Good Parenting Isn’t Measured By Immediate Results
by Doug Isaacson
Good parenting is tough! What parent hasn’t thought, “If I could only program my child to be obedient and live right!”
The reality? Children require constant and loving nurturing and instruction. Parent, the promise of God is: “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it“(Proverbs 22:6 ESV). Good parenting is a process that takes time.
Parenting is less like programming a machine and more like tending a vine. Day after day, you guide, correct, and shape. Sometimes, growth isn’t evident—some days you wonder if your child is ever going to learn, ever going to be obedient, or even polite. But unseen, beneath the surface, roots are deepening. In time, fruit comes—not by force, but by faithful care.
What roots does your child need to develop?
The most anchoring roots are to love God whole-heartedly and to understand that God is intimately involved in every aspect of your lives.
The command God gives parents in Deuteronomy 6:4-7 is two-fold: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.”
Did you catch what comes first? You must lead. You need to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and might. You’re not a cardboard cut-out that says, “do as I say, not as I do.” You model the ups and downs of a true relationship with God. Yours is a life surrendered to Jesus and you consciously commit each day and all your activities to Him.
Christian Parent, you also have to say, “No,” to activities, behavior, and entertainment that sucks from you the desire to love God completely.
Then, you become an intentional teacher of your children, helping them develop a healthy perspective on life—a perspective that you speak about while you’re eating a meal, watching a TV show, or doing chores.
God reminds you, as a parent, to keep at the task, keep parenting, don’t give up—stay engaged. Some days, you’ll have to put one foot in front of the other, enduring the task, believing in a positive outcome even when signs of it aren’t visible.
Good parenting isn’t measured by immediate results, but by steady nurturing over time. Over time, your obedience to God is transformational. Both you and your children learn that with God, you have an abundant life and aren’t its victims.
Today, Christian parent, don’t give up—believe God is transforming you and your children!
p.s. Are you sitting on the fence thinking good parenting is tough and loving God is tougher? I pray you’ll choose to accept the love of God for you in Jesus Christ (John 3:16-17).
Please Like, Subscribe and Share! If you repost, please provide a link to this site. Thank you.
