One of the most difficult things I’ve ever done was attempt to be a good parent. One of the most joyful experiences I’ve ever had was being a daddy.
Many men father children. Many women bear children.
Some men seem to be only interested in playing with their children. Yet, some of these same men want no part of the really hard work involved in rearing children.
Some women seem to get their ego needs met from their children. Yet, being a parent is not about getting ones own needs met.
Parents need to be intentional about making a difference!
1. Parents who make a difference practice what they claim to believe. Our kids see right through us. They see who we really are, not what we are attempting to project.
2. Parents who make a difference know that their children may often hear more than we intend for them to hear. These kids also hear whatever I might utter under my breath, whether it be a pray or a comment regarding them.
3. Parents who make a difference model what it means to be a godly man or woman. Character can be taught but it is more likely to be caught in a family. Our kids see exactly what is going on in our families.
4. Parents who make a difference give their children Jesus. Reading them Bible stories and taking them to Bible class is wonderful. However, nothing is as powerful as when they see the Lord Jesus reign in their mother or dad’s life.
5. Parents who make a difference deal with their own baggage. Far too many parents hurt their children by projecting their wounds upon them.
6. Parents who make a difference model how to treat a person of the opposite sex. Dad, how do you treat their mother? How do you talk to her and about her? On the other hand, mom, how do you treat their dad? How do you talk to him and about him?
7. Parents who make a difference teach their children how to treat another by how they behave in public. When daughters see their dad leering to get a look at certain woman in the mall, this says something about what dad values.
8. Parents who make a difference deal with their past. Far too many men and women complain about the dysfunction of their family of origin only to then pass on that very same dysfunction to their children.
9. Parents who make a difference model before their children a life of high character, graciousness, and godliness. Too many parents model something very different before their children.
10. Parents who make a difference are not self-absorbed and self-centered. Their focus is on doing what is right and what is best for their children.
What would you add to this list?
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