Happy Monday! We are in Week Three of our spring blog series, Ministry Mythbusters. We can’t wait to get today’s conversation started and hear your thoughts on this super sensitive subject for many ministry mommas.
Ministry Myth #3: My children need to be perfect or behave flawlessly.
While it’s true that modeling Biblically-based parenting where the parents are efficiently leading and training up their children is a leader's responsibility, no parent, preacher or otherwise, is perfect, nor are their children perfect. Raising children in the glass house of ministerial leadership raises a lengthy list of challenges, above and beyond those of parenting in the 21st century alone. And while we cannot provide an exhaustive teaching on this in a few paragraphs, consider the following assurances and tips for taking the pressure of perfection off of you and your children.
•Measure your expectations off of what is reasonable for your child’s age, stage of maturity, and environment—not from what everybody in the church or community expects.
•Openly discuss with your spouse/co-parent what those expectations are often, and tweak them as a team. As long as you and your spouse are on the same page, the consistency from home life to public life will provide a stable environment for your child to thrive and succeed.
•Communicate your expectations clearly and calmly, including consequences if not obeyed, to your children on a frequent basis. For example, on your way to dinner with a family in the church, explain what the environment will be like, what type of behavior you’re looking for, et cetera, as well as the consequences of misbehavior.
•NEVER require obedience of your child because of what it means to others, especially people you lead. Obedience should be required because honoring the parent pleases God. Over time, pleasing the public will grow burdensome and prove to be impossible.
What are your thoughts? Let’s talk about parenting in the public eye in the comments below.
Bonus Resources:
Podcast: Parenting the PK
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