Power of the Tongue: Speaking Death and Negative Words

“Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me”

Many of us have heard this phrase before but have you ever notice that it’s easier to remember the hurtful things said to you than the good ones?  Truth be told, words are very powerful and if used the wrong way, can hurt you.  God tells us in His word that “death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof” (Proverbs 18:21).   In other words, you will eat what you speak; the outcome of your future is a byproduct of what you speak whether good or bad.  Based upon scripture, your words can do two things for you: curse you or bless you; however, I will focus on how we as Christian curse ourselves (speaking negatively and foolishly).

Proverbs 18:7 (KJV) states, “a fool’s mouth is his destruction, and his lips are the snare of his soul”.  For better understanding let’s look at what the NIV says, “The mouths of fools are their ruin; they trap themselves with their lips”.

Let’s examine this scripture.  According to dictionary.com, a fool can be defined as a weak minded person.  One who lacks judgment or sense.  So according to Proverbs 18:7, the words of a fool (a weak minded person) can bring about their ruin (wreak, destruction, downfall, mess up, collapse and defeat).  In other words, your mouth can lead to your destruction and defeat; it can lead to poverty, lack, unhappiness, a failed marriage, low self esteem and more.  When speaking negative and foolishly, whether playfully or out of anger, what you’re actually doing is cursing the blessings God has for you.  Your negative speaking not only affects your life (including circumstances in your life), but it also impacts the life’s of others as well.

Speaking Negatively: A Solution

Avoid speaking, saying or surrounding yourself around people who are speaking negative words around or about you – it’s cursing the blessings God has for your life.  God says he has plans to prosper you, not to harm you; so avoid saying things such as: I’m broke, I have no money and I’m just barely making it by.  This (along with any other negative thing) all goes against the blessings God has in store for you.  Instead say, I’m wealthy, I have more than enough, my God shall supply all my needs, The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want.

Begin speaking the Word of God over your life.  Find a scripture in the Bible that tells you what God has to say about your particular situation.  Example: the next time you want to say, “No one loves me” go to John 15:9 and speak what Jesus says about you, “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love.”  How awesome is it to know that God loves you. 

If you’re in debt, instead of saying, “I’ll never get out of debt”, read Deuteronomy 28:12 and say aloud, “The LORD will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none.”

As Christian, we need to stop blocking God’s blessings by speaking negatively.  God wants to bless us but we become a hindrance to ourselves in receiving Gods blessings when we speak things that are in opposition of Gods Word.

On today, make a decision.  Proverb 15:4 tells us that a tongue that brings healing is a tree of life, but a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit.  Decide today that you will watch what departs from your lips.  Make a choice to speak God’s blessings over your life.  Through the power of the Holy Ghost we have the power to speak God’s blessings over our lives and with the same tongue (if used negatively) can speak curses over our lives.

Here’s an example of things we say that sounds harmless but is actually stopping God’s blessing in your life and cursing you:

• I’m poor; I’m broke; I have no money
• I have (name of disease), I’ll never get healed from it.
• I’m ugly
• I’m a failure
• I’ll never find love
• God doesn’t love me
• My marriage is going to fail
• I’m going to lose my job
• I’m stupid
• I’m a worrier
• I’m sick and tired of _________.

By speaking these words, you’re claiming it to be so in your life – you’re decreeing and declaring brokenness.  Even if you are sick, don’t go around claiming it, instead say you’re healed.  Do this for every other negative thing in your life.  Remember words are seeds that can yield a good or bad harvest in your life –depending on what you speak.  The very essence of our being was spoken into existence by God.  Monitor what you speak.  Every time you want to speak negative, stop, ask God to change your heart and to renew your mind.  Then, fix your mouth to speak God’s blessings upon your life instead:

• I’m more than a conqueror
• I’m prosperous
• By the strips of Jesus I am healed
• My marriage is saved
• My spouse and children are saved in Jesus name
• I have God’s favor upon my life
• I’m the head and not the tail
• I have my career job in Jesus name

