Purity is valuing myself and others by guarding my thoughts and actions. When do we start talking to children about purity? How about right away? If from the beginning we never allow children to wear what we wouldn’t want them to wear later, there will be a clear message sent. Stay away from “couple talk”. It may be cute to see little girls and boys walk hand in hand, but don’t start marrying them off or verbally teasing about being an item.
Explain how to play with the opposite sex. Perhaps wrestling with siblings is a favorite family past time, but not a habit to promote purity with those outside the family. I just heard about a high school wrestler that made it to the final round of a tournament to find out he was going to be wrestling a girl for the title. This stand up young man forfeited because he said he would have to touch this girl in ways that would not be appropriate and he was not willing to do that. His parents had obviously talked to him about purity.
A couple of resources we have used and found very helpful are: Passport to Purity and Eric and Leslie Ludy’s books. The Passport to Purity is a weekend getaway that involves listening to several tapes that prompt great discussion about all those topics that can be hard to bring up out of the blue. The Ludy books are terrific and Leslie has an e-magazine for girls. If you are not familiar with them, I would suggest a google search to get introduced.
Most importantly make sure children feel comfortable talking to you about anything. When children take the risk of sharing an intimate thought or feeling, do not show surprise or disgust!!! Listen, mostly listen and then carefully give counsel. Pray with and for your child. Remind them that Jesus knows what it is like to walk through this life and He has provided a way out of every temptation, they just have to look for it.