Parenting Takes Courage

No matter what your life stage, parenting requires a certain amount of courage. Facing the daily challenges is hard enough, but when that gnawing feeling of what lies ahead hits us, it can be overwhelming.

In our home, we are walking through everything from our college freshman in a serious dating relationship to our preschooler and her authority/discipline issues. Add to that all of your typical teenage and 5th grader struggles. It is not rare for Jenifer and I to go to bed feeling overwhelmed. We need courage to face each day: courage only the Spirit of God can provide.

When we feel sure that the challenges we are facing are going to beat us down, we need courage.

When we are walking in the fear that our children are going to end up in a lifetime of therapy because of the mistakes we are making, we need courage.

When we are exhausted from working through the issue and are tempted to let our kids eat candy for dinner or go out with that friend we don't trust or to give up on trying to push our kids toward Christ, we need courage.

Parenting requires a certain tenacity that can only come when we are depending upon a God whose power and strength keeps going when we want to give up.

Kendra Fleming on the Orange Parents site has written about this very subject. Her brief article Parenting Takes Courage gives some very practical truths to keep us in perspective. You have read my intro to it, now take a moment to consider the truths she addresses.

And remember the words of Christ in Matthew 14:27: "Take courage...it is I. Don't be afraid."