Conclusion

Words are powerful – they are seeds that yield a good or bad harvest (depending on what you speak).  There is power in finding scripture(s) on your particular situation and speaking what God has to say about it instead of your flesh.  God wants to bless you.  Don’t let your mouth get in the way of your blessing.  Pray with me:

Heavenly father thank you.  Thank you Lord for your Word and blessings.  Father, I ask in the name of Jesus that you help me to speak life and not death.  Place a guard over my mouth in Jesus name that I may not speak anything that is in opposition of your word and promises I have through your Son Jesus Christ.  Father I plead the blood of Jesus against every idle word I’ve said that was negative –cancelling out its power.  From this day on I make a decision to speak your blessings upon my life and the life’s of others.  I thank you Lord that by your strength and with the leadership of the Holy Spirit I’m able to do this.  Father, I thank you in advance for the blessings your spending my way and I praise your holy name.  I receive your blessings and will decree and declare them daily.  These things I pray and ask, believing that their already done; in Jesus name, Amen.

May you be encouraged and may God bless you in Jesus name.

Christina Ewanga
Raising Kids -With The Wisdom Of God Series.

Thursday Motivation:The 7-Step Formula for Goal Setting

Start achieving success today with the most effective goal-setting plan you'll ever learn.

The following excerpt is from the Brian Tracy’s book Million Dollar Habits. Buy it now from Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes | IndieBound

Goal orientation is a way of thinking practiced by optimists and all successful people. In future orientation, you first develop a clear, ideal picture of what you want to accomplish sometime in the future. With goal orientation, you crystallize that image into specific, measurable, detailed goals and objectives you’ll need to accomplish to achieve that ideal future vision.

Successful people develop the habits of personal strategic planning. They sit down and make a list of exactly what they want to accomplish in the short, medium, and long term. They then use a powerful, seven-part goal-setting methodology to create blueprints and plans of action that they follow every day.

Once you develop the habit of setting goals and making plans to accomplish them, it will become as natural for you as breathing. By following a proven goal-setting process, you’ll increase the likelihood of achieving your goals by as much as ten times, by 1,000 percent or more. This isn’t just a theory; it has been proved and demonstrated repeatedly by almost every person who practices it.

In February 2003, USA Today reported on a study of people who had set New Year’s resolutions the year before. They found that only 4 percent of the people who had made New Year’s resolutions, but had not put them in writing, had followed through on them. But 46 percent of those people who had written down their New Year’s resolutions carried them out. This is a difference in success rates of more than 1,100 percent!

The seven-step formula

Many formulas and recipes exist for goal setting. As a rule, “any plan is better than no plan at all.” Here is one of the best and most effective goal-setting plans or formulas you will ever learn.

Step one: Decide exactly what you want in a certain area, and write it down clear­ly, in detail. Make the goal measurable and specific.

Step two: Set a deadline for achieving the goal. If it’s a large goal, break it down into smaller parts and set subdeadlines.

Step three: Make a list of everything you’ll have to do to achieve this goal. As you think of new items, add them to your list until it’s complete.

Step four: Organize your list of action steps into a plan. A plan is a list of activities organized on the basis of two elements, priority and sequence.

In organizing by priorities, you determine the most important things you can possibly do on your list to achieve your goal. The 80/20 rule applies: 20 percent of the things you do will account for 80 percent of your results. If you don’t set clear priorities, you’ll “major in minors” and spend much of your time on small and irrelevant tasks that don’t help you achieve your goal.

In organizing by sequence, you determine what must be done before something else can be done. You create a checklist. There are always activities that are dependent upon other activities being completed in advance. What are they, and what is the logical order or sequence of completion?

Step five: Identify the obstacles or limitations that might hold you back from achieving your goal, both in the situation and within yourself. Ask yourself, “Why have I not achieved this goal already?”

Identify the most important constraint or limitation that’s holding you back, and then focus on removing that limiting factor. It could be a certain amount of money or a key resource. It could be an additional skill or habit you need. It could be additional information you require. It could be the help or assistance of one or more people. Whatever it is, identify it clearly and go to work to eliminate it.

