Parenting: A Divine call, A Huge Assignment
As a child, I really thought that being a parent was all about having cute kids, going to the park, packing cute lunches and having fun all the way. When I thought of being a mother, what came to mind were cute dresses, cute children, fun, laughter and generally a stress-less existence. Years down the line, I realize that I could not have been more wrong. While cute dresses, cute kids, fun and laughter are definitely part of the equation, being a parent and a mother was a lot more than that.
No one told me about the discomfort of being pregnant, the pain that came from labour, the sleepless nights that came from having babies, the lifestyle change that comes from having children and Oh! The last part. No one told me that it was a full time job and you don’t stop till God calls you home. Years later, I’m older, wiser and grateful to the opportunity God has given me to be a mother.
I will never exchange this experience for anything else. The job of a parent is the most rewarding experience that I can ever think of and if you ask me, it is also one of the most important tasks on earth. You either get it right or you get it wrong and destinies depend on the outcome of your child.
I see parenting as a divine call and a huge assignment. God gave us our children as a gift to nurture and churn out to the world to make a better place. Look around you today, the world is made up of people who have either made a positive influence or a negative influence to the world at large. A large part of who people are comes from the kind of background they had. You are responsible for your child’s future. You will either raise a positive influence or a negative influence. The choice is yours. Your child will either contribute to the world or add to its problems. You will either raise a child that will change destinies for the better or someone that will be responsible for the downfall of many.
With this understanding, I have begun to do things a little more differently. I am no longer casual about a lot of things because I realise that I have an opportunity to make a difference in my home. I have become more sensitive, more prayerful and more involved. I have become more organised and more conscious of this great responsibility that I have been given. I have begun to make more adjustments with my time to be home more and committed myself to a lifetime to training and raising children that can change the world.
When I meet people, I can tell what type of backgrounds they had and how that has shaped their way of thinking and their approach to life? What kind of climate have you created for your children? Is it a climate that allows them flourish, grow, learn, be disciplined, have fun and be useful to society? Or is it one that encourages mediocrity, is lacking in love and has an entitlement mentality?
No one went to school to learn to be a parent. All of us have had to learn on the way. The good news is that it’s never too late to start. It’s never too late to make adjustments and what better time than the beginning of the year to do this?
Take a walk with me as I share the lessons I learnt along the way and also from other people about being a mother and raising children.
Contributed by Sola Adugah photo source: youthofanation
