watson Canfield. Yes. I love our times together on that podcast. It's so much fun, and

Rhonda Stoppe [00:08:33]:
it's so

Lee Ann Mancini [00:08:33]:
so informative.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:08:35]:
And it's an it's there is an urgency, and it's easy to entertain our kids. And we think that we're just keeping them busy by entertaining them and keeping them out of trouble. Steve, my husband, was a youth minister for so many years, 18 years, and parents think life you could just entertain my kids to keep them busy, they won't do the wrong things. That's just not true. That is not a changed harvest, and, that's what I love about your resource. So in the book, you mentioned a thought that scared you to the core, an image that Jonathan Edwards, the North American revivalist, preached from 1700 used to frighten parents, and it's a vivid example. Can you talk about that and your reaction to it?

Lee Ann Mancini [00:09:13]:
Guest. On I was doing my research, I mean, I'm I'm gonna tell you, Rhonda, I researched and I read a lot of parenting books. And I'm I'm going back to a book that talked about the 1700s. I actually have a book and it's it's amazing. They were kind of facing some of the things that we were facing today, but not at this level. But nonetheless, the devil is always attacking family. He has from Adam and Eve, and he will continue to do until the till Christ returns. But Jonathan Edwards said to the parents, and this is during the revival in the 1700s, the great church revival.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:09:47]:
He said, what if you got to heaven and you're sitting at the heavenly banquet table and you're looking around the table and you're seeing your your spouse and your sisters and your brothers and your cousins and your friends and your aunts and uncles and grandparents, and you're rejoicing to see them. You're gonna spend all eternity with the. But you don't see your children. Your children are not sitting at that table for all eternity and you know where they are. That alone, when I read the, I I I still have the old spirit goosebps. When I read that, it just it startled me to the core. If you think about the final end of all things, where your children will be, that should transform you right now to become the Guest of our time. Okay?

Rhonda Stoppe [00:10:41]:
For such a time as this to make sure that we do all we can within our God given ability to raise our children to love and adore and honor Christ, and not walk away from how, because the world tells them something different. Amen. And it begins at home. It begins in our lives. Life, it our kids will walk away from our religion. But when they watch mom and dad pursue loving God with all their being and loving others with Christ's love and keeping short account of our own sin, you know, I'm reading the book right how, respectable sins, and it's like we have so many sins that are guest, quote, respectable sins the we don't allow the spirit to convict us of. We excuse them, and we think we're doing okay. We're living living, you know, compared to other Christians around us, we're doing today, but we're not comparing ourselves to the holiness of God.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:11:30]:
And when we come to a place of saying, I want, Lord, you to reflect in my life so that my kids have an appetite to know God. You know, the word glorify God means to reflect How character. If on Isaiah God says How created us for His glory, if He created us to live in a manner that reflects His character, that's the light that God can use to draw our children to Christian. Not our religious ritual, not our hypocrisy for, you know, pretending we're one thing at church and coming home and being something completely different. 75% of teenagers walk away from the church and the nber one reason is hypocrisy in their Christian homes.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:12:08]:
Yes. And, you know, I recently read, John I think it was John Wesley who said I believe it was John Wesley who said, I learned more from my mother about Christianity than all the theologians in England.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:12:23]:
Yes. I'm actually, moms raising sons to be mentor book, I have a big section about Susanna Wesley and raising how 2 she had, like, 15 kids. She has the Stoppe. But I right now am listening to the audiobook of John Wesley's life. And this woman did not have an easy life. I mean, she lost kids. She had 15 children. She lost babies.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:12:42]:
Their house burned down. When people didn't like the message her husband was preaching, they burned her house down. I mean, this woman's life was not easy, but through those trials, what her children saw was a genuine pursuit and love for Christ, and she taught it to her kids. That's incredible testimony.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:13:02]:
So you see the. That's from her mother to her. And then John Wesley speaks about his mother. Yeah. So, you know, it's passed down from generation to generation. Amen.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:13:12]:
So you talk about writing, preparing the soil and planting a seed. You on explain that to us?