Step six: Once you’ve determined your goal, developed your plan, and identi­fied your major obstacle, immediately take action of some kind toward achieving your goal. Step out in faith. Do the first thing that comes to mind. But do something to start moving toward your most important goal.

Step seven: Do at least one thing every day that moves you toward your most important goal. Make a habit of getting up each morning, planning your day and then doing something, anything, that moves you at least one step closer to what’s most important to you.

The habit of doing something every single day that moves you toward an important goal develops within you the power of momentum. Daily action deepens your belief that the goal is achievable and activates the law of attraction. As a result, you begin moving faster and faster toward your goal, and your goal begins moving faster and faster toward you.

I’ve spoken to people all over the world, for many years, who’ve told me that the habit of acting every day on one or more of their major goals has been life-transforming. They’ve told me that this single habit has been more responsible for their success than any other idea they ever learned. Try it for yourself and see.

Spiritual Warfare Prayers For Our Children

Hi Beloved, you're welcome on Raising Kids With The Wisdom Of God Series.

Prayer is a life wire and praying for our children is one of the most important things we can do for them and not only praying for them, we need to teach them how to pray.

Before we pray, I want to assure you that God answers prayers and there's nothing God can not do ( Luke 1:37)

Let's Pray...

1. Father, thank You for giving me wonderful children, in the name of Jesus.

2. I hide the lives of my children in the blood of Jesus, in the name of Jesus.

3. I insure the lives of my children with the blood of Jesus.

4. I thwart all the decisions and plans of the enemy against my children, in the name of Jesus.

5. I withdraw the name of my children from the book of death, in the name of Jesus.

6. Mention the name of your children and say, you will not go to the grave before me, in the

name of Jesus.

7. Any portion in the body of my children that is infected with diseases, be cleansed by the

blood of Jesus.

8. Every witch/wizard that wants to terminate the lives of my children, receive the fire of God in Jesus Name.

9. Power of the grave, I render you impotent in the lives of my children, in the name of Jesus.

10. Any poison eaten by my children in the dream, be neutralized by the blood of Jesus.

11. My children, you are anointed for the top, in the name of Jesus.

12. Angels of elevation, locate my children, in the name of Jesus.

13. Lord, send forth Your warring angels to do battle on their behalf.

14. I cut off the flow of any inherited marital problems into the life of my children in the name

of Jesus.

15. Let every imagination of the enemy against the marital life of _ _ _ be rendered impotent,

in the name of Jesus.

16. I speak destruction unto the headquarters of the spirit of Egypt and blow up their

 altars, in the name of Jesus.

17. God arise and fight for my Children in Jesus Name.

18. I decree irreparable conflict between my daughter and the strange man, in the name of

Jesus.

19. The God-given partners of my children, appear and locate them, in the name of Jesus.

20. Let the cloud blocking the sunlight of the marital breakthrough of my children be

dispersed, in Jesus’ name.

21. Only your divine plan and purpose shall come to pass in my children's lives.

Therefore, I decree that my children shall not die but live to declare the Word of the Lord in Jesus Name

22. I decree and declare that weapon fashioned against my children shall prosper in Jesus Name Amen.

   Dr. Christina Ewanga
Raising Kids With The Wisdom Of God Series.

Powerful Scriptural Based Prayer Points for our Children

Psalm 11:3 I break and reject every negative foundation that may want to disturb my children now or in the future in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Genesis 1:1 I create a godly and goodly foundation for all my children in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Genesis 1:3 The glory of God will announce the arrival of my children everywhere they go in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Exodus 13:21 the presence of God will lighten the path of all my children in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Isaiah 8:18 my children shall be for extraordinary signs and wonders in every area of their lives in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Psalm 71:7 just the way David was a wonder to many, my children shall be wonders to all nations of the world and generations beyond their generation in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Isaiah 62:4 every negative term, imagination or label over the life of any of my children is removed and obliterated by the Blood of Jesus in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Zech 1:21 every power sustaining any form of limitation over any of my children, be broken and limitations, be removed in Jesus Christ name, Amen!

