Yesterday, the hubs and I attending this seminar held at our congregation called "Parenting with Relevance." Our minister, Patrick Mead, was the keynote for the day, and he's nothing short of amazing (plus, his kids have grown up to be amazing as well, so he's a great guy to get parenting advice from). I will never forget hearing him speak as a guest in my Marriage and Family course in college, and lingering on every word he said, even before I had kids. I've heard him talk about parenting before, but I wanted to share a few things that really stuck with me yesterday:
1. The biggest message I took home with me was that our children our designed to be different than us. We're not called to raise carbon copies of ourselves, so we should never expect our kids to be like us, act like us, think like us. They're unique and different because God needed them to be. Let them be who they are. Love who they are and where they are.
2. "God didn't create your babies for you, but for HIM. You have simply been entrusted with their care." WOW. Isn't it so true? We are to equip our children to be ready for the world, to make wise decisions and be a light in a dark world, and prepare them to live without you.
3. Why did God make us parents? 1. To teach us the world is not here for us. He gave us someone to depend on us fully, someone we submit to. Family removes you from the center of the universe. 2. To teach about unconditional love and service. We are to lead by example.
4. Our job is NOT to make our kids happy. Our job is to make them good.
There were so many other wonderful points, but it would take me forever to write it all down. I came away feeling empowered to be the best parent I could be, for God. I've got His kids, and I want to take the best care of them I know how. I want to be able to give them back someday. =]
9 comments:
great post! and I don't even have kids! :)
This is a good post and very eye opening. If I ever have kids, I'll refer back to this post...thanks for sharing!
I love all those things you shared with us. It really makes you sit back and think. Although I do not have any kiddos of my own right now, I still struggle with the idea of how I will be like as a parent. This inspires me to be better to my future children.
Hope you are having a wonderful Sunday!
That was a GREAT post and sounds like an awesome seminar! Very convicting and encouraging!
Great post! I left you a little something on my blog I left you a little something at my blog here.
sounds very inspiring! I agree we shouldnt try to make our children our carbon copies!
What a great post! I love the idea that we're not here to make our kids happy, but to make them good. After all, if they're good, they'll probably be happy too. Thanks for the insight!
Hi Vee!
How true! I love the "God didn't create your babies for you, but for HIM. You have simply been entrusted with their care." I truly believe in this.
Love this post! I'm gonna link back to you when I blog about parenting matters :D
Btw, thanks for dropping by my blog earlier! :D
It is true, God entrusts us with these very special beings. It kind of takes your breath away. Thanks for posting this.
Post a Comment