An Encouragement for Parents
I've spent nearly the last ten, if not more, years of my young life serving young people and now even younger children. I don't know if this is true of all cultures and churches, but in my church I have noticed that more and more, even with those who are of a younger generation, parents don't know how much their kids need them.
Maybe it's because we are a bunch of ingrates and we've passed that on to a generation that is given much more than they can appreciate?
Maybe it's because younger generation parents don't really have good parental compasses to begin with and are relearning things that they should have already known?
Maybe it's because our culture values individuality more than interdependence?
Maybe it's because we're afraid of failure or we're embarrassed and we think that as adults we should know everything when in fact we don't and shouldn't be embarrassed but incorporate our kids into the process as well?!
Whatever the reason, this is what I've been noticing more and more. Some parents think that their kids can survive without them.
But that couldn't be further from the truth. It's a half-truth, actually. Yeah, sure, your kids probably could survive without you, could maybe be cared for by others and do just fine. But here's the thing...
Parents! Your kids might survive without you, but they will not thrive without you!
If you're a student and you're reading this, you know deep down inside that's true. You've wished for better parents, but you really only have two or one. Yes, you might be fine leaving home, going off to a college on the opposite coast, spending most of your days wishing your family was like someone else's, but you will not thrive.
That's not just an observation, I think it's the truth. Because whether we like it or not we carry things into our other relationships that come from our family of origin--and you can't escape relationships, because if you did you'd be all alone. You just can't thrive in that environment. It's pretty much a guarantee.
But "what if"? Yeah, there are a lot of those, but I'm not addressing them here. All I am saying is, if you are a parent who feels like you don't mean anything to your child, think again! If you are a kid, a teen, a young adult and you have looked upon your parents and thought to yourself you'd be better off--even though they have done what they could in all their imperfection to provide and nurture you--you need some serious humble pie.
I'm not a parent, I am very aware of that. But I would hope that in my role as a pastor, I have done what parents should be doing--shepherding young people into a relationship with Jesus Christ and all that comes with it. Take heart, parents.
