Wednesday, April 15, 2015

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








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