Esther 7:5-6 O God! Reveal and revoke every negative agenda of the enemy concerning any of my children in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Jeremiah 29:11 Mighty God! Bring to pass Your good and glorious plans for the life of my children in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Jeremiah 1:5 that divine programme of Yours for my children before they were born, Father, bring it to pass in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Jeremiah 1:10  O God, use my children to establish Your Righteousness on earth, Amen!

Psalm 112:2 O Mighty God, make my children mighty upon the earth, Amen!

Psalm 102:28 Continuous flourishing and divine establishment shall be the portion of my children in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Proverbs 11:21b O God, from every attack and every evil, deliver my children indeed and totally in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Proverbs 14:26b, Genesis 46:33-34 O God, the way You provided Goshen for the children of Israel, provide a place of refuge, rest and flourishing for my children in every area of their lives in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Job 1:8-10 O God, You’ve been our Protector since ages past, let Your hedge of protection surround my children wherever they go in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Proverbs 1:10 I come against every type of negative and evil influence over my children in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

1 Samuel 2:17-18 just like the children of Eli could not convert Samuel to their evil ways, my children are hereby empowered by the Holy Spirit to resist evil to the end in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

1 Samuel 2:26 O God, the way Samuel grew in the fear of God, in holiness and other good and godly virtues in a filthy environment of Eli’s house, let my children grow and find favor with You and with men all over the world in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Genesis 39:7-9 O God, just the way sinfulness could not dominate Joseph in Potiphar’s house, sin and evil will never dominate my children in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Psalm 144:12 O God, let my children grow up in You and be divinely polished and refined in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Daniel 5;17 O Lord, let the Spirit of uncommon achievement and wisdom rest upon my children in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Daniel 6:2 O God, let my children be first among equals in every area of their lives in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Daniel 5:11 Spirit of wisdom and understanding, come upon my children afresh from today in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Isaiah 54:13 O God! Teach my children the path to greatness in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Isaiah 54:13 O Great God! Teach my children Yourself and give them great peace in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Genesis 24:12-15 O God! In a supernatural way that You provided a life partner for Isaac, do so for my children also in the Mighty name of Jesus Christ, Amen!

Proverbs 3:6 O God! Direct the steps of my children to their divinely-ordained life partners in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Deuteronomy 28:7 O God! Let every spirit of stubbornness, disrespect to parents, and constituted authority flee totally from my children to Your glory O Lord in Christ Jesus, Amen!

Mal.3:18 O God of all flesh, destroy and separate from my children anything and everything capable of preventing them from doing Your Will in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Psalm 68:1 let God arise, and let all the enemies of my children be scattered!

Luke 18:15 O God, release Your divine touch upon my children in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

1 Corinthians 14;33 O God, I reject forgetfulness and confusion in the lives of my children in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Job 32:8 I decree success in various examinations that my children will write from today in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

John 14:26 O God, by Your Mighty Spirit, remind my children all they have read and studied as they write examinations in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

2 Timothy 1;7 I decree that my children be baptized by the spirit of boldness to resist every negative fear in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Psalm 119:99-100 My children, ye shall have more understanding than your teachers and classmates in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Daniel 1:20 My children, you shall be ten times better and smarter than your competitors in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

2 Timothy 1:7b; Daniel 1:17 Spirit of sound mind to comprehend intricate matters and unravel mysteries, rest upon my children in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