Lee Ann Mancini [00:13:17]:
Yes. When, from the womb to age 3, I call that preparing the soil. So, you know, in God's word, it says Psalm 786, teach even to the children yet to be born. And then Psalm 516 says, yet you desired faithfulness Even in the womb, you taught me wisdom in that secret place. What does that mean? Well, at 18 weeks of pregnancy, babies can hear in the woman, and they even, react towards faces that that are familiar to the, that they can see Rhonda through the womb. It's life, you know, whatever, just transparent that you can see. And so you can start right then and there singing songs about Jesus, using the name of Jesus, volunteering at a daycare center. Let your children hear other children singing songs of Jesus.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:14:08]:
Then when their infants continue to volunteer, because we know daycare centers, you know, Christian daycare centers and Christian nursery schools, they need volunteers.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:14:16]:
Mhmm.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:14:16]:
So, you know, continue to volunteer. Let your baby hear and see all the the. And then when they go on their guest day to attend themselves, there's no tears. Mhmm. Plus you're you're preparing that soil. Another thing I talk about is, say you have, a child who is nursing or drinking a bottle. You know, they scream when they're hungry. Right? They're screaming, they're hungry, and you put that bottle in and all of somebody you hear cooing.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:14:43]:
You know, cooing noises. And what you can say is simply, you know, Johnny, Jesus loves you. Jesus loves you. You're connecting. Their needs being met with the name of Jesus. Mhmm.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:14:55]:
I love that.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:14:56]:
Or you have a toddler who's looking on, you know, at his reflection in the marriage, or a 6 month old and they're giggling, you say, Sarah, Jesus loves you. You're so pretty. Jesus made you and Jesus loves you. Now you're connecting their happy emotions with the name of Jesus. And then as toddlers, instead of saying, the example I'd like to give is instead of saying, let's take a nap, you say, let's take a Sabbath's rest. Now the don't understand what the true meaning of the word Sabbath is, but you're building the category and a, vocabulary in their mind of the word Sabbath. So this is all from the womb to age 3. Now from 4 to 7, when you start teaching them the true meanings of what Sabbath means, you're planting seeds into rich soil that can grow deep roots.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:15:43]:
And from 4 to 7 is when christian, this is when children really explode in their learning. That's why a 5 year old can speak 2 languages or 6 year old. 90% of their bay their brain is fully functioned by the age of 5. And so this is the these first, you know, 7 years is in god's economy, is a is a is a form of completion. No we take that to build the foundation. And then from ages 8 to 13, we build upon that foundation that we've laid. And, George Harvest says in his book that a worldview starts to form around, 15 months and has solidified around 13 years of age. Wow.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:16:27]:
So we do all we can to the best of our ability. Yes. It's never too late. It's never too late either. So

Rhonda Stoppe [00:16:33]:
Never too late. Right?

