One of the grand things about writing a book is hearing the stories from others about how this idea of knight training is helping their sons. I love hearing the stories of boys who are inspired to live with purpose and who, even at young ages, grab a hold of these ideals and strive to be protectors and defenders of humanity – even if that means starting with younger siblings at home! While my primary aim of the book was to lay strong foundations in the early years of our boys lives, it’s been exciting to see how teens have latched on to this ideal, too. One family loved the concept after reading a magazine article, but were unsure whether or not their teenage son might think it was too childish. They changed their mind a few weeks later when they discovered that their son had read the same article, clipped out the code of chivalry and had put it up on the wall next to his bed as a daily reminder for himself.
Living by the historic code of chivalry is an exciting way to live. It is timeless and just as important now as it was then. Our boys know it. We know it.
At the end of Knights in Training I talked about taking it deeper. Making the challenge more than just a one-time blip on your radar. This year you have an opportunity to do just that.
Join with me and take these truths deeper as we jump into a yearlong challenge.
Each month we will focus on one aspect of the code and how we can go deeper. You will be challenged to take a look at the application points in each chapter of the book and pick a couple to focus on.
Each month, we’ll circle back to a couple of elements – including some that I had not included in the book. Because Knights in Training was intended for a broader audience, I had not included specific scripture references in each chapter. Here on my blog, I will take a more devotional approach. Each month we will visit the following elements:
- Scripture to live by
- Conversations to have
- Things to DO
- Making it a community affair
If you haven’t started “knight training” with your boys yet, I encourage you to dive into my book and issue the challenge. I think it works best, especially for younger boys, to have a period of more intense, focused training – where living by the code is the focus. It entails posting the code, talking about each aspect and then looking for each in action in their lives as you delve into the world of medieval knights by reading stories and talking about how they lived their lives by the code and of course lots of role-playing because what boy doesn’t want to engage in sword battles or (pool noodle) jousting tournaments.
After this initial period of intense focus, it is good to circle back again to the code, but go deeper. For older boys – going straight to this deeper application might even work better. Although don’t leave out the sword fights. They never outgrow the desire for those…
This doesn’t mean that you must bring all conversations back to chivalry each day, but rather that in the back of your mind, one element of the code is something you are mulling over, looking for ways to become more intentional with living out and bringing up in everyday conversation.
Here’s a peek at how the schedule will play out.
So let’s circle back to different aspects of living the chivalrous life and equip our children further to live this adventurous and purpose-filled life. Boys long to live with purpose, but they are human AND young. Like all people, they lose sight of the goal. Because they are children, we must remember that training takes time – it lasts the entirety of their childhood.
We do not give up. We circle back to truth. We help them see practically how they can live this out in their ordinary lives. We recognize the importance of having these practices both CAUGHT and TAUGHT. So we teach them. But more importantly, we model character. We show them what it looks like to live this out in real life. For mothers, it means remembering and acknowledging that our boys (and the men in our lives) will live this out differently than we do. In an age where gender wars are still going strong, we help our children learn to recognize and appreciate the strengths that both men and women bring to the table. We celebrate those differences, knowing it makes us stronger as a society. And we step up to living life intentionally as we seek to push back darkness and make a difference in our world.
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NEW to the idea? Read more about Knights in Training here!
Need to print off your own Chivalry Code Poster or other resources mentioned in the book? Scroll to the bottom of the Knights in Training page. You can purchase a fancier poster or Chivalry Movement decals in the shop.
April challenge – Stand Against Injustice
May challenge – Defend and Protect
July challenge – Respect Women
August challenge – Don’t Give Offense
September challenge – Speak Truth
October challenge – Be Generous
November challenge – Persevere
December challenge – Pursue Excellence
Looking forward to this, Heather! Do you recommend including my daughter in this or just doing it with my son during our devotion time?
I would absolutely include your daughter – this month especially. I’m hoping to include adaptations as we go along for including our daughters because we certainly need to be raising a generation of women up who are clothed with strength and dignity. I’m hoping to tease some of that out as we go along for those of us who have both sons and daughters and work towards also creating a sense of respect for what makes us different and how much we as men and women, boys and girls are similar!
This sounds great! Are we able to print the calendar you have set up for each month above?
Thank you so much! I loved your book and we’ve been planning on starting our own challenge. Doing it with others will be great — really, I am so very grateful.
Love this! Perfect timing. I read the book last year and was planning to start focusing on one element each month for my son who is turning 5 this month. This is a great way to keep me accountable! Yay!
Love this and the helpful accountability that it will add to are lives. I’m in.
I’m in! Totally need community to get through this!! We have finished the book and have been talking to them about “knight training” and we bought them your top 4 book suggestions! Looking to go deeper! Thank you for what you do, Heather!