Parenting Beyond Your Capacity

Being a good parent is hard, and in the short term there is not a whole lot of glory attached to it.  You can't coast through it.  It is intentional.  Anybody can have a child; being a good parent takes work and prayer.  It's may be hardest job you will ever have and it's certainly the most important job you ever will have.

You may be having a hard time with a strong willed child or a teenager who seems to not be respecting.  Or maybe your life is just busy with baseball practice, guitar lessons, and birthday parties.  Maybe you're kids are doing great but you are just struggling as a parent.  Your busy schedule and stress may just be affecting your patience and your ability to connect with your kids.

Our role as parents is not just to raise our kids physically and emotionally but to raise them spiritually.  This truth is evident all the way back in the book of Deuteronomy.  Deuteronomy 6:49 says, "Here O Israel:  The Lord our God, the Lord is one.  Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.  These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts.  Impress them on your children.  Talk about them when you lie down and when you get up.  Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.  Write them on the door frames of your houses and on your gates."

No one has more potential to influence your child than you.

That statement can be overwhelming, can't it.  It's a big responsibility.  it doesn't say , "No one has more potential to influence your child than your Children's Pastor or Youth Pastor or your Baseball Coach."  The good news is you aren't alone in this endeavor.

You are not the only influence your children need.

As parents work in tandem with the faith community to raise their children and teenagers, they increase their parenting exponentially.  Most of us have so many demands that they can't be the kind of parent they desire to be.  We all need to know the Orange Factor:  Two combined influences make a greater impact than just two influences.

Maybe you feel overwhelmed as a parent or feel like you are parenting in isolation.  The book, "Parenting Beyond Your Capacity" by Reggie Joiner can bring encouragement to your life.

Looking for more parenting resources?  Check out the link below.

http://www.icskagitvalley.org/teaching-library/modern-family.html

Peeps, peace, and Easter!

Easter is the perfect time to talk about peace. In Colossians 1:20 and 3:15, we find out that us that peace originated with God's love for us and Jesus' sacrifice on the cross.  Since we can receive such peace from God, we can live peacefully with other people

Maybe when you hear the word, peace, you cringe a little bit.  Your life resembles nothing but peace. A better family portrait might be described as chaos.  Let's be honest.  Life is hard sometimes. Our kids fight.  We fight with our spouse.  Our boss is driving us crazy.  You are driving your boss crazy!  The "to do list" keeps getting bigger.  Our schedule is crazy with work, youth sports, Easter Egg Hunts. Instead of experiencing peace, your life is full of stress.  You may even perceive Easter as a reminder of what you haven;t achieved in life.

No matter where you are at -  Keep this verse in mind this Easter: “So let us do all we can to live in peace. And let us work hard to build each other up.” Romans 14:19, NIrV.  May this Easter be a time where you are encouraged.  We serve a conquering God.  He has already conquered death.  The Lord can certainly conquer the things in your life that you are struggling with.

Be sure to also take some time this weekend to slow down, to spend some time with your family, and to celebrate Resurrection Sunday.