1 Kings 18:46 O God, let my children enjoy speedy progress in every area of their lives in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Deuteronomy 28:2 My children are divinely insulated from every spirit of sluggishness and backwardness in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Joshua 21:41-44 The way Joshua enjoyed one victory after another, so shall my children enjoy regular victory in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Genesis 12:2 I prophesy that my children shall be blessed and be a blessing in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Psalm 84:11 I prophesy that the life of my children shall be full of grace and glory in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Psalm 118:1, psalm 84:11b This Good God will overwhelm the lives of my children with goodness, goodies and glory in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Psalm 84:11b I replace every shame in the life of any of my children with the glory of God in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Proverbs 22:6 As my children are trained up, so shall they go up in all godly virtues in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Isaiah 50:7 The grace of God shall disgrace every disgrace in the life of any of my children in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

Let's Pray:

Heavenly Father, I ask You in the name and through the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ to bind and rebuke Satan and to put a hedge of protection around me and each one in my family. “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in . . . [us] will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6). In the name of Jesus Christ our Shepherd, Amen.

As you support your sons and daughters in prayer, do not become discouraged. Do not give up or succumb to the idea that your prayers are meaningless. Consider the impact that prayer has had in your life and in the lives of those around you. “. . . The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much” (James 5:16b). Truly, prayer is one of the greatest gifts you can give to your child.

Calling Your Child to a Commitment to Excellence

Our children need to catch a vision for being an ambassador for Christ.

By Dennis and Barbara Rainey 

Our entire culture seems to promote mediocrity. Instead of stressing the importance of extra effort, of going beyond mediocrity to a commitment to excellence in our lives, the message is to settle for just getting by.

As Christians we are called to reject mediocrity, and to be committed to excellence in all things. We need to be excellent because we are representing Christ. Our children need to catch a vision for being His ambassador.

Colossians 3:17 says, “And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.” Although we have urged each of our children to shoot for the best, all of them have struggled with settling for less. Before we look at specific convictions, we want to mention what we believe to be four root causes for mediocrity in preteens and adolescents:

1. Low expectations. No matter what the task or situation, set goals that stretch (not break) your child, and insist on quality effort. Teach and re-teach the principle of learning how to be faithful in little things so that he is qualified to be trusted with bigger things. (See Jesus’ parable of the talents in Matthew 25:14-30). Setting higher expectations is often viewed as odd these days. You may have to encourage teachers, for example, to be tougher on deadlines and standards. Don’t accept the status quo, which is often average or below average.

2. Peer pressure. A study done among 20,000 high school teens concluded that the “kids that kids hang out with have the greatest influence on an adolescent’s classroom performance…The prevailing attitude among students is that ‘getting by’ is good enough. There is substantial pressure on students to underachieve.”(1)

The study further noted, “At least by high school, the influence of friends on school performance and drug use is more substantial than the influence of parents. Parents should know their child’s friends and steer children early in their development toward youngsters who value achievement and school.”(2)

You will have to determine if your child’s friends want to just get by or are more highly motivated. An A in math may not be cool with the peer group. If so, you have your work cut out for you.

3. Ineffective rewards and/or motivation. Luke 10:7 tells us, “The laborer is worthy of his wages.” If your child does a good job, reward it generously. And reward progress away from mediocrity and toward excellence as well. Applaud achievement and quality effort in all areas of life, not just with grades and activities like sports. Life encompasses more than those two.

4. Inadequate support from key individuals. Of course you are the key person in making your child want to climb above mediocrity. Be a cheerleader, your child’s number-one fan. No one ultimately can love and encourage like Mom and Dad! The world is full of discouraging situations. You need to counteract that.

At the same time, solicit help from others along the way—a teacher, coach, church youth worker. In 1960, when I was a sixth grader, I had a basketball coach who created a rally cry for our motley group of modestly talented players: “State Champs 1966!” No, we didn’t ultimately win the championship, but that goal for our senior year spurred me on to do my best. And it contributed to me getting a basketball scholarship to college.

Never underestimate the power of an authority figure in your child’s life to cause incredible damage. For every good one, there could be three bad ones. If your child is in a potentially harmful environment, recruit a coach, teacher, or boss at his work to help you step in to change the situation.

Following are two important convictions to shape in your child.

Child’s Conviction 1: I work for an unseen Boss.

