Parenting

It's a heavy subject - so much responsibility, emotion, opinion and future consequence

I recently read Grace-Based Parenting by Tim Kimmel and Shepherding a Child's Heart by Ted Tripp. Both books that have been on my "to-read list" since Caiden was born but I'm finally getting around to them. I largely agree with the content of both books and have found them to be mostly encouraging of what we're doing and our current philosophies rather than a new shift.

I find myself re energized to evaluate what is the most important part of my job as a parent. I am not a baby sitter. I am not tremendously concerned with how much they know academically or can achieve athletically or musically. I am not focused on producing well-behaved, polite kids.

My huge responsibility God has given me in this season to care for and guide their hearts. My job is to point them toward Jesus and the part that is both the most intimidating and the most freeing is that the way the get that is through what I model for them. Freeing in that you don't have to have the perfect "parenting solution" for each situation, but intimidating in that they're always watching so you better be authentic. There's no faking it!

"Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life." Proverbs 4:23

And guarding their hearts doesn't mean hiding them in a small Christian bubble. We are called to be Christ in the world, to love and serve those who don't know God yet. That means involving ourselves in the big, scary, messy world around us, not protecting ourselves from it. I'm not even sure how to do this myself, much less encourage my kids in that direction.

Yet again my kids are challenging and growing me up in ways I did not anticipate!