What is it about parenting that makes it feel so hard at times?

The distractions of the world will make everything seem harder than they probably are. This is because we would seek to do things apart or without God. However, when we do things with God, ease and peace pervade our worlds.

Doing things with God means taking a different approach than what we see around us. We can see in scripture that when we do things God’s way we can live freely and lightly. “Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” Matthew 11:29-30 MSG

What does it look like to walk with God in parenting? To know God’s words and promises for our lives is to know how to walk with Him. He wants us to bring every little and big dilemma we have to Him. This means we must not go only to prayer, but also to His word when we do not know what to do.

It is in His word that we can get descriptive on what our actions should be.

Lauren Fraizer's Story

I have a 4 year old and he is like many other 4 year olds. Wild, excited, loud and playful. He is testing his surroundings and boundaries all the time. I have started to notice that I say no, stop and don’t do that so much of the time we are together. It is exhausting to say these things over and over again, but it also feels like a depletion of our relationship to have these words be the bulk of our interactions.

Oftentimes, I meditate on Galatians 5:22-25 NIV when I feel at my wits end, “22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.”

When I come back to His word I am able to take a pause and reorient myself. I want to, “keep in step with the Spirit,” in my parenting. I want my child to know he is loved and feel my love. My correction is necessary, but not when I have made correction the focal point. In this way I can seek to adjust my actions and words and find a new way with my child, rather than repeating actions that are not helpful to either of us.