There is much imbalance in the Christian community when it comes to work: We are either driven by it or we suffer from poor work habits that result in mediocre performance. Our children need us to train them with a biblical approach to work.

We are not just working for men, but for Jesus Christ. The apostle Paul wrote: “Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men; knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve” (Colossians 3:23-24).

Our youth need to know that sliding along and getting by with as little as possible will not fool anybody indefinitely. More important, it will not fool God—the One who ultimately is going to determine if a person can be used responsibly for His purposes.

Child’s Conviction 2: I need to strive for excellence in everything I do.

Of course, when we talk of excellence, we do not mean attaining perfection or applying the same standards to every child. We are proposing that, within God-given capabilities, every child be challenged to rise above the crowd, to seek higher standards of achievement, and to be all that God has gifted him to be.

We believe that training a child to step above mediocrity also helps train him not to accept mediocrity in his relationship with God. Luke 16:10 tells us, “He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much.” A child must be trained to be trustworthy, to fulfill his commitments, to do a good job even when nobody is looking.

Several important topics fall under this conviction—chores, allowances, jobs, and schoolwork.

A Word About Schoolwork

The issue of grades raises one of the toughest challenges for a parent. How high should you set expectations and how hard should you push without the risk of driving a child off the cliff? We have told all of our children that we anticipated that they would go to college, and that getting into college requires good grades and taking tougher classes. At the same time, we have told them that doing an excellent job at school does not mean receiving all A’s. It does mean maintaining an excellent attitude and making a good effort.

There’s no cookie-cutter answer to how hard to press on academic performance, since every child is different. But here are some suggestions.

Start with your own heart. Are your motives right, or do you want your child to achieve so that you’ll win applause from others? Are you pushing so the child will win a scholarship and save you money on college expenses?

Academic issues dramatically underscore your need to really know your child. What motivates him? Which areas of curriculum are easy for him, and which pose challenges? Also, is he secure in your acceptance, or does he push himself to win your approval? Asking others who know your child—such as teachers, church youth workers, employers, and other parents—will help you determine if your expectations are unreasonable. Above all, pray for God’s wisdom.

Consider incentives for grades. Average effort should not be rewarded (unless that’s the best the child can do), but above average, superior work should be.

We’ve learned repeatedly that children are motivated differently. We chose to aggressively motivate our son Benjamin in the area of grades, because we knew he was capable. When he was still in the eighth grade, we challenged him to be the valedictorian of his high school class. And if he did it, we promised him a big reward—a car (used). We chose this approach because he was starting to slide on his schoolwork, settling for less. Sometime between eighth and ninth grade he began to take on the goal of being valedictorian as his own.

Without this incentive, he probably would have ended up in the top 10 percent of his class—not bad, but beneath his potential. As it was, he ended up number two, salutatorian. He didn’t kill himself to achieve this. He just used the talent God had given him and pursued a goal.

Depending on each one’s ability, we have motivated our other children with short-term goals and rewards, from a trip, more freedom, and money, to an inexpensive CD player. Every child wants something that will motivate him to excel.

Find out how your child learns and studies best. Study habits have been another tension point for us. Fortunately we interviewed Cynthia Tobias, author of The Way They Learn, on our daily radio program. She shared how each person has a different learning style. When we applied these different styles to our children, it helped us understand why one child studies best on the floor with the radio on and why another does best in a quiet room at his desk. This relieved a lot of tension.

Your entire family will benefit from discussion on the topic of mediocrity. Work together as a family to develop an action plan to reject settling for just getting by, and encourage one another to live lives that honor God—lives committed to excellence, as He is Excellent (Psalm 8:1).

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1) Connie Leslie, “Will Johnny Get A’s” Newsweek, 8 July 1996, p. 72. 
2) Ibid.

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Adapted from Parenting Today’s Adolescent: Helping Your Child Avoid the Traps of the Preteen and Teen Years. Copyright 1998 by Dennis and Barbara Rainey. Used by permission of Thomas Nelson, Inc., Publishers.

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