Parenting

Though this Sunday's sermon on Parenting was not very personally relevant to me, it was filled with good advice and information worth noting:

• There should be a balance between liberal and authoritative parenting
• Doing everything right does not guarantee an ideal outcome, for even God as the only perfect parent had rebellious children (Isaiah 1:2)
• A mother's love anchors a child's emotions and a father's acceptance anchors a child's identity
• God has placed the ultimate responsibility for spiritual leadership in the family on fathers, not on mothers nor spoiled demanding children (Colossians 3:21)
• Ways parents can embitter their children:   overprotection (not allowing creativity, shows distrust), showing favoritism, put-downs (undercuts child's worth), unrealistic goals (results in depression for never being able to achieve or receive approval), no affection (sets them up for anyone else who comes along and "says the right thing"), no boundaries (results in insecure person due to mishandled freedom), and neglect (children don't raise themselves)
• Two things that will cause rebellion:  indulgence and harshness; And two things to counteract the extremes:  training and instruction (thru encouragement; when they fail, don't leave them there but help them pick themselves up)

Overall, there are five stages to a child's life associated with answers to life's questions:

1. Infancy:  Hold me...Am I loved enough?
2. Childhood:  Tell me....Do I know enough about the world around me?
3. Adolescence:  Show me....Have I seen enough good exampels to avoid disaster and make wise decisions?
4. Young Adulthood:  Release me...Am I equipped and confident enough to make it in the real world?
5. Adulthood:  Advise me....Am I humble enough to seek wisdom when life doesn't make sense?   (NOTE:  This is different from the "Tell me" stage)