Parenting: Mission Impossible?

by Norman and Ann Bales

Today’s parents have a tough assignment. Their mission is to provide for their children’s physical, intellectual, emotional and spiritual well being for most of the first two decades of a child’s life. In the process, they will be forced to deal with peer influences, music, television, movies, the drug culture, the internet and the child’s own developmental crises. What resources are available to help today’s parents overcome the negative influences in the lives of their children?

Spiritual Resources. Contrary to popular belief, God has not retired from active involvement with the human race. If He seems inaccessible, it’s because we have not chosen to take advantage of the blessings he offers. “Surely the arm of the LORD is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear” (Isaiah 59:1). We have the Bible and prayer. As Christians we possess “power through His Spirit” in our inner being (Ephesians 3:16). These resources are available for all our tasks, including the business of being parents.

Life Resources. Our children learn from what they see. It is impossible to overestimate the power of a Godly example. As parents grow in their relationship to God, in maturity, in overcoming their self-absorption, they are developing the qualities their children need. No influence is more powerful than example.

Life Experiences. We have some friends who are amazed at how successful they were in communicating their values to their children. They didn’t consciously develop parental skills and they didn’t artificially create learning experiences. They just did a lot of things with their children and shared their faith in the process. In effect, they spent time with their children and took advantage of teachable moments.

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