Lee Ann Mancini [00:16:34]:
No mommy guilt. No mommy guilt.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:16:36]:
That's great. And my oldest son did not come to our family till he was 15 years old. So you have a stepson, a foster child, adopted child. If they're in your home and they're in your care, they're under your influence, it's God's timing that How put them there. And if you've raised them and you have not been applying these principles, Real, now you're responsible for what the Lord is teaching you. And know, before God, you can say, Help me apply what I'm learning. Get this book, Raising Christian Kids, and apply the principles on of the things that I talk about in my mom's raising sons book is house know Jochebed had to give her son Moses over author she was done nursing him to a woman who worshiped cats, who was ungodly influence. Can you imagine? I mean, the woman who loved Yahweh was giving her child to the influence of pharaoh's palace, and yet think of those years that she would have had Moses as she nursed him, as she sang to him of Yahweh.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:17:34]:
So important that you have imprinted on your young ones. That means you don't just stick them in any old daycare. If you've got to go to work, if you don't just have them be babysat with someone that doesn't have a biblical worldview, if you want to partner with the caregiver of your child, ask the Lord to send you a grandmother, a cousin, an aunt, a sister, a friend, someone that is going to come alongside of you and help impart that biblical worldview to your child when they are in their care. I love that. No, how can we start teaching our Biblical principles and what age does a worldview start to form? You kind of shared that spiritual foundation. It's so important to fight against the anti Christian culture. Talk about that.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:18:20]:
Well, you no, look look what we're faced with today. You know, that the the phones are destroying our children, literally killing our children. The suicide rate, anxiety rate amongst teens is out of off the roof. Then we have TV. You cannot turn on a to television anymore without seeing something that is totally anti biblical. And then you have Children attending school where they're being taught from the. They're being taught from other kids what is true. Right.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:18:53]:
Or what they've seen on the Internet.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:18:54]:
Or what they've seen on the Internet. Yeah. So this is why it's so important on my book, I have a chapter about apologetics. It kind of teaches the on my book, the parents will learn a great deal also, and then they'll learn how to, teach their children. So we we I have a chapter on apologetics, which, you know, as you know, means, a verbal defense for what we believe. We're not apologizing for what we believe, but it's a verbal defense, a loving verbal defense of why we believe what we believe. And so the times we're living in, Gray Coker says, the the times we're living in calls for calls for it's drastic times calls for drastic measures. So we really need to really, stand up and take control of how we're raising our children.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:19:44]:
Parents, grandparents, ministry leaders, church pastors, aunts and uncles. Let's win our children back. You know, God says our children are, the arrows in our quiver. Well, an arrow is made back then it instills today Real precise. It it is created perfect. So what does the, archer do with the arrow? He shoots it to kill his enemy. God is saying our children are our arrows. They are the ones that are on fight the enemy.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:20:16]:
They are our future.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:20:18]:
Yes. And, you

Lee Ann Mancini [00:20:19]:
know, Hitler, Stalin, Mussolini, you know, said well, actually, Aristotle said give me a child, until the age of 7, and I'll have him for his lifetime. Well, Hitler, Stalin, and Mussolini thought the same thing.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:20:33]:
Right. Beware. Beware. And that's why, let's talk about your Real quick, your, Real Kids TV show. You can go to ckidstv.com and you can pull up some amazing episodes of these adorable little sea creatures that have the best biblical values, the stories on those, what we on be exposing our kids to. We're not cringing and hoping our child didn't pick up the subtle, what's the word, deception in those cartoons that they're watching now. And so the, you can be completely content to know they're getting a biblical worldview, and I love knowing that. Go to ckids.com and you can actually watch some of the episodes, but you can also download.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:21:15]:
Well, you you can't watch them on so you can watch them on Right Know Media, Pure Flix, Answers TV and Go Minnow. You can buy the DVDs, on the on the website and you can buy the books. And then we have curricul that covers all 7 books and all 26 episodes that churches are using as supplemental curricul to their Bible.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:21:40]:
Because the SEE Kids, helps children understand how to live out the biblical principles we're trying to instill in them in real life situations. So as you're watching an episode, you'll hear the mother say, well, you know, Real, the apostle Paul says, and then she repeats the Bible verse. So and it's and and it's and it's Real life situations that kids are facing. No yeah. I would you know, someday I hope we could have free to everybody. But Yeah.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:22:06]:
But it is awesome. But I've seen 3 episodes Real once in a while. On. Life you follow, is it c kids that you follow on Instagram or

Lee Ann Mancini [00:22:15]:
is it No. If you go to YouTube, there's on available unique gifts and you can watch that for free. And then sometimes we do snippets that we send out.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:22:25]:
Mhmm.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:22:26]:
But the producer, P Real Entertainment, they own the ladies. And, they life it out to, like I said, Right Know Media, Pure Flix, Answers TV,

Rhonda Stoppe [00:22:37]:
and go no. Great. Well, go find it and order the DVDs. And life I say, I've got 15 grandkids. They love the books, and the colors are just so bright, and the message is just wonderful. So Real quick, we only have, like, Real minutes left, tell us about the specific Bible characters whose parents adhere to the commandment of Deuteronomy 6 4 through 9?

