Raising Kids for True Greatness: Redefine Success for You and Your Child [Paperback]

Dr. Tim Kimmel (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 10, 2006

Sometimes greatness is measured by possessions or power and parents become preoccupied with raising "resume" and "pedigree" children. Yet true greatness is an internal evidence of attitudes and a heart known for humility, compassion, graciousness, and enthusiasm. Author and speaker Dr. Tim Kimmel identifies the three most critical and life-changing decisions that will make the difference. According to Kimmel, preparing your children to determine what they will do (their mission), who they will do it with (their mate), and who they will do it for (their master) is the greatest gift you could give them. Raising Kids for True Greatness will expose the shallow wisdom of the world, giving parents a road map to guide their children toward rich lives of eternal value and significance.

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson (May 10, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0849991528
• ISBN-13: 978-0849991523
• ASIN: 0849909511
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #70,066 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Dr. Tim Kimmel is one of America's top advocates speaking for the family. He is the Executive Director of Family Matters, whose goal is to build great relationships by educating, equipping and encouraging families for every age and stage of life. Tim conducts conferences across the country on the unique pressures that confront today's families. His conferences include: Home Improvement: Building a Great Marriage, Basic Training For A Few Good Men, Raising Kids Who Turn Out Right, and Parenting 101. In addition to conducting Family Matters' conferences and keynote speaking, Tim and his wife, Darcy, are speakers for FamilyLife Ministry's Weekend To Remember conference.

Not only is Tim a well-known speaker, he has authored many books including: Little House on the Freeway (featured in the Billy Graham crusades), Gold Medallion Winner Grace Based Parenting, Raising Kids for True Greatness, 50 Ways to Really Love Your Kids, Raising Kids Who Turn Out Right, Why Christian Kids Rebel, The High Cost of High Control, and Basic Training For A Few Good Men. He has also developed several video studies including The Hurried Family, Basic Training For A Few Good Men, Raising Kids Who Turn Out Right, and Grandparenthood: More Than Rocking Chairs.

Tim has been a featured guest on radio and television programs such as Dayside on FOX News channel, Dr. James Dobson's 'Focus on the Family', 'The 700 Club', Moody Broadcasting's 'Midday Connection', and 'Family Life Today.' Tim also hosted his own nationally syndicated talk show for five years called 'Tim Kimmel Live'.

Personal Background
One of six children, Tim learned early in life the importance of family. He married Darcy, his high school sweetheart, in 1972. They honeymooned at Dallas Theological Seminary where Tim earned his Masters of Theology, then moved to Phoenix to become a youth pastor until founding Family Matters in 1982. Tim graduated from Western Seminary in 1995 with a Doctorate of Ministry and is continually learning and applying his knowledge to help families. Tim and Darcy are the parents of four children, have a wonderful son-in-law, and have two grandchildren. They reside with their family in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic - Must read for all ages, kids or no-kids, July 24, 2006

By 

P. Bartolini (Arizona) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Raising Kids for True Greatness: Redefine Success for You and Your Child (Paperback)

There are few books that I have read that have hung around my mind and ruminated within my thoughts as much as Tim Kimmel's Raising Kids for True Greatness. This book is one of the most worthwhile reads available today. Kimmel's brilliant thesis dismantles the success illusion (wealth, beauty, power, fame) and simplistically brings us back to the heart of the gospel message: "True greatness is a passionate love for Jesus Christ that shows itself in an unquenchable love and concern for others." The qualities that identify a great life are humility, gratefulness, generosity, and a servant spirit. The brilliance in this is not that Kimmel had to mine through the scriptures for truths found only Greek lexicons; the brilliance is these truths are boulders that you can't help but stumble upon if your crack open any page in the Bible.

