With all the changes that occur from infancy to independence, parents remain as one of the few constants in a child’s life. Though no job is more difficult, no reward is more fulfilling than to see your child blossom and grow...
“ …in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.”
Luke 2:52
Kids are a lot like kites—they struggle to become airborne, yet need the stability of the string. Your role as a parent is to prepare your “kite” for flight. In these The Women of Faith resources examine the God-ordained roles for mothers and fathers, different parenting styles that lead to problems, how to maintain the proper balance between love and limits, and the process for “letting go” of your child. Discover how to develop a plan for providing hope and help to hurting parents.
"Though separation is painful, God designed your role as a parent to prepare ‘your kite’ for flight. As the fragile frame dives again and again, don’t be emotionally torn by the changing winds. Keep running with your child, releasing more and more string into the Lord’s sovereign hands.” — June Hunt
When God created man and woman in His image, He said, “Be fruitful and multiply” (Genesis 1:28 esv). In short, the first command of God to His creation involved becoming parents. God’s plan for the first parents, and all parents today, is to reflect His image to their children and to the world. Parenting, therefore, is God-centered. It begins with Him.
“Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.”
Proverbs 22:6
What Is the Role of a Parent?
Parents are intended to be loving teachers who exert a powerful influence in the lives of their children. “Your method of parenting impacts the development and behavior of your children.” The goal of parenting is to raise children who reflect Him and follow Him. And throughout the process, God is available to guide, instruct, and help you.
Parenting is a privilege and a process—a long, unpredictable process. By God’s design, parenting stretches over years, affording children an opportunity to mature physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. As difficult as parenting can be, it is still a privilege. The Bible says, “children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from him” (Psalm 127:3 nlt). It is a blessing to have children, to love them, to teach them, to watch them grow and mature. Parenting is often a process by which you grow and mature as well. God often uses parenting to teach us important lessons about life and about Himself.
Realize, God is a Father who cares about you and your children. He has not left you alone to the difficult yet rewarding task of parenting. He has given you His Spirit and His Word, the Bible, to encourage, equip, and empower you in your own life and in the important work of parenting.
“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
(2 Timothy 3:16–17)
“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”
(Matthew 7:7)
- Parents are mothers and fathers who are responsible for being providers and protectors, teachers and trainers, defenders and disciplers of their children.
- Parenting means physically rearing, emotionally encouraging, and spiritually nurturing a child.
- Parents are intended to be loving teachers who exert a powerful influence in the lives of their children.
- Parent in Greek is goneus,4 which in Luke 2:41–42 reveals the discipling role of parents, as Jesus’ parents regularly brought Him to religious gatherings: “Every year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for the Festival of the Passover. When he was twelve years old, they went up to the festival, according to the custom.”
“Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction and do not forsake your mother’s teaching.”
(Proverbs 1:8)