Lee Ann Mancini [00:22:57]:
Yeah. This is important. So we always go to God's word to find, you know, find out what we need to do and how to do it. Well, if you think about it, what does Jeremiah, Samuel, Timothy, Paul all have in common? They were taught from infancy. The parents didn't wait to think, well,

Rhonda Stoppe [00:23:16]:
I'm on wait until they get a little bit bigger no they'll understand. No, They taught them from infancy, and that's what we need to do. Amen. And, you know, I was just thinking I was at a, on outreach in San Francisco, and it was a bunch of homeless people. My son was playing in a band outside at Union Square Plaza. And when they were all gathered around, we were giving the free proof. When they played the song Jesus loves me, tears of these homeless people all all across this the stands just started crying. Someone had sung Jesus loves me to them as a old, and it hears those hard hearts, and they heard it again.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:23:55]:
So, yeah, start from the time they're very young. Raising kids to follow Christ is thoughtful, and it takes a deep dive into scripture, but it's also filled with practical advice. That's what I love about it. What's your biggest piece of advice for parents and other caregivers as they start to build this spiritual foundation in their children?

Lee Ann Mancini [00:24:13]:
Today, rely on the Holy Spirit to guide you, and don't have any mommy or daddy guilt. If you haven't done I didn't do half the stuff that's in my book when I was raising my kids. So don't have it. Feel guilty if you haven't done it. Erwin Lutzer talks about the found 4000 year old seeds in the tombs of the Egyptians. They planted them. They watered them. They gave them sunshine and they grew.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:24:35]:
So it's never too

Rhonda Stoppe [00:24:36]:
early and it's never too late. And just do do it organically today by day as God says when you rise up, when you walk along the path, when you lie down. Bring invite Jesus into everything you do in your home. Mentor. And find old ladies because they're the mentor, they're the tightest to women that God has said, teach the younger how to love their husbands and love their children. And the best way we can love our children and our husbands is to live out what we believe, a genuine life of passion for Christ. And I love this book, Raising Kids to Follow Christ. Please get yourself a copy.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:25:12]:
And then, I am an author, so I understand. If you get this book, please go jp on there and write a review for Lee Ann. You could write one for me too. I'd appreciate it. But, on my book because

Lee Ann Mancini [00:25:22]:
my author

Rhonda Stoppe [00:25:22]:
I mean, authors are always like, how, could you just write me a book review? Because that's how people decide if they're gonna read the book, and it is a great resource.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:25:31]:
And I love your book.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:25:33]:
Oh, thank you so much. It's fun. And it's been fun serving alongside of you. We've been at some events together. I believe God's on have us be at more, and we will see how he opens those doors. But thank you so much for joining us. I on close in prayer. Father, you know the children that are represented by the viewers and the listeners today.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:25:51]:
Lord, I pray for the grandchildren. I pray for the ones that you have given to the moms and the grandmothers and the caregivers that are watching or listening today. Lord, give us discernment. Your word says you have not because you ask not. We are asking for wisdom and discernment to raise up a generation in the nurture and admonition of the The to raise up arrows that will shoot straight at the enemy's heart and that you will entrust in their generation to follow Christ and to live in a manner worthy of their calling. In Jesus' name, amen. Amen. Thanks so much.

Rhonda Stoppe [00:26:26]:
And you can go to RaisingChristianKids.com to find out more about the book, to find out about Lee Ann. Follow her podcast at Raising Christian Kids. Thanks so much for joining us today, Lee Ann. It's been so great. I appreciate you.

Lee Ann Mancini [00:26:42]:
Thank you for having me. Thank you.