MAKE YOUR HOME KNOWN FOR ITS LOVE


Is yours a home of love? You cannot love someone you do not know. That's basic. The heart and center of the parent-child relationship is that the parents are engaged in the process of knowing the children God has given them. That is a growing process.

Children thrive in an atmosphere of love. They long to know that you love them. Most other obstacles can be overcome if the love relationship is present.

Your love relationship can be measured by:

  1. The way you listen to your children. If you refuse to listen, you become stumbling blocks to them. Listen to what they are saying, and what they are not saying. This is how they reveal their feelings. If you don't listen, you reveal your lack of interest, and worse, a lack of genuine love.

  2. The way you talk to your children. Can you - and do you - say to your child, "Son, I promised you I would do that and I broke my promise. I'm wrong. Please forgive me." Or, "Dear, this afternoon Mom is really edgy, and I'd appreciate your understanding." Or just sharing, "Thank you very much. I really appreciate that." Be honest and thoughtful in the way you talk to your children. Just because kids are little people doesn't mean you have the right to fire away and vent your anger or frustration. If your children are small, get down on their level when you talk with them.

  3. The way you discipline your children. Two extremes: either you are inconsistent with not enough faithful discipline; or you are too severe. You need to set family rules, and let everyone know what they are. Then enforce them. Often parents over-react when something goes wrong, and take their own frustration out in their child's punishment. The way you discipline your child shows whether you have compassion and conviction. No matter how much you love your child, discipline is still necessary - in fact essential.

  4. The way you develop your children. The way you get involved and help your children meet their goals is important. It may seem that it's all up to the parents. As a matter of fact, it is. Children are responders. Parents are the pacesetters, the givers. The investment of personal interest, the free-flowing expression of love, is up to the parents. What you do with them today will determine the kind of adults they become.