"Our Role And Responsibility As Parents"

“Jesus replied, ‘You must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:37-40, NLT)

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.” (Hebrews 12:1-2, NLT)

“See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are! But the people who belong to this world don’t recognize that we are God’s children because they don’t know him. Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is. And all who have this eager expectation will keep themselves pure, just as he is pure.” (1 John 3:1-3, NLT)

Since you’ve started this reading plan, you’re probably a parent whose faith is important to you—and who wants it to matter to your kids. In the midst of child-rearing, it feels so important to pass on your convictions. In fact, when it comes to your children’s spiritual lives, getting this right can feel urgent. You wonder how to guide a younger child’s behavior and beliefs so they learn to follow God’s voice as well as your own. If you have an older child, you want them to experience a dynamic life of faith—even when they’ve left the house and are making their own choices.

It is important to note up front that the entirety of our kids’ spiritual development does not rest on our shoulders. We have great influence, but we do not have ultimate control. This is good news!

The Bible instructs us to set our sights on heaven above, letting go of trying to control what we cannot: “Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth” (Colossians 3:2, NLT). Our responsibility is not to ensure the outcome; we simply can’t determine whether or not our children ultimately choose to follow Christ. What we can control are our own actions and commitment to God and His commandments.

Loving and trusting Jesus gives us the spiritual power required to love others, including ourselves. Such love both originates in and is refined by Him (see 1 John 3:1-3). Only in this intimate relationship with Him can we truly succeed. Jesus is not only the author and perfecter of our faith, but also of our children’s (see Hebrews 12:2). So then how should we approach issues of faith with them? What parts of their faith journey are our responsibility?

Our role is to share Christ and to model His love. But that means if we want to be the most effective in raising spiritually strong children, we must also confront and assess our own spiritual strength. Do we bask in God’s love, or do we constantly strive to control our lives in an attempt to meet our own needs? Do we choose to worship Him as our only God, or do we also look for hope in idols such as wealth, comfort, personal accomplishment, or even our relationship with our kids?

Pause and let an awareness of God’s love sink in. How much does God love you? How often do you spend time thinking about the depth of His adoration for you? How frequently do you consider the awesome fact that He, the Creator and sustainer of the universe, knows everything about you and delights in you as His precious child? You are able to love because you accept the truth that God first loved you. Focusing on this will allow you to best love your kids in ways that help them grow stronger in every way.