Are you an accidental parent? Perhaps you didn’t plan on being one, but now you are…. Or perhaps you planned it, but are just taking each day as it comes, with no particular direction to in mind. Did you know you can become a parent on purpose, or better yet, a parent "with" purpose?
Oh may I encourage you, parenting is a ministry! God has brought you little gifts called children, who are entrusted into your care to love, to guide, to teach, to nurture. This can be a daunting task at times for sure, but God is ever ready to equip you to succeed. He has placed all around you examples of good parents. There are people in your neighborhood or parents of kids in your child’s classroom, or folks at church, that are doing a wonderful job of parenting their children. Watch them, learn from them, ask questions.
Also, all around you are examples of bad parents. You see them in the news, you hear about them from friends. Watch them, learn from them – learn what to NOT do.
God is very interested in providing you with on-the-job training. Step by step throughout His word are glorious examples of living our lives on target. How do we handle stress, what to do about finances, how to act honorably in all situations. His wisdom is abundant and available 24 hours a day, both in the written word and through knee-mails of prayer.
Find people that love to be good parents. Learn from them. Purpose starting today to really delight in your children. Embrace the responsibility that the Lord has given you. Partner with Him to tenderly and lovingly raise the children in your charge. Whether you have one child or many, each one is a unique expression of individuality, and comes with their own set of challenges and needs. Each one is waiting to be loved and guided. Each one a treasure.
Ask God to provide you all the resources available to raise this child. Then, set about to give your best to each child in your care. Difficult? Absolutely! Possible? Totally!
God will be your greatest ally in this assignment. As you turn to Him, His Holy Spirit will empower you and equip you to rise to the challenge. You are not alone. Turn to God for all the wisdom and courage and love you need to be the best parent you can be to the children in your care.
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