Raising kids is the greatest honour and blessing. It’s all kinds of wonderful and it’s all kinds of crazy too. Every day as parents we need to be conscious of nurturing, shaping, and leading our children in loving ways. Which can be challenging at times, but most certainly it will reap long-term benefits as they grow up.
On top of all the day-to-day nurturing and shaping of our little people, we now have to consider what kind of world will they inevitably grow up in. As parents you can’t help but feel anxious sometimes when you hear or see yet another devastating world event. From war, through to bombing and killing of innocent people, through to online narcissistic behavior, human trafficking, online bullying that leads to suicide, through to political drama, you can’t help but think to yourself: “How am I going to raise my child in a world that is so very broken! How will I protect them as much as possible? Will something bad happen to them?”
These thoughts are natural, and most parents find themselves anxiously questioning themselves with these plaguing thoughts. Often I look at my son, and I think to myself: “how will I raise him in a way that he will feel confident enough to not let the world negatively shape him, but that he will want to positively shape it?”
I think ultimately that will only come from having a personal revelation that we cannot parent with fear leading us. Of course we want to protect our children as best as humanly possible, but some things in life will be out of our control. If we live in constant fear and anxiety, our children will then behave and live in that way. Which isn’t actually fair on them. Yes, we want them to know and understand that although the world is broken, and the people in it or hurting, there is still lots of good in-between all of the mess and brokenness.
FEAR VS. FAITH
The other day, I found myself in a conversation with a few moms. The main topic of conversation was how they feared the very thought of raising their kids in South Africa, especially with all the political drama that is going on. They were talking about immigrating and spoke almost as if South Africa was finished as a country. This broke my heart, because I love my country. It’s so diverse, beautiful and we have been through a lot as a nation. God is not done with this beautiful country, therefore I will not give up on it.
Yes, we are in a bit of a political mess, but I believe that God will bring a shift into our nation. In the mean time as parents, we should not be shaken. We should see it as an opportunity to raise our children to know and understand that they too play an important role in shaping their home positively. I know that God is always in our future, I know I can parent with; confidence, peace, and with joy.
I’ll leave you with this thought : “Does fear or faith lead you as you parent your little ones?” If fear consumes you and leads you in your day to day, then maybe it’s time to give that fear over to God, and let Him lead you with His peace and with confidence.