Watching our children grow is a rewarding yet scary process. Each milestone is a proud parent moment as they successfully mature into their next level of growth. But if you’re like me, watching them fail can feel excruciating and unbearable. Sometimes this causes us to hinder their growth by helping them too much. Right now I’m in two complete different seasons of graduating my children to the next level of maturity. My youngest baby is my only baby that never went to daycare/preschool. I have breastfed my babies and have never had a problem weaning them off the breast because I also pumped and they took milk from a bottle from other people. Being at home, I never had to pump much, causing her to be very clingy to me. I’ve always stopped breastfeeding by the one year old mark and now I’m two months behind schedule. I know many mommies breastfeed longer and have different opinions about this, but she eats real food and no longer is eating for nourishment. She is strictly pacifying herself. Mommy has four other children to tend to and all of them need me for one thing or another. The problem is she will throw a fit when I won’t let her. She will fall out, kick, scream, refuse to eat, and just be in a complete tantrum my way or no way mode. It’s easier to give her what she wants, but it’s not what is best for our family dynamic. It is time to graduate and learn the next thing. My oldest daughter is a sophomore in high school. She does well, but always wants me to help her with her English Honors writing assignments. She knows this is my passion. She will ask so many questions, by the time she is done; I have helped way too much. She has taken advantage of this and now gets mad because I am limiting my help. I don’t want to see her fail, but if I don’t let her do it on her own, she will never learn. The best lessons are learned by trial and error. Nobody wants to fail, but failure will make you try harder, especially when there is a grade involved!
Hebrews 5:12 (AMP)
12 For even though by this time you ought to be teaching others, you actually need someone to teach you over again the very first principles of God’s Word. You have come to need milk, not solid food.
Hebrews 5:12-14 (MSG)
11-14 I have a lot more to say about this, but it is hard to get it across to you since you’ve picked up this bad habit of not listening. By this time you ought to be teachers yourselves, yet here I find you need someone to sit down with you and go over the basics on God again, starting from square one—baby’s milk, when you should have been on solid food long ago! Milk is for beginners, inexperienced in God’s ways; solid food is for the mature, who have some practice in telling right from wrong.
If we leave our children inexperienced and not let them learn through a process of their own choices, they will continue to act immature. They will become adults with arrested development. They will someday have to relearn what they have been taught because they weren’t ever given the opportunity to put the knowledge they have been given into action. As parents, it’s never fun to see our children upset with us and in tantrum mode, but our choices as a parent should be for their long term benefit and not for their instant gratification. When my mother would tell me “no” and I would get mad she use to say “wait ‘till you have kids, then you’ll understand”. Now I truly do understand. When I would ask my father for help, he would say “by helping you I would really be hindering you.” This would especially make me angry, but now I also understand his words. Both of my parents are gone now, but their words live on as I tell my children the same thing! Many things fail as we continue to live, but love never does.
1 Corinthians 13:8
Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away.
As we train up our children and teach them right from wrong, we must give them room to make mistakes and always continue to love them just as God continues to love us. Sometimes what they want isn’t the best for them. Our teaching, correction, and withholding is for their benefit even if it doesn’t feel good to them at the time. It shows that we love them and want them to prosper.
Father, we thank You for Your wisdom and guidance as we raise our children. Forgive us for sometimes hindering their growth by helping them too much in fear of them failing. Show us how to lead them on the right path while also giving them room to learn from their own mistakes. Help us teach them right from wrong and make good decisions on their own according to your word. Keep your hand upon them as they go. Help us always act in love in every situation. Help us make disciples out of them so they will glorify You in everything that they do. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen!
Hebrews 5:12 (AMP)
12 For even though by this time you ought to be teaching others, you actually need someone to teach you over again the very first principles of God’s Word. You have come to need milk, not solid food.
Hebrews 5:12-14 (MSG)
11-14 I have a lot more to say about this, but it is hard to get it across to you since you’ve picked up this bad habit of not listening. By this time you ought to be teachers yourselves, yet here I find you need someone to sit down with you and go over the basics on God again, starting from square one—baby’s milk, when you should have been on solid food long ago! Milk is for beginners, inexperienced in God’s ways; solid food is for the mature, who have some practice in telling right from wrong.
If we leave our children inexperienced and not let them learn through a process of their own choices, they will continue to act immature. They will become adults with arrested development. They will someday have to relearn what they have been taught because they weren’t ever given the opportunity to put the knowledge they have been given into action. As parents, it’s never fun to see our children upset with us and in tantrum mode, but our choices as a parent should be for their long term benefit and not for their instant gratification. When my mother would tell me “no” and I would get mad she use to say “wait ‘till you have kids, then you’ll understand”. Now I truly do understand. When I would ask my father for help, he would say “by helping you I would really be hindering you.” This would especially make me angry, but now I also understand his words. Both of my parents are gone now, but their words live on as I tell my children the same thing! Many things fail as we continue to live, but love never does.
1 Corinthians 13:8
Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away.
As we train up our children and teach them right from wrong, we must give them room to make mistakes and always continue to love them just as God continues to love us. Sometimes what they want isn’t the best for them. Our teaching, correction, and withholding is for their benefit even if it doesn’t feel good to them at the time. It shows that we love them and want them to prosper.
Father, we thank You for Your wisdom and guidance as we raise our children. Forgive us for sometimes hindering their growth by helping them too much in fear of them failing. Show us how to lead them on the right path while also giving them room to learn from their own mistakes. Help us teach them right from wrong and make good decisions on their own according to your word. Keep your hand upon them as they go. Help us always act in love in every situation. Help us make disciples out of them so they will glorify You in everything that they do. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen!
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