rizen1
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- Feb 22, 2007
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Outsource Parenting?
NLT Devtoional
To discipline a child produces wisdom, but a mother is disgraced by an undisciplined child.
Proverbs 29:15
Some parents are fond of quoting the first half of Proverbs 29:15. It is the latter half that must be practiced. Passive parenting is like passive farming. Without involvement, one can expect little more than a harvest of weeds.
You cannot outsource parenting. You can’t bully or buy your way to successful kids. They are not raised on “quality time” but on real time—your time, and lots of it. My father was forty-five when I was born. And to top it off I came as a set—I was one of a pair of twin boys. As a parent myself, some days I’m exhausted and don’t feel like playing with my daughter. I can only imagine how my daddy felt when my twin and I reached early adolescence. But, he was there. Always involved in our lives.
As a family we loved sports, especially baseball. Each summer my daddy would sponsor our teams from Little League all the way through American Legion and haul us around in his white Chevy van to the games. But one of my fondest memories is having my dad hit me grounders in the back yard. He had this unorthodox style that was really quite effective and efficient. With his left hand he would wear a baseball fielder’s glove, and with the right hand he would grasp the bat. And with one hand he would hit ground balls or pop flies. Once I fielded the ball, I would throw it to him, he would catch it with the glove, and without removing the glove he would toss the ball up to hit it again. He was extremely skillful at this task of hitting baseballs. I loved him for it. I loved him more for just spending time with me.
My daddy has been dead for over twenty years, and yet I still recall the times he spent with me. He left a formidable impression upon my life by his presence. Nothing would or could ever replace those memories and those times.
I’m hopeful that I am leaving the same impression on my daughter.
NLT Devtoional
To discipline a child produces wisdom, but a mother is disgraced by an undisciplined child.
Proverbs 29:15
Some parents are fond of quoting the first half of Proverbs 29:15. It is the latter half that must be practiced. Passive parenting is like passive farming. Without involvement, one can expect little more than a harvest of weeds.
You cannot outsource parenting. You can’t bully or buy your way to successful kids. They are not raised on “quality time” but on real time—your time, and lots of it. My father was forty-five when I was born. And to top it off I came as a set—I was one of a pair of twin boys. As a parent myself, some days I’m exhausted and don’t feel like playing with my daughter. I can only imagine how my daddy felt when my twin and I reached early adolescence. But, he was there. Always involved in our lives.
As a family we loved sports, especially baseball. Each summer my daddy would sponsor our teams from Little League all the way through American Legion and haul us around in his white Chevy van to the games. But one of my fondest memories is having my dad hit me grounders in the back yard. He had this unorthodox style that was really quite effective and efficient. With his left hand he would wear a baseball fielder’s glove, and with the right hand he would grasp the bat. And with one hand he would hit ground balls or pop flies. Once I fielded the ball, I would throw it to him, he would catch it with the glove, and without removing the glove he would toss the ball up to hit it again. He was extremely skillful at this task of hitting baseballs. I loved him for it. I loved him more for just spending time with me.
My daddy has been dead for over twenty years, and yet I still recall the times he spent with me. He left a formidable impression upon my life by his presence. Nothing would or could ever replace those memories and those times.
I’m hopeful that I am leaving the same impression on my daughter.
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