Have you ever heard someone conclude that the wealthy are blessed by God? Does that mean the lion's share of our population is not blessed? Our cultural filter has caused us to misinterpret prosperity with blessing. We equate prosperity, comfort, and a life of ease with God's blessing. Jesus did not say to the rich young ruler, "Just be happy that you have been blessed." Instead, Jesus redefined the man's life purpose and in the process showed that wealth has nothing to do with a life or true greatness. Our Christian culture has been tainted by our ivy-league mind set. Somewhere along the way, money, power, and fame has saturated the gospel that is preached in America; we see it on TV, we invite the wealthy Christian to speak to the business group, Christian CEO's retire to board positions for churches and para-church organizations. Often, the reason is the size of the checks they can write instead of the spiritual insight they can provide. Donald Miller, whose writing has captured the heart of new believers, writes in Searching for God Knows What "If I weren't a Christian, and I kept seeing Christian leaders on television more concerned with money, fame, and power than with grace, love, and social justice, I wouldn't want to believe in God at all." And we wonder why our kids have such a dispassionate faith.

This is where Kimmel shines. He addresses (us) everyday moms and dads and helps us disarm the success illusion that has worked its way into our parenting paradigm. Kimmel writes, "If you aim your kids at anything less than greatness, you'll set them up to miss the whole point of their lives." He succinctly shows us the difference between success and greatness with a 9/11 illustration: "As the successful rushed down the stairs of the World Trade Center, the truly great ran up." He enunciates his point by saying, "when it's time to bury our dead, we mourn the loss of those who were successful, but we celebrate the memory of those who were truly great." Kimmel then gives us the practical advice to "live large by thinking big." Abundant thinkers empower their kids to master fear and joyfully rest in God's limitless power.

Finally - the best part. Kimmel does not just give us a neat simple formula to raise truly great kids, instead, he shares with us concrete mandates found only in scripture that must transform the heart of the parent before they can penetrate the lives of our kids. This book is a great read for anyone - parents, singles, or grandparents. Raising Kids for True Greatness is a book whose time has come; a book that calls us to live out the great life Christ died to redeem.

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars True Greatness: A Must Read For Parents, July 14, 2006

By 

Heidi "az mom" (scottsdale, az) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Raising Kids for True Greatness: Redefine Success for You and Your Child (Paperback)

If you are like me, a Mom spinning her wheels, literally driving your kids to every enrichment activity you can think of HIDE YOUR KEYS AND DAYPLANNER UNTIL YOU FINISH READING THIS BOOK!

I wrestle with it about three times a year. What activities athletic, academic, and social should our three children be involved in so they can either fit in, not be left behind, or feel really good about themselves? Hard to admit but true. After all we want them to be successful right? Wrong, we want them to be Great!

Tim's book gave me solid information on how to redirect my thinking as a parent.

My husband was raised in a family that directed him at the bullseye of success. He hit the target right in the middle. He became everything his parents directed him towards. Good looking, talented, wealthy, and famous. Why is it that his life seems empty in some way? Because he knows first hand that success as the world sees it is a vacuum. It is only when we start living a life for God that our life is truly full.

After reading Tim's book I had to ask myself some hard questions. Am I my kids social chairman, publicist and agent? No, you can hire someone else to do those jobs. According to Tim I need to be "humble, grateful, generous, and others-oriented (servent)". Living a life for God by loving others.

I am excited to finaly have the tools to direct my kids towards True Greatness!

Now where did I put my keys and dayplanner?!

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tim Kimmel presents "True" Greatness, August 17, 2006

By 

Tim Bertsche (Morton, Ill) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Raising Kids for True Greatness: Redefine Success for You and Your Child (Paperback)

I found Tim Kimmel's book truely helpful in thinking through the dangers of wanting the best for your kids. His book leads us in a counter cultural way- against the tide of hoping our kids will attain the "success" of fame, fortune and power. True greatness, Tim writes, is "a pasionate love of God that shows itself in an unquenchable love and concern for people. It is based on grace. It's attitudes are hunility and gratefulness. It's actions are generosity and a servant attitude." These are truely attributes of greatness, modeled by Jesus himself. Parents who push their kids to achievement on the ball diamond or the classroom do not nessisarily lead them to greatness. Abundant thinking, living large by thinking big, embodying God's spirit of abundance in the way they treat each other and everyone they encounter create one of the best environments for preparing kids for greatness in every dimension of their adult lives. It is a book well worth reading and putting to practice in the familuy.