Measuring our growth as parents

FOR PARENTS, GRANDPARENTS & ADULTS



Our growth as parents and grandparents is rather similar!
We don’t see ourselves becoming obviously more
gentle or patient or a better listener in a day! Even
when we strain and stress to improve our performance,
we often seem to take two steps back and no
steps forward! We get excited when our children reach
the door handle or get their drivers’ licenses. We celebrate
young children who confidently step forward and
succeed in new tasks and tell us they don’t need our
help any more, while we wonder if we’re up to this parenting
task. It sometimes seems to take us so long to
learn to be firm, or patient, or to listen better!


When it comes to measuring our achievements or failures,
it’s good to take an overall view, looking back
over the last week or month, or year or even longer.
Have we had some successes in terms of some good
parenting outcomes in the last six months? Celebrate
these and thank God for them. And just as we don’t
measure each of our children's achievements and setbacks
using grades or positive or negative marks - a
good school report earns an 8, an ‘incident’ at school a
minus 2, a ‘good week’ a 6 and a ‘confrontation’ a minus
5 - so parents need not grade themselves.


That does not mean we can be complacent. We need
to remain vigilant at all times. But God doesn’t measure
our failures or successes, just as we don’t measure
those of others. Whether it’s your shortcomings or
those of your children, or your parents and neighbours,
it’s God’s forgiveness that counts.


God’s Word reminds us that just as we are in relationship
with our children, God is in relationship with us
and remembering failures and successes is never
God’s way.


Parents do need to grow, and our growth comes out of
our relationship with God, based on God’s forgiveness
through Jesus and as we daily ‘feed on his Word’. Just
as we feed our children every day. There will be failures
- and successes. (Feeding our kids also has its
ups and downs!) But God’s love covers all that. We
move forward, because we …”are being transformed
into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which
comes from the Lord …" 2 Cor. 3:18


Produced by Helen Vanderbom, Children’s Work Coordinator
CRCA : childrens@crca.org.au