Training Your Children for Emergencies

I talk a lot about training on my blog.

Maybe it comes from my families history in the military, or maybe it comes from my lifestyle in applying God's word and being involved in the ministry, either way, it's what I'm about. 

I have a lot of kids.

Sometimes I get in situations that I realize if something were to happen, there's no way I'd be able to corral all my kids together to protect them. 

We live in a very dangerous neighborhood and often visit not so safe places... which I guess now-a-days is everywhere.

My husband and I have strived for years to set some safety precautions up for our kids so that they are equipped in emergency situations. 

Without spelling out exactly what we do, here are some situations we have currently trained them in:

(1) A word we call out and all our kids come running and place their hands on me (or dad) immediately. 

(2) A plan for if there was ever someone trying to break into our home while we were there 

(3) A plan for a fire in the house

(4) A password for when and if we ask someone to take our kids for us

(5) We also have family nights where they practice escaping from someone who is trying to kidnap them

Teaching your kids what to look for in "Tricky People" is also important.
Instead of teaching our kids not to talk to strangers we teach them that tricky people don't ask kids for help and how to identify a tricky person. An adult isn't going to ask a kid to help find their dog or for directions, for example, they're going to ask another adult. 

Now we have a LONG way to go before our kids are fully trained in these things and we are continuing to train them in different ways as we see areas that make us vulnerable. 

But this is important and not talked about much in the realm of most Christian families. 

Nana and Alecia 

So ask yourself:

Do you have safety precautions set up?

Do your kids abide by them and know what to do?

Have you literally practiced them in a situation that is as close to the real thing as possible?

Do the older ones watch out for the younger ones?

Do your kids know that there are bad people out there?

Do they understand that if they're taken or don't obey they could be taken and never seen again?

In what scenarios are you or your children especially vulnerable?

What can you do to make those scenarios safer?

What practices do you have set up?
Please share in the comments below!!