Our Favorite Parenting Tips: Train Yourself to Sustain Yourself

by Marilynn Chadwick

Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us (Hebrews 12:1b NIV).

I want to take a minute to encourage you as a parent to take care of yourself. This goes back to our earlier discussion about building your spiritual house. Your relationship with Jesus is the foundation. Your marriage is next. Children love knowing their parents have a healthy marriage. And that they are strong as individuals. Your strength in the home will set a climate that somehow encourages your children to dream big.

I remember one time our daughter asked me, “Mom, do you enjoy us?” Wow. I had to pause and reflect. In that moment, I knew I had gotten to a fragile point where I was not creating habits to help me sustain the joy of motherhood. I became more mindful to enjoy my children, and our family, rather than just “enduring them.”

A thankful heart is a happy heart and makes for a happy home where children, and their dreams, can grow tall.

Remember, mothering is a marathon, not a mile run. So pace yourself. Are you taking care of your “temple”? Getting enough exercise, good food, and pure water? Do you have good friendships? Prayer partners? Now I sound like a mother, don’t I? But it really is so important for us, as moms, to guard our mental and emotional health. Malachi 2 warns us to “guard ourselves in the spirit” as a protection against so many things, including divorce.

So, be alert and watchful for the purpose of prayer (1 Peter 4:7). Then “throw off what hinders and the sin that entangles us,” as Hebrews 12:1 encourages. Watch as God strengthens you and sustains you again and again.

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This Moment of Hope is adapted from Woman of Valor by Marilynn Chadwick (Eugene: Harvest House, 2017). Click here to download a free PDF copy of Woman of Valor. If you enjoyed today's Moment of Hope feel free to forward this email or share this link with a friend so they can sign up to receive a Moment of Hope every day.

Our Favorite Parenting Tips: Encourage Your Child to Listen to God’s Voice

by Marilynn Chadwick

My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me (John 10:27 NIV). 

Train your children to hear God’s voice. Find creative ways to teach them God’s Word. Songs and memory verses are great. But they also need to learn how to apply biblical principles to the problems they encounter in the world. Toss out opportunities for them to think biblically. This will also help them listen for God’s calling on their life—their dreams.  

A very astute older friend whose children were grown once gave me some advice I have always taken to heart. “I helped my kindergartners deal with the problems they faced on a kindergarten level. Then, each successive year, I taught them to learn to look at life from a biblical worldview for that age level. So by the time they were in high school, they were well-practiced at confronting a secular world view.” And, I would add, our children learned to see the people around them who did not believe in Jesus as friends to be won for Christ. Not enemies to be avoided.

Regardless of the educational direction your children take, whether secular school, Christian school or homeschool, they need to hear God’s voice. They need regular, ongoing, consistent communication about Jesus and God’s Word.

I felt comfortable with our children being out in the world once I sensed that they had learned to hear God’s voice for themselves. They accepted Jesus at an early age and were learning how to apply God’s truth. I was always involved in their schools and their friendships, and set clear boundaries. At times, our rules were stricter than those of their friends—and that was okay. 

As I mentioned earlier, we included our children in our own faith walk. We encouraged them to pray for some of the issues we faced as a family. Children are realists. They pray in specifics and notice when prayers are answered. They’re also honest about the pain of unanswered prayers. Jesus loves children for lots of reasons, including their unfiltered honesty. As our oldest grandchild Anna Grace once reminded me, “Jesus loves children because we are so fun to play with!”

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This Moment of Hope is adapted from Woman of Valor by Marilynn Chadwick (Eugene: Harvest House, 2017). Click here to download a free PDF copy of Woman of Valor. If you enjoyed today's Moment of Hope feel free to forward this email or share this link with a friend so they can sign up to receive a Moment of Hope every day.

Our Favorite Parenting Tips: Serve Together With Your Child

by Marilynn Chadwick

If you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday (Isaiah 58:10 NIV).

Whenever possible, David and I included our children in serving others. In fact, some of our most fond memories as a family were going to our sister church in uptown Charlotte and volunteering with their ministry. We would regularly feed the homeless and worship with their congregation. They became like family to us. It was one of the highlights of our kids’ childhood.

When Michael was around eight, I took him with me to work with some moms and children from a different fragile community in the Charlotte area where I volunteered. One little boy, also named Michael, happened to have a handicap. He couldn’t walk on his own and had to be carried around by an adult. Our Michael wondered how he could help. The program director told Michael the little boy simply needed a special kind of orthopedic crutches in order to walk on his own.

Michael persisted until I called our orthopedic doctor friend, who just “happened” to have some of those very crutches available. Michael made sure the other little Michael received those crutches. I told him the little boy’s mom had been praying for some crutches for her son. To which Michael replied, “Cool…I answered a prayer.” I agreed. It is very cool to find ways that we can actually be the answer to someone else’s prayer.

I know I keep saying the same thing again and again, but with good reason. We find life as we give it away to others. From my experience, this is one of the greatest gifts we can give our children.

Find ways to serve with your kids. Teach them to give their lives away to others. Watch as God develops eternal fruit in their hearts by cultivating a life that is “others focused.”

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This Moment of Hope is adapted from Woman of Valor by Marilynn Chadwick (Eugene: Harvest House, 2017). Click here to download a free PDF copy of Woman of Valor. If you enjoyed today's Moment of Hope feel free to forward this email or share this link with a friend so they can sign up to receive a Moment